1885-C2-PrefacesPrefacetotheFirstEditionPrefacetotheSecondEditionPrefacetotheFirstEditionItwasnoeasytasktoputthesecondbookofCapitalinshapeforpublication，anddoitinawaythatontheonehandwouldmakeitaconnectedandasfaraspossiblecompletework，andontheotherwouldrepresentexclusivelytheworkofitsauthor，notofitseditor。Thegreatnumberofavailable，mostlyfragmentary，textsworkedonaddedtothedifficultiesofthistask。Atbestonesinglemanuscript(No。IV)hadbeenrevisedthroughoutandmadereadyforpress。Butthegreaterparthadbecomeobsoletethroughsubsequentrevision。Thebulkofthematerialwasnotfinallypolished，inpointoflanguage，althoughinsubstanceitwasforthegreaterpartfullyworkedout。ThelanguagewasthatinwhichMarxusedtomakehisextracts:carelessstylefullofcolloquialisms，oftencontainingcoarselyhumorousexpressionsandphrasesinterspersedwithEnglishandFrenchtechnicaltermsorwithwholesentencesandevenpagesofEnglish。Thoughtswerejotteddownastheydevelopedinthebrainoftheauthor。Somepartsoftheargumentwouldbefullytreated，othersofequalimportanceonlyindicated。

Factualmaterialforillustrationwouldbecollected，butbarelyarranged，muchlessworkedout。Atconclusionsofchapters，intheauthor’sanxietytogettothenext，therewouldoftenbeonlyafewdisjointedsentencestomarkthefurtherdevelopmenthereleftincomplete。Andfinallytherewasthewell-knownhandwritingwhichtheauthorhimselfwassometimesunabletodecipher。

Ihavecontentedmyselfwithreproducingthesemanuscriptsasliterallyaspossible，changingthestyleonlyinplaceswhereMarxwouldhavechangedithimselfandinterpolatingexplanatorysentencesorconnectingstatementsonlywherethiswasabsolutelynecessary，andwhere，besides，themeaningwasclearbeyondanydoubt。Sentenceswhoseinterpretationwassusceptibleoftheslightestdoubtwerepreferablycopiedwordforword。ThepassageswhichIhaveremodelledorinterpolatedcoverbarelytenpagesinprintandconcernonlymattersofform。

ThemereenumerationofthemanuscriptmaterialleftbyMarxforBookIIprovestheunparalleledconscientiousnessandstrictself-criticismwithwhichheendeavouredtoelaboratehisgreateconomicdiscoveriestothepointofutmostcompletionbeforehepublishedthem。Thisself-criticismrarelypermittedhimtoadapthispresentationofthesubject，incontentaswellasinform，tohiseverwideninghorizon，theresultofincessantstudy。Theabovematerialconsistsofthefollowing:

First，amanuscriptentitledZurKritikderpolitischenOekonomie，containing1472quartopagesin23notebooks，writteninAugust1861toJune1863。Itisthecontinuationofaworkofthesametitle，thefirstpartofwhichappearedinBerlin，in1859。Ittreats，onpages1-220(NotebooksI-V)andagainonpages1159-1472(NotebooksXIX-XXIII)，ofthesubjectsexaminedinBookIofCapital，fromthetransformationofmoneyintocapitaltotheend，andisthefirstextantdraftthereof。Pages973-1158(NotebooksXVI-XVIII)dealwithcapitalandprofit，rateofprofit，merchant’scapitalandmoney-capital，thatistosaywithsubjectswhichlaterweredevelopedinthemanuscriptforBookIII。ThethemestreatedinBookIIandverymanyofthosewhicharetreatedlater，inBookIII，arenotyetarrangedseparately。Theyaretreatedinpassing，tobespecific，inthesectionwhichmakesupthemainbodyofthemanuscript，viz。，pages220-972(NotebooksVI-XV)，entitled”TheoriesofSurplus-Value。”ThissectioncontainsadetailedcriticalhistoryofthepithandmarrowofPoliticalEconomy，thetheoryofsurplus-valueanddevelopsparallelwithit，inpolemicsagainstpredecessors，mostofthepointslaterinvestigatedseparatelyandintheirlogicalconnectioninthemanuscriptforBooksIIandIII。

AftereliminatingthenumerouspassagescoveredbyBooksIIandIII，I

intendtopublishthecriticalpartofthismanuscriptasCapital，BookIV。Thismanuscript，valuablethoughitis，couldbeusedonlyverylittleinthepresenteditionofBookII。

ThemanuscriptchronologicallyfollowingnextisthatofBookIII。Itwaswritten，atleastthegreaterpartofit，in1864and1865。OnlyafterthismanuscripthadbeencompletedinitsessentialpartsdidMarxundertaketheelaborationofBookIwhichwaspublishedin1867。IamnowgettingthismanuscriptofBookIIIinshapeforpress。

Thefollowingperiod——afterthepublicationofBookI——isrepresentedbyacollectionoffourfoliomanuscriptsforBookII，numberedI-IVbyMarxhimself。ManuscriptI(150pages)，presumablywrittenin1865or1867，isthefirstseparate，butmoreorlessfragmentary，elaborationofBookIIasnowarranged。Heretoonothingcouldbeused。ManuscriptIIIispartlyacompilationofquotationsandreferencestothenotebookscontainingMarx’sextracts，mostofthemrelatingtoPartIofBookII，partlyelaborationsofparticularpoints，especiallyacritiqueofAdamSmith’spropositionsonfixedandcirculatingcapitalandthesourceofprofit；furthermoreanexpositionoftherelationoftherateofsurplus-valuetotherateofprofit，whichbelongsinBookIII。Littlethatwasnewcouldbegarneredfromthereferences，whiletheelaborationsforvolumesIIandIIIweresupersededbysubsequentrevisionsandhadalsotobediscardedforthegreaterpart。

ManuscriptIVisanelaboration，readyforpress，ofPartIandthefirstchaptersofPartIIofBookII，andhasbeenusedwheresuitable。

AlthoughitwasfoundthatthismanuscripthadbeenwrittenearlierthanManuscriptII，yet，beingfarmorefinishedinform，itcouldbeusedwithadvantageforthecorrespondingpartofthisbook。AllthatwasneededwasafewaddendafromManuscriptII。ThelatteristheonlysomewhatcompleteelaborationofBookIIanddatesfromtheyear1870。Thenotesforthefinalediting，whichIshallmentionimmediately，sayexplicitly:”Thesecondelaborationmustbeusedasthebasis。”

Therewasanotherintermissionafter1870，duemainlytoMarx’sillhealth。Marxemployedthistimeinhiscustomaryway，bystudyingagronomics，ruralrelationsinAmericaand，especially，Russia，themoney-marketandbanking，andfinallynaturalsciencessuchasgeologyandphysiology。Independentmathematicalstudiesalsofigureprominentlyinthenumerousextractnotebooksofthisperiod。Inthebeginningof1877hehadrecoveredsufficientlytoresumehismainwork。DatingbacktotheendofMarch1877therearereferencesandnotesfromtheabove-namedfourmanuscriptsintendedasthebasisofanewelaborationofBookII，thebeginningofwhichisrepresentedbyManuscriptV(56foliopages)。Itcomprisesthefirstfourchaptersandisstilllittleworkedout。Essentialpointsaretreatedinfootnotes。

