Is it worth making sense of Marx?

Abstract

This essay explores Elster's analysis of Marx's theory of historical evolution. The meaning of the terras ‘productive forces’ and the ‘relations of production’ are examined both as specified by Marx and interpreted by Elster. The essay then goes on to demonstrate how the modern literature on transaction costs can provide a more precise and useful framework within which to explore the ongoing tension between productive forces and relations of production.

Notes

Jon Elster, Making Sense of Marx. Cambridge/London/New York/New Rochelle/ Melbourne/Sydney: Cambridge University Press; Paris: Éditions de la Maison des Sciences de l'Homme, 1985, xv + 556 pp., £32.50, PB £10.95. Page references are to this work.