Thematerialisrathercollectedthansifted，butitisthelastcompletepresentationofthis，themostimportantsectionofPartI。

AfirstattempttopreparefromitamanuscriptreadyforpresswasmadeinManuscriptVI(afterOctober1877andbeforeJuly1878)，embracingonly17quartopages，thegreaterpartofthefirstchapter。

AsecondandlastattemptwasmadeinManuscriptVII，”July2，1878，”only7foliopages。

AboutthistimeMarxseemstohaverealisedthatbewouldneverbeabletofinishtheelaborationofthesecondandthirdbooksinamannersatisfactorytohimselfunlessacompleterevolutioninhishealthtookplace。Indeed，manuscriptsV-VIIIshowfartoofrequenttracesofanintensestruggleagainstdepressingillhealth。ThemostdifficultbitofPartIhadbeenworkedoverinManuscriptV。TheremainderofPartIandallofPartII，withtheexceptionofChapterXVII，presentednogreattheoreticaldifficulties。

ButPartIII，dealingwiththereproductionandcirculationofsocialcapital，seemedtohimtobeverymuchinneedofrevision；forManuscriptIIhadfirsttreatedreproductionwithouttakingintoconsiderationmoney-circulation，whichisinstrumentalineffectingit，andthengoneoverthesamequestionagain，butwithmoney-circulationtakenintoaccount。Thiswastobeeliminatedandthewholeparttobereconstructedinsuchawayastoconformtotheauthor’senlargedhorizon。ThusManuscriptVIIIcameintoexistence，anotebookcontainingonly70quartopages。ButthevastamountofmatterMarxwasabletocompressintothisspaceisclearlydemonstratedoncomparingthatmanuscriptwithPartIII，inprint，afterleavingoutthepiecesinsertedfromManuscriptII。

Thismanuscriptislikewisemerelyapreliminarytreatmentofthesubject，itsmainobjecthavingbeentoascertainanddevelopthepointsofviewnewlyacquiredincomparisonwithManuscriptII，withthosepointsignoredaboutwhichtherewasnothingnewtosay。AnessentialportionofChapterXVII，PartII，whichanyhowismoreorlessrelevanttoPartIII，wasoncemorereworkedandexpanded。Thelogicalsequenceisfrequentlyinterrupted，thetreatmentofthesubjectgappyinplacesandveryfragmentary，especiallytheconclusion。ButwhatMarxintendedtosayonthesubjectissaidthere，somehoworother。

ThisisthematerialforBookII，outofwhichIwassupposed”tomakesomething，”asMarxremarkedtohisdaughterEleanorshortlybeforehisdeath。Ihaveconstruedthistaskinitsnarrowestmeaning。Sofarasthiswasatallpossible，Ihaveconfinedmyworktothemereselectionofatextfromtheavailablevariants。Ialwaysbasedmyworkonthelastavailableeditedmanuscript，comparingthiswiththeprecedingones。Onlythefirstandthirdpartsofferedanyrealdifficulties，i。e。，ofmorethanameretechnicalnature，andthesewereindeedconsiderable。Ihaveendeavouredtosolvethemexclusivelyinthespiritoftheauthor。

Ihavetranslatedquotationsinthetextwhenevertheyarecitedinconfirmationoffactsorwhen，asinpassagesfromAdamSmith，theoriginalisavailabletoeveryonewhowantstogothoroughlyintothematter。ThiswasimpossibleonlyinChapterX，becausethereitispreciselytheEnglishtestthatiscriticised。

ThequotationsfromBookIarepagedaccordingtoitssecondedition，thelastonetoappearinMarx’slifetime。

ForBookIII，onlythefollowingmaterialsareavailable，apartfromthefirstelaborationinmanuscriptformofZurKritik，fromtheabove-mentionedpartsofManuscriptIII，andfromafewoccasionalshortnotesscatteredthroughvariousextractnotebooks:Thefoliomanuscriptof1864-65，referredtopreviously，whichisaboutasfullyworkedoutasManuscriptIIofBookII；furthermore，anotebookdated1875:TheRelationoftheRateofSurplus-ValuetotheRateofProfit，whichtreatsthesubjectmathematically(inequations)。ThepreparationofthisBookforpublicationisproceedingrapidly。SofarasIamabletojudgeuptonow，itwillpresentmainlytechnicaldifficulties，withtheexceptionofafewbutveryimportantsections——

IconsiderthisanopportuneplacetorefuteacertainchargewhichhasbeenraisedagainstMarx，firstinonlywhispers，sporadically，butmorerecently，afterhisdeath，proclaimedanestablishedfactbyGermanSocialistsoftheChairandoftheStateandbytheirhangers-on。ItisclaimedthatMarxplagiarisedtheworkofRodbertus。Ihavealreadystatedelsewhere[1]whatwasmosturgentinthisregard，butnotuntilnowhaveIbeenabletoadduceconclusiveproof。

AsfarasIknowthischargewasmadeforthefirsttimeinR。Meyer’sEmancipationskampfdesviertenStandes，p。43:”ItcanbeprovedthatMarxhasgatheredthegreaterpartofhiscritiquefromthesepublications”——meaningtheworksofRodbertusdatingbacktothelasthalfofthethirties。Imaywellassume，untilfurtherevidenceisproduced，thatthe”wholeproof”ofthisassertionconsistsinRodbertushavingassuredHerrMeyerthatthiswasso。

In1879RodbertushimselfappearsonthesceneandwritesthefollowingtoJ。Zeller(ZeitschriftfurdiegesamteStaatswissenschaft，Tubingen，1879，p。219)，withreferencetohisworkZurErkenntnissunsrerstaatswirtschaftlichenZustande，1842:”Youwillfindthatthis”(thelineofthoughtdevelopedinit)”hasbeenverynicelyused……byMarx，without，however，givingmecreditforit。”TheposthumouspublisherofRodbertus’sworks，Th。Kozak，repeatshisinsinuationwithoutfurtherceremony。(DasKapitalvonRodbertus。Berlin，1884，Introduction，p。XV。)

FinallyintheBriefeundSozialpolitischeAufsatzevonDr。Rodbertus-Jagetzow，publishedbyR。Meyerin1881，Rodbertussayspoint-blank:”To-dayIfindIhavebeenrobbedbySchaffleandMarxwithouthavingmynamementioned。”(LetterNo。60，p……134。)Andinanotherplace，Rodbertus’sclaimassumesamoredefiniteform:”InmythirdsocialletterIhaveshownvirtuallyinthesamewayasMarx，onlymorebrieflyandclearly，whatthesourceofthesurplus-valueofthecapitalistis。”(LetterNo。48，p。

111。)

Marxhadneverheardanythingaboutanyofthesechargesofplagiarism。

InhiscopyoftheEmancipationskampfonlythatparthadbeencutopenwhichrelatedtotheInternational。TheremainingpageswerenotopeneduntilIcutthemmyselfafterhisdeath。HeneverlookedattheTubingenZeitschrift。TheBriefe，etc。，toR。Meyerlikewiseremainedunknowntohim，andIdidnotlearnofthepassagereferringtothe”robbery”

untilDr。Meyerhimselfwasgoodenoughtocallmyattentiontoitin1884。

However，MarxwasfamiliarwithletterNo。48。Dr。MeyerhadbeensokindastopresenttheoriginaltotheyoungestdaughterofMarx。WhensomeofthemysteriouswhisperingaboutthesecretsourceofhiscriticismhavingtobesoughtinRodbertusreachedtheearofMarx，heshowedmethatletterwiththeremarkthatherehehadatlastauthenticinformationastowhatRodbertushimselfclaimed；ifthatwasallRodbertusassertedhe，Marx，hadnoobjection，andhecouldwellaffordtoletRodbertusenjoythepleasureofconsideringhisownversionthebrieferandclearerone。Infact，MarxconsideredthemattersettledbythisletterofRodbertus。

HecouldsoallthemoresinceIknowforcertainthathewasnotintheleastacquaintedwiththeliteraryactivityofRodbertusuntilabout1859，whenhisowncritiqueofPoliticalEconomyhadbeencompleted，notonlyinitsfundamentaloutlines，butalsoinitsmoreimportantdetails。

MarxbeganhiseconomicstudiesinParis，in1843，startingwiththegreatEnglishmenandFrenchmen。OfGermaneconomistsheknewonlyRauandList，andhedidnotwantanymoreofthem。NeitherMarxnorIheardawordofRodbertus’sexistenceuntilwehadtocriticise，intheNeueRheinischeZeitung，1848，thespeecheshemadeasBerlinDeputyandhisactionsasMinister。WewerebothsoignorantthatwehadtoasktheRhenishdeputieswhothisRodbertuswasthathadbecomeaMinistersosuddenly。ButthesedeputiestoocouldnottellusanythingabouttheeconomicwritingsofRodbertus。ThatontheotherhandMarxhadknownverywellalreadyatthattime，withoutthehelpofRodbertus，notonlywhencebutalsohow”thesurplus-valueofthecapitalist”cameintoexistenceisprovedbyhisPovertyofPhilosophy，1847，andbyhislecturesonwage-labourandcapital，deliveredinBrusselsthesameyearandpublishedinNos。

264-69oftheNeueRheinischeZeitung，in1849。Itwasonlyin1859，throughLassalle，thatMarxlearnedoftheexistenceofacertaineconomistnamedRodbertusandthereuponMarxlookedupthe”thirdsocialletter”

intheBritishMuseum。

Theseweretheactualcircumstances。Andnowletusseewhatthereistothecontent，ofwhichMarxischargedwith”robbing”Rodbertus。SaysRodbertus:”InmythirdsocialletterIhaveshowninthesamewayasMarx，onlymorebrieflyandclearly，whatthesourceofthesurplus-valueofthecapitalistis。”This，then，isthecruxofthematter:Thetheoryofsurplus-value。Andindeed，itwouldhedifficulttosaywhatelsethereisinMarxthatRodbertusmightclaimashisproperty。ThusRodbertusdeclareshereheistherealoriginatorofthetheoryofsurplus-valueandthatMarsrobbedhimofit。

Andwhathasthethirdsociallettertosayinregardtotheoriginofsurplus-value？Simplythis:That”rent，”histermwhichlumpstogetherground-rentandprofit，doesnotarisefroman”additionofvalue”tothevalueofacommodity，but”fromadeductionofvaluefromwages；inotherwords，becausewagesrepresentonlyapartofthevalueofaproduct，”

andiflabourissufficientlyproductivewagesneednotbe”equaltothenaturalexchange-valueoftheproductoflabourinordertoleaveenoughofthisvalueforthereplacingofcapital(！)andforrent。Wearenotinformedhoweverwhatsortofa”naturalexchange-value”ofaproductitisthatleavesnothingforthe”replacingofcapital，”consequently，forthereplacementofrawmaterialandthewearandtearoftools。

ItisourgoodfortunetobeabletostatewhatimpressionwasproducedonMarxbythisstupendousdiscoveryofRodbertus。InthemanuscriptZurKritik，notebookX，pp。445etseqq。wefinda”Digression。HerrRodbertus。

ANewGround-RentTheory。”ThisistheonlypointofviewfromwhichMarxtherelooksuponthethirdsocialletter。TheRodbertiantheoryofsurplus-valueingeneralisdismissedwiththeironicalremark。”Mr。Rodbertusfirstanalysestheslateofaffairsinacountrywherepropertyinlandandpropertyincapitalarenotseparatedandthenarrivesattheimportantconclusionthatrent(bywhichhemeanstheentiresurplus-value)isonlyequaltotheunpaidlabourortothequantityofproductsinwhichthislabourisexpressed。”

Capitalisticmanhasbeenproducingsurplus-valueforseveralhundredyearsandhasgraduallyarrivedatthepointofponderingoveritsorigin。Theviewfirstpropoundedgrewdirectlyoutofcommercialpractice:

surplus-valuearisesoutofanadditiontothevalueoftheproduct。Thisideawascurrentamongthemercantilists。ButJamesSteuartalreadyrealisedthatinthatcasetheonewouldnecessarilylosewhattheotherwouldgain。

Nevertheless，thisviewpersistedforalongtimeafterwards，especiallyamongtheSocialists。ButitwasthrustoutofclassicalsciencebyAdamSmith。

HesaysintheWealthofNations，Vol。I，Ch。VI:”Assoonasstockhasaccumulatedinthehandsofparticularpersons，someofthemwillnaturallyemployitinsettingtoworkindustriouspeople，whomtheywillsupplywithmaterialsandsubsistence，inordertomakeaprofitbythesaleoftheirwork，orbywhattheirlabouraddstothevalueofthematerials……Thevaluewhichtheworkmenaddtothematerials，therefore，resolvesitselfinthiscaseintotwoparts，ofwhichtheonepaystheirwages，theothertheprofitsoftheiremployeruponthewholestockofmaterialsandwageswhichheadvanced。Andalittlefurtheronhesays:”Assoonasthelandofallycountryhasallbecomeprivateproperty，thelandlords，likeallothermen，lovetoreapwheretheyneversowed，anddemandarentevenforitsnaturalproduce……”Thelabourer”mustgiveuptothelandlordaportionofwhathislaboureithercollectsorproduces。Thisportion，or，whatcomestothesamething，thepriceofthisportion，constitutestherentofland。”

Marxcommentsonthispassageintheabove-namedmanuscriptZurKritik，etc。，p。253:”ThusAdamSmithconceivessurplus-value——thatis，surplus-labour，theexcessoflabourperformedandrealisedinthecommodityoverandabovethepaidlabour，thelabourwhichhasreceiveditsequivalentinthewages——asthegeneralcategory，ofwhichprofitinthestrictsenseandrentoflandaremerelybranches。”

AdamSmithsaysfurthermore(Vol。I，Ch。VIII):”Assoonaslandbecomesprivateproperty，thelandlorddemandsashareofalmostalltheproducewhichthelabourercaneitherraiseorcollectfromit。Hisrentmakesthefirstdeductionfromtheproduceofthelabourwhichisemployeduponland。Itseldomhappensthatthepersonwhotillsthegroundhasthewherewithaltomaintainhimselftillhereapstheharvest。Hismaintenanceisgenerallyadvancedtohimfromthestockofamaster，thefarmerwhoemployshim，andwhowouldhavenointeresttoemployhim，unlesshewastoshareintheproduceofhislabour，orunlesshisstockwastobereplacedtohimwithaprofit。Thisprofitmakesaseconddeductionfromtheproduceofthelabourwhichisemployeduponland。Theproduceofalmostallotherlabourisliabletothelikedeductionofprofit。Inallartsandmanufacturesthegreaterpartoftheworkmenstandinneedofamastertoadvancethemthematerialsoftheirwork，andtheirwagesandmaintenancetillitbecompleted。Hesharesintheproduceoftheirlabour，orinthevaluewhichitaddstothematerialsuponwhichitisbestowed；andinthisshareconsistshisprofit。”

Marx’scomment(Manuscript，p。256):”HerethereforeAdamSmithinplaintermsdescribesrentandprofitoncapitalasmeredeductionsfromtheworkman’sproductorthevalueofhisproduct，whichisequaltothequantityoflabouraddedbyhimtothematerial。Thisdeductionhowever，asAdamSmithhashimselfpreviouslyexplained，canonlyconsistofthatpartofthelabourwhichtheworkmanaddstothematerials，overandabovethequantityoflabourwhichonlypayshiswages，orwhichonlyprovidesanequivalentforhiswages；thatis，thesurplus-labour，theunpaidpartofhislabour。”

ThusevenAdamSmithknew”thesourceofthesurplus-valueofthecapitalist，”andfurthermorealsoofthatofthelandlord。Marxacknowledgedthisasearlyas1861，whileRodbertusandtheswarmingmassofhisadmirers，whogrewlikemushroomsunderthewarmsummershowersofstatesocialism，seemtohaveforgottenallaboutthat。”Nevertheless，”Marxcontinues，”he[AdamSmith]doesnotdistinguishsurplus-valueassuchasacategoryonitsown，distinctfromthespecificformsitassumesinprofitandrent。Thisisthesourceofmucherrorandinadequacyinhisinquiry，andofevenmoreintheworkofRicardo。”

ThisstatementfitsRodbertustoaT。His”rent”issimplythesumofground-rentandprofit。Hebuildsupanentirelyerroneoustheoryofground-rent，andheacceptsprofitwithoutanyexaminationofit，justashefindsitamonghispredecessors。

Marx’ssurplus-value，onthecontrary，representsthegeneralformofthesumofvaluesappropriatedwithoutanyequivalentbytheownersofthemeansofproduction，andthisformsplitsintothedistinct，convertedformsofprofitandground-rentinaccordancewithverypeculiarlawswhichMarxwasthefirsttodiscover。TheselawswillbeexpoundedinBookIII。

Weshallseetherethatmanyintermediatelinksarerequiredtoarrivefromanunderstandingofsurplus-valueingeneralatanunderstandingofitstransformationintoprofitandground-rent；inotherwordsatanunderstandingofthelawsofthedistributionofsurplus-valuewithinthecapitalistclass。

RicardogoesconsiderablyfurtherthanAdamSmith。Hebaseshisconceptionofsurplus-valueonanewtheoryofvaluecontainedinembryoinAdamSmith，butgenerallyforgottenwhenitcomestoapplyingit。Thistheoryofvaluebecamethestarting-pointofallsubsequenteconomicscience。Fromthedeterminationofthevalueofcommoditiesbythequantityoflabourembodiedinthemhederivesthedistribution，betweenthelabourersandcapitalists，ofthequantityofvalueaddedbylabourtotherawmaterials，andthedivisionofthisvalueintowagesandprofit(i。e。，heresurplus-value)。

Heshowsthatthevalueofthecommoditiesremainsthesamenomatterwhatmaybetheproportionofthesetwoparts，alawwhichheholdshasbutfewexceptions。Heevenestablishesafewfundamentallaws，althoughcouchedintoogeneralterms，onthemutualrelationsofwagesandsurplus-value(takenintheformofprofit)(Marx，DasKapital，BuchI，Kap。XV，A)，andshowsthatground-rentisasurplusoverandaboveprofit，whichundercertaincircumstancesdoesnotaccrue。

InnoneofthesepointsdidRodbertusgobeyondRicardo。HeeitherremainedwhollyunfamiliarwiththeinternalcontradictionsoftheRicardiantheorywhichcausedthedownfallofthatschool，ortheyonlymisledhimintoraisingutopiandemands(hisZurErkenntnis，etc。，p。130)insteadofinducinghimtofindeconomicsolutions。

ButtheRicardiantheoryofvalueandsurplus-valuedidnothavetowaitforRodbertus’sZurErkenntnisinordertobeutilisedforsocialistpurposes。Onpage609ofthefirstvolume(DasKapital，2nded。)wefindthefollowingquotation，”Thepossessorsofsurplus-produceorcapital，”takenfromapamphletentitledTheSourceandRemedyoftheNationalDifficulties。ALettertoLordJohnRussell，London，1821。

Inthispamphletof40pages，theimportanceofwhichshouldhavebeennotedifonlyonaccountoftheoneexpression”surplus-produceorcapital，”andwhichMarxsavedfromfallingintooblivion，wereadthefollowingstatements:”……whatevermaybeduetothecapitalist”(fromthestandpointofthecapitalist)”hecanonlyreceivethesurplus-labourofthelabourer；forthelabourermustlive”(p。23)。Buthowthelabourerlivesandhencehowmuchthesurplus-labourappropriatedbythecapitalistcanamounttoareveryrelativethings。”……ifcapitaldoesnotdecreaseinvalueasitincreasesinamount，thecapitalistswillexactfromthelabourerstheproduceofeveryhour’slabourbeyondwhatitispossibleforthelabourertosubsistonthecapitalistmay……eventuallysaytothelabourer，’Youshan’teatbread……becauseitispossibletosubsistonbeetrootandpotatoes。’Andtothispointhavewecome！”(Pp。2。3-24。)”Why，ifthelabourercanbebroughttofeedonpotatoesinsteadofbread，itisindisputablytruethatmorecanbeexactedfromhislabour；thatistosay，ifwhenhefedonbread，hewasobligedtoretainforthemaintenanceofhimselfandfamilythelabourofMondayandTuesday，hewill，onpotatoes，requireonlythehalfofMonday&middot；；andtheremaininghalfofMondayandthewholeofTuesdayareavailableeitherfortheserviceofthestateorthecapitalist。”(P。26。)”Itisadmittedthattheinterestpaidtothecapitalists，whetherinthenatureofrents，interestsonmoney，orprofitsoftrade，ispaidoutofthelabourofothers。”(P。23。)Herewehaveexactlythesameideaof”rent”asRodbertushas，exceptthat”interest”isusedinsteadof”rent。”

Marxmakesthefollowingcomment(manuscriptZurKritik，p。852):”Thislittleknownpamphlet——publishedatatimewhenthe”incrediblecobbler”MacCullochbegantobetalkedabout——representsanessentialadvanceoverRicardo。Itdirectlydesignatessurplus-value，or’profit’

inthelanguageofRicardo(oftenalsosurplus-produce)，orinterest，astheauthorofthispamphletcallsit，assurplus-labour，thelabourwhichthelabourerperformsgratuitously，whichheperformsinexcessofthatquantityoflabourbywhichthevalueofhislabour-powerisreplaced，i。e。，anequivalentofhiswagesisproduced。Itwasnomoreimportanttoreducevaluetolabourthantoreducesurplus-value，representedbyasurplus-produce，tosurplus-labour。ThishasalreadybeenstatedbyAdamSmithandformsamainfactorinRicardo’sanalysis。

Buttheydidnotsaysonorfixitanywhereinabsoluteform。”Wereadfurthermore，onpage859ofthemanuscript:”Moreover，theauthorisaprisoneroftheeconomiccategoriesastheyhavecomedowntohim。Justastheconfoundingofsurplus-valueandprofitmisleadsRicardointounpleasantcontradictions，sothisauthorfaresnobetterbybaptisingsurplus-valuewiththenameof’interestofcapital。’True，headvancesbeyondRicardobyhavingbeenthefirsttoreduceallsurplus-valuetosurplus-labour。

Furthermore，whilecallingsurplus-value’interestofcapital，’heemphasisesatthesametimethatbythistermhemeansthegeneralformofsurplus-labourasdistinguishedfromitsspecialforms:rent，interestonmoney，andprofitofenterprise。Andyethepicksthenameofoneofthesespecialforms，interest，forthegeneralform。Andthissufficedtocausehisrelapseintoeconomicslang。”

ThislastpassagefitsRodbertuslikeaglove。He，too，isaprisoneroftheeconomiccategoriesastheyhavecomedowntohim。He，too，appliestosurplus-valuethenameofoneofitsconvertedsub-forms，rent，andmakesitquiteindefiniteatthat。Theresultofthesetwomistakesisthatherelapsesintoeconomicslang，thathedoesnotfollowuphisadvanceoverRicardocritically，andthatinsteadheismisledintousinghisunfinishedtheory，evenbeforeitgotridofitsegg-shell，asthebasisforautopiawithwhich，asalways，hecomestoolate。Thepamphletappearedin1821

andanticipatedcompletelyRodbertus’s”rent”of1842。

OurpamphletisbutthefarthestoutpostofanentireliteraturewhichinthetwentiesturnedtheRicardiantheoryofvalueandsurplus-valueagainstcapitalistproductionintheinterestoftheproletariat，foughtthebourgeoisiewithitsownweapons。TheentirecommunismofOwen，sofarasitengagesinpolemicsoneconomicquestions，isbasedonRicardo。

Apartfromhim，therearestillnumerousotherwriters，someofwhomMarxquotedasearlyas1847againstProudhon(MiseredelaPhilosophie，p。49”)，suchasEdmonds，Thompson，Hodgskin，etc。，etc。，”andfourmorepagesofetceteras。”Iselectthefollowingatrandomfromamongthismultitudeofwritings:AnInquiryintothePrinciplesoftheDistributionofWealth，MostConducivetoHumanHappiness，byWilliamThompson；anewedition，London，1850。Thiswork，writtenin1822，firstappearedin1824。Herelikewisethewealthappropriatedbythenon-producingclassesisdescribedeverywhereasadeductionfromtheproductofthelabourerandratherstrongwordsareused。Theauthorsays:”Theconstanteffortofwhathasbeencalledsociety，hasbeentodeceiveandinduce，toterrifyandcompel，theproductivelabourertoworkforthesmallestpossibleportionoftheproduceofhisownlabour”(P。28)。”Whynotgivehimthewholeabsoluteproduceofhislabour？”(P。32。)”Thisamountofcompensation，exactedbycapitalistsfromtheproductivelabourers，underthenameofrentorprofits，isclaimedfortheuseoflandorotherarticles……Forallthephysicalmaterialsonwhich，orbymeansofwhich，hisproductivepowerscanbemadeavailable，beinginthehandsofotherswithInterestsopposedtohis，andtheirconsentbeinganecessarypreliminarytoanyexertiononhispart，ishenot，andmusthenotalwaysremain，atthemercyofthesecapitalistsforwhateverportionofthefruitsofhisownlabourtheymaythinkpropertoleaveathisdisposalincompensationforhistoils？”(P&middot；125。)”……inproportiontotheamountofproductswithheld，whethercalledprofits，ortaxes，ortheft”(p。126)，etc。

ImustadmitthatIdonot。writetheselineswithoutacertainmortification。

Iwillnotmakesomuchofthefactthattheanti-capitalistliteratureofEnglandofthetwentiesandthirtiesissototallyunknowninGermany，inspiteofMarx’sdirectreferencestoiteveninhisPovertyofPhilosophy，andhisrepeatedquotationsfromit，asforinstancethepamphletof1821，Ravenstone，Hodgskin，etc。，inVolumeIofCapital。ButitisproofofthegravedeteriorationofofficialPoliticalEconomythatnotonlytheLiteratusvulgaris，whoclingsdesperatelytothecoattailsofRodbertusand”reallyhasnotlearnedanything，”hutalsotheofficiallyandceremoniouslyinstalledprofessor，who”boastsofhiserudition，”hasforgottenhisclassicalPoliticalEconomytosuchanextentthatheseriouslychargesMarxwithhavingpurloinedthingsfromRodbertuswhichmaybefoundeveninAdamSmithandRicardo。

ButwhatistherenewinMarx’sutterancesonsurplus-value？HowisitthatMarx’stheoryofsurplus-valuestruckhomelikeathunderboltoutofaclearsky，andthatinallcivilisedcountries，whilethetheoriesofallhissocialistpredecessors，Rodbertusincluded，vanishedwithouthavingproducedanyeffect？

Thehistoryofchemistryoffersanillustrationwhichexplainsthis。

Weknowthatlateinthepastcenturythephlogistictheorystillprevailed。

Itassumedthatcombustionconsistedessentiallyinthis:thatacertainhypotheticalsubstance，anabsolutecombustiblenamedphlogiston，separatedfromtheburningbody。Thistheorysufficedtoexplainmostofthechemicalphenomenathenknown，althoughithadtobeconsiderablystrainedinsomecases。Butin1774Priestleyproducedacertainkindofair”whichhefoundtobesopure，orsofreefromphlogiston，thatcommonairseemedadulteratedincomparisonwithit。”Hecalledit”dephlogisticatedair。”ShortlyafterhimScheeleobtainedthesamekindofairinSwedenanddemonstrateditsexistenceintheatmosphere。Healsofoundthatthiskindofairdisappearedwheneversomebodywasburnedinitorinordinaryairandthereforehecalledit”fire-air。””Fromthesefactshedrewtheconclusionthatthecombinationarisingfromtheunionofphlogistonwithoneofthecomponentsoftheatmosphere”(thatistosay，fromcombustion)”wasnothingbutfireorheatwhichescapedthroughtheglass。”[2]

PriestleyandScheelehadproducedoxygenwithoutknowingwhattheyhadlaidtheirhandson。They”remainedprisonersofthe”phlogistic”categoriesastheycamedowntothem。”Theelementwhichwasdestinedtoupsetallphlogisticviewsandtorevolutionisechemistryremainedbarrenintheirhands。ButPriestleyhadimmediatelycommunicatedhisdiscoverytoLavoisierinParis，andLavoisier，bymeansofthisdiscovery，nowanalysedtheentirephlogisticchemistryandcametotheconclusionthatthisnewkindofairwasanewchemicalelement，andthatcombustionwasnotacaseofthemysteriousphlogistondepartingfromtheburningbody，butofthisnewelementcombiningwiththatbody。Thushewasthefirsttoplaceallchemistry，whichinitsphlogisticformhadstoodonitshead，squareIyonitsfeet。

Andalthoughhedidnotproduceoxygensimultaneouslyandindependentlyoftheothertwo，asheclaimedlateron，heneverthelessistherealdiscovererofoxygenvis-a-vistheotherswhohadonlyproduceditwithoutknowingwhattheyhadproduced。

Marxstandsinthesamerelationtohispredecessorsinthetheoryofsurplus-valueasLavoisierstoodtoPriestleyandScheele。Theexistenceofthatpartofthevalueofproductswhichwenowcallsurplus-valuehadbeenascertainedlongbeforeMarx。Ithadalsobeenstatedwithmoreorlessprecisionwhatitconsistedof，namely，oftheproductofthelabourforwhichitsappropriatorhadnotgivenanyequivalent。Butonedidnotgetanyfurther。Some——theclassicalbourgeoiseconomists——investigatedatmosttheproportioninwhichtheproductoflabourwasdividedbetweenthelabourerandtheownerofthemeansofproduction。Others——theSocialists——foundthatthisdivisionwasunjustandlookedforutopianmeansofabolishingthisinjustice。Theyallremainedprisonersoftheeconomiccategoriesastheyhadcomedowntothem。

NowMarxappeareduponthescene。Andhetookaviewdirectlyoppositetothatofallhispredecessors。Whattheyhadregardedasasolution，heconsideredbutaproblem。Hesawthathehadtodealneitherwithdephlogisticatedairnorwithfire-air，b:ltwithoxygen——thathereitwasnotsimplyamatterofstatinganeconomicfactorofpointingouttheconflictbetweenthisfactandeternaljusticeandtruemorality，butofexplainingafactwhichwasdestinedtorevolutionisealleconomics，andwhichofferedtohimwhoknewhowtouseitthekeytoanunderstandingofallcapitalistproduction。Withthisfactashisstarting-pointheexaminedalltheeconomiccategorieswhichhefoundathand，justasLavoisierproceedingfromoxygenhadexaminedthecategoriesofphlogisticchemistrywhichhefoundathand。Inordertounderstandwhatsurplus-valuewas，Marxhadtofindoutwhatvaluewas。HehadtocriticiseabovealltheRicardiantheoryofvalue。Henceheanalysedlabour’svalue-producingpropertyandwasthefirsttoascertainwhatlabouritwasthatproducedvalue，andwhyandhowitdidso。Hefoundthatvaluewasnothingbutcongealedlabourofthiskind，andthisisapointwhichRodbertusnevergraspedtohisdyingday。Marxtheninvestigatedtherelationofcommoditiestomoneyanddemonstratedhowandwhy，thankstothepropertyofvalueimmanentincommodities，commoditiesandcommodity-exchangemustengendertheoppositionofcommodityandmoney。Histheoryofmoney，foundedonthisbasis，isthefirstexhaustiveoneandhasbeentacitlyacceptedeverywhere。Heanalysedthetransformationofmoneyintocapitalanddemonstratedthatthistransformationisbasedonthepurchaseandsaleoflabour-power。Bysubstitutinglabour-power，thevalue-producingproperty，forlabourhesolvedwithonestrokeoneofthedifficultieswhichbroughtaboutthedownfalloftheRicardianschool，viz。，theimpossibilityofharmonisingthemutualexchangeofcapitalandlabourwiththeRicardianlawthatvalueisdeterminedbylabour。Byestablishingthedistinctionofcapitalintoconstantandvariablehewasenabledtotracetherealcourseoftheprocessoftheformationofsurplus-valueinitsminutestdetailsandthustoexplainit，afeatwhichnoneofhispredecessorshadaccomplished。ConsequentlyheestablishedadistinctionInsideofcapitalitselfwithwhichneitherRodbertusnorthebourgeoiseconomistsknewintheleastwhattodo，butwhichfurnishesthekeyforthesolutionofthemostcomplicatedeconomicproblems，asisstrikinglyprovedagainbyBookIIandwillbeprovedstillmorebyBookIII。Heanalysedsurplus-valuefurtherandfounditstwoforms，absoluteandrelativesurplus-value。

Andheshowedthattheyhadplayedadifferent，andeachtimeadecisiverole，inthehistoricaldevelopmentofCapitalistproduction。Onthebasisofthissurplus-valuehedevelopedthefirstrationaltheoryofwageswehave，andforthefirsttimedrewupanoutlineofthehistoryofCapitalistaccumulationandanexpositionofitshistoricaltendency。

AndRodbertus？Afterhehasreadallthat，he——likethetendentiouseconomisthealwaysis——regardsitas”anassaultonsociety，”findsthathehimselfhassaidmuchmorebrieflyandclearlywhatsurplus-valueevolvesfrom，andfinallydeclaresthatallthisdoesindeedapplyto”thepresentformofcapital，”thatistosaytocapitalasitexistshistorically，butnottothe”conceptionofcapital，”namelytheutopianideawhichHerrRodbertushasofcapital。JustlikeoldPriestly，whosworebyphlogistontotheendofhisdaysandrefusedtohaveanythingtodowithoxygen。

TheonlythingisthatPriestlyhadactuallyproducedoxygenfirst，whileRodbertushadmerelyrediscoveredacommonplaceinhissurplus-value，orratherhis”rent，”andthatMarx，unlikeLavoisier，disdainedtoclaimthathewasthefirsttodiscoverthefactoftheexistenceofsurplus-value。

TheothereconomicfeatsperformedbyRodbertusareonaboutthesameplane。Hiselaborationofsurplus-valueintoautopiahasalreadybeenunintentionallycriticisedbyMarxinhisPovertyofPhilosophy。WhatelsemaybesaidaboutitIhavesaidinmyprefacetotheGermaneditionofthatwork。Rodbertus’sexplanationofcommercialcrisesasoutgrowthsoftheunderconsumptionoftheworking-classmayalreadybefoundinSismondi’sNouveauxPrincipesdeI’EconomiePolitique，bookIV，ch。IV。[3]However，Sismondialwayshadtheworld-marketinmind，whileRodbertus’shorizondoesnotextendbeyondthePrussianborder。HisspeculationsastowhetherwagesarederivedfromcapitalorincomebelongtothedomainofscholasticismandaredefinitelysettledinPartIIIofthissecondbookofCapital。HistheoryofrenthasremainedhisexclusivepropertyandmayrestinpeaceuntilthemanuscriptofMarxcriticisingitispublished。

FinallyhissuggestionsfortheemancipationoftheoldPrussianlandedpropertyfromtheoppressionofCapitalarealsoentirelyutopian；

fortheyevadetheonlypracticalquestionraisedinthisconnection，viz。:

HowcantheoldPrussianlandedjunkerhaveayearlyincomeof，say，20，000

marksandayearlyexpenditureof，say，30，000marks，withoutrunningintodebt？

TheRicardianschoolsufferedshipwreckabouttheyear1830ontherockofsurplus-value。Andwhatthisschoolcouldnotsolveremainedstillmoreinsolubleforitssuccessor，VulgarEconomy。Thetwopointswhichcauseditsfailurewerethese:

1。Labouristhemeasureofvalue。However，livinglabourinitsexchangewithcapitalhasalowervaluethanmaterialisedlabourforwhichitisexchanged。Wages，thevalueofadefinitequantityoflivinglabour，arealwayslessthanthevalueoftheproductbegottenbythissamequantityoflivinglabourorinwhichthisquantityisembodied。Thequestionisindeedinsoluble，ifputinthisform。IthasbeencorrectlyformulatedbyMarxandtherebybeenanswered。Itisnotlabourwhichhasavalue。

Asanactivitywhichcreatesvaluesitcannomorehaveanyspecialvaluethangravitycanhaveanyspecialweight，heatanyspecialtemperature，electricityanyspecialstrengthofcurrent。Itisnotlabourwhichisboughtandsoldasacommodity，butlabour-power。Assoonaslabour-powerbecomesacommodity，itsvalueisdeterminedbythelabourembodiedinthiscommodityasasocialproduct。Thisvalueisequaltothelaboursociallynecessaryfortheproductionandreproductionofthiscommodity。Hencethepurchaseandsaleoflabour-poweronthebasisofitsvaluethusdefineddoesnotatallcontradicttheeconomiclawofvalue。

2。AccordingtotheRicardianlawofvalue，twocapitalsemployingequalquantitiesofequallypaidlivinglabourallotherconditionsbeingequal，producecommoditiesofequalvalueandlikewisesurplus-value，orprofit，ofequalquantityinequalperiodsoftime。Butiftheyemployunequalquantitiesoflivinglabour，theycannotproduceequalsurplus-values，or，astheRicardianssay，equalprofits。Nowinrealitytheoppositetakesplace。Inactualfact，equalcapitals，regardlessofhowmuchorhowlittlelivinglabourisemployedbythem，produceequalaverageprofitsinequaltimes。HerethereisthereforeacontradictionofthelawofvaluewhichhadbeennoticedbyRicardohimself，butwhichhisschoolalsowasunabletoreconcile。Rodbertuslikewisecouldnotbutnotethiscontradiction。

Butinsteadofresolvingit，hemadeitoneofthestarting-pointsofhisutopia。(ZurErkenntnis，p。131。)MarxhadresolvedthiscontradictionalreadyinthemanuscriptofhisZurKritik。AccordingtotheplanofCapital，thissolutionwillbeprovidedinBookIII。Monthswillpassbeforethatwillbepublished。HencethoseeconomistswhoclaimtohavediscoveredinRodbertusthesecretsourceandasuperiorpredecessorofMarxhavenowanopportunitytodemonstratewhattheeconomicsofaRodbertuscanaccomplish。Iftheycanshowinwhichwayanequalaveragerateofprofitcanandmustcomeabout，notonlywithoutaviolationofthelawofvalue，butontheverybasisofit，Iamwillingtodiscussthematterfurtherwiththem。Inthemeantimetheyhadbettermakehaste。

ThebrilliantinvestigationsofthepresentBookIIandtheirentirelynewresultsinfieldshithertoalmostuntrodaremerelyintroductorytothecontentsofBookIII，whichdevelopsthefinalconclusionsofMarx’sanalysisoftheprocessofsocialreproductiononacapitalistbasis。WhenthisBookIIIappears，littlementionwillbemadeoftheeconomistcalledRodbertus。

ThesecondandthirdbooksofCapitalweretobededicatedasMarxhadstatedrepeatedly，tohiswife。

FrederickEngelsLondon，onMarx’sbirthday，May5，1885

PrefacetotheSecondEditionThepresentsecondeditionis，inthemain，afaithfulreprintofthefirst。Typographicalerrorshavebeencorrected，afewstylisticblemisheseliminated，andafewshortparagraphsthatcontainonlyrepetitionsstruckout。

Thethirdbook，whichpresentedquiteunforseendifficulties，isnowalsonearlyreadyinmanuscript。Ifmyhealthholdsoutitwillbereadyforpressthisautumn。[RETURNTOTOPOFPAGE]

F。EngelsLondon，15July1893

NOTES

1。InthePrefacetoMarx’sThePovertyofPhilosophy，translatedbyE。BernsteinandK。Kautsky，Stuttgart，1885。[RETURN

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2。RoscoeandSchorlemmer，Ausf&uuml；hrichesLehrbuchderChemie，Braunschweig，1877，I，pp。13，18。[RETURN

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3。’Thusthehomemarketbecomesevermoreconstrictedbytheconcentrationofrichesinthehandsofasmallnumberofproprietors，andindustryisforcedmoreandmoretoseekitsoutletsinforeignmarkets，wherestillgreaterrevolutionsawaitit’(i。e。thecrisisof1817，whichSismondigoesontodescribe)。1819edition，I，p。336。[RETURN

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1885:CapitalII——Chapter1

partI

THEMETAMORPHOSESOFCAPITALANDTHEIRCIRCUITS

CHAPTERI

THECIRCUITOFMONEYCAPITALThecircularmovement[1]ofcapitaltakesplaceinthreestages，which，accordingtothepresentationinVolumeI，formthefollowingseries:

Firststage:Thecapitalistappearsasabuyeronthecommodity-andthelabour-market；hismoneyistransformedintocommodities，oritgoesthroughthecirculationactM——C。

SecondStage:Productiveconsumptionofthepurchasedcommoditiesbythecapitalist。Heactsasacapitalistproducerofcommodities；hiscapitalpassesthroughtheprocessofproduction。Theresultisacommodityofmorevaluethanthatoftheelementsenteringintoitsproduction。

ThirdStage:Thecapitalistreturnstothemarketasaseller；hiscommoditiesareturnedintomoney；ortheypassthroughthecirculationactC——M。

Hencetheformulaforthecircuitofmoney-capitalis:M——C……

P……C’——M’，thedotsindicatingthattheprocessofcirculationisinterrupted，andC’andM’designatingCandMincreasedbysurplus-value。

ThefirstandthirdstageswerediscussedinBookIonlyinsofarasthiswasnecessaryfortheunderstandingofthesecondstage，theprocessofproductionofcapital。Forthisreason，thevariousformswhichcapitaltakesoninitsdifferentstages，andwhichnowassumesandnowstripsoffintherepetitionofitscircuit，werenotconsidered。Theseformsarenowthedirectobjectofourstudy。

Inordertoconceivetheseformsintheirpurestate，onemustfirstofalldiscardallfactorswhichhavenothingtodowiththechangingorbuildingofformsassuch。Itisthereforetakenforgrantedherenotonlythatthecommoditiesaresoldattheirvaluesbutalsothatthistakesplaceunderthesameconditionsthroughout。Likewisedisregardedthereforeareanychangesofvaluewhichmightoccurduringthemovementincircuits。

I。FIRSTSTAGE。M——C[2]

M——Crepresentstheconversionofasumofmoneyintoasumofcommodities；

thepurchasertransformshismoneyintocommodities，thesellerstransformtheircommoditiesintomoney。Whatrendersthisactofthegeneralcirculationofcommoditiessimultaneouslyafunctionallydefinitesectioninindependentcircuitofsomeindividualcapitalisprimarilynottheformoftheactbutitsmaterialcontent，thespecificuse-characterofthecommoditieswhichchangeplaceswiththemoney。Thesecommoditiesareontheonehandmeansofproduction，ontheotherlabour-power，materialandpersonalfactorsintheproductionofcommoditieswhosespecificnaturemustofcoursecorrespondtothespecialkindofarticlestobemanufactured。Ifwecalllabour-powerL，andthemeansofproductionMP，thenthesumofcommoditiestobebought，C，isequaltoL+MP，ormorebrieflyC<LMPM——C，consideredastoitssubstanceisthereforerepresentedbyM——C<LMPthatistosayM——CiscomposedofM——LandM——MP。ThesumofmoneyMisseparatedintotwoparts，oneofwhichbuyslabour-power，theothermeansofproduction。Thesetwoseriesofpurchasesbelongtoentirelydifferentmarkets，theonetothecommodity-marketproper，theothertothelabour-market。

AsidefromthisqualitativedivisionofthesumofcommoditiesintowhichMistransformed，theformulaM——C<LMPalsorepresentsamostcharacteristicquantitativerelation。

Weknowthatthevalue，orprice，oflabour-powerispaidtoitsowner，whooffersitforsaleasacommodity，intheformofwages，thatistosayasthepriceofasumoflabourcontainingsurplus-labour。Forinstanceifthedailyvalueoflabour-powerisequaltotheproductoffivehourslabourvaluedatthreeshillings，thissumfiguresinthecontractbetweenthebuyerandsellerastheprice，orwages，for，say，tenhoursoflabour。Ifsuchacontractismadeforinstancewith50labourers，theyaresupposedtoworkaltogether500hoursperdayforthepurchaser，andonehalfofthistime，or250hoursequalto25daysoflabourof10hourseach，representsnothingbutsurpluslabour。Thequantityandthevolumeofthemeansofproductiontobepurchasedmustbesufficientfortheutilisationofthismassoflabour。

M——C<LMP，then，doesnotmerelyexpressthequalitativerelationindicatingthatacertainsumofmoney，say&pound；422，isexchangedforacorrespondingsumofmeansofproductionandlabour-power，butalsoaquantitativerelationbetweenL，thepartofthemoneyspentforlabour-power，andMP，thepartspentformeansofproduction。Thisrelationisdeterminedattheoutsetbythequantityofexcesslabour，ofsurplus-labourtobeexpendedbyacertainnumberoflabourers。

Ifforinstanceinaspinning-milltheweeklywageofits50labourersamountsto&pound；50，&pound；372mustbespentformeansofproduction，ifthisisthevalueofthemeansofproductionwhichaweeklylabourof3，000hours，1，500ofwhicharesurplus-labour，transformsintoyarn。

Itisimmaterialherehowmuchadditionalvalueintheformofmeansofproductionisrequiredinthevariouslinesofindustrybytheutilisationofadditionallabour。Thepointmerelyisthatthepartofthemoneyspentformeansofproduction——themeansofproductionboughtinM——MP——mustabsolutelysuffice，i。e。，mustattheoutsetbecalculatedaccordingly，mustbeprocuredincorrespondingproportion。Toputitanotherway，thequantityofmeansofproductionmustsufficetoabsorbtheamountoflabour，tobetransformedbyitintoproducts。Ifthemeansofproductionathandwereinsufficient，theexcesslabouratthedisposalofthepurchasercouldnotbeutilised；hisrighttodisposeofitisfutile。Ifthereweremoremeansofproductionthanavailablelabour，theywouldnotbesaturatedwithlabour，wouldnotbetransformedintoproducts。

AssoonasM——C<LMPiscompleted，thepurchaserhasathisdisposalmorethansimplythemeansofproductionandlabour-powerrequiredfortheproductionofsomeusefularticle。Hedisposesofagreatercapacitytorenderlabour-powerfluent，oragreaterquantityoflabourthanisnecessaryforthereplacementofthevalueofthislabour-power，andhehasatthesametimethemeansofproductionrequisitefortherealisationormaterialisationofthisquantityoflabour。

Inotherwords，hehasathisdisposalthefactorsmakingfortheproductionofarticlesofagreatervaluethanthatoftheelementsofproduction——thefactorsofproductionofamassofcommoditiescontainingsurplus-value。

Thevalueadvancedbyhiminmoney-formhasnowassumedabodilyforminwhichitcanbeincarnatedasavaluegeneratingsurplus-value(intheshapeofcommodities)。Inbrief，valueexistshereintheconditionorformofproductivecapital，whichhasthefactorofcreatingvalueandsurplus-value。LetuscallcapitalinthisformP。

NowthevalueofPisequaltothatofL+MP，itisequaltoMexchangedforLandMP。Misthesamecapital-valueasP，onlyithasadifferentmodeofexistence，itiscapital-valueinthestateorformofmoney——money-capital。

M——C<LMP，oritsgeneralformM——C，asumofpurchasesofcommodities，anactofthegeneralcirculationofcommodities，isthereforeatthesametime——asastageintheindependentcircuitofcapital——atransformationofcapital-valuefromitsmoney-formintoitsproductiveform。Morebriefly，itisthetransformationofmoney-capitalintoproductivecapital。Inthediagramofthecircuitwhichweareherediscussing，moneyappearsasthefirstdepositoryofcapital-value，andmoney-capitalthereforerepresentstheforminwhichcapitalisadvanced。

Capitalintheformofmoney-capitalisinastateinwhichitcanperformthefunctionsofmoney，inthepresentcasethefunctionsofauniversalmeansofpurchaseanduniversalmeansofpayment。(Thelast-namedinasmuchaslabour-powerthoughfirstboughtisnotpaidforuntilithasbeenputintooperation。Totheextentthatthemeansofproductionarenotfoundreadyonthemarketbuthavetobeorderedfirst，moneyinM——MP

likewiseservesasameansofpayment。)Thiscapacityisnotduetothefactthatmoney-capitaliscapitalbutthatitismoney。

Ontheotherhandcapital-valueintheformofmoneycannotperformanyotherfunctionsbutthoseofmoney。Whatturnsthemoney-functionsintofunctionsofcapitalisthedefiniteroletheyplayinthemovementofcapital，andthereforealsotheinterrelationofthestageinwhichthesefunctionsareperformedwiththeotherstagesofthecircuitofcapital。

Take，forinstance，thecasewithwhichweareheredealing。Moneyishereconvertedintocommoditiesthecombinationofwhichrepresentsthebodilyformofproductivecapital，andthisformalreadycontainslatently，potentially，theresultoftheprocessofcapitalistproduction。

Apartofthemoneyperformingthefunctionofmoney-capitalinM——C<LMPassumes，byconsummatingtheactofcirculation，afunctioninwhichitlosesitscapitalcharacterbutpreservesitsmoney-character。Thecirculationofmoney-capitalMisdividedintoM——MPandM——L，intothepurchaseofmeansofproductionandthepurchaseoflabour-power。Letusconsiderthelast-namedprocessbyitself。M——L

isthepurchaseoflabour-powerbythecapitalist。Itisalsothesaleoflabour-power——wemayheresayoflabour，sincetheformofwagesisassumed——bythelaborerwhoownsit。WhatisM——C(=M——L)forthebuyerishere，asineveryotherpurchase，L——M(=C——M)fortheseller(thelaborer)。Itisthesaleofhislabour-power。Thisisthefirststageofcirculation，orthefirstmetamorphosis，ofthecommodity(BuchI，Kap。

III，2a)。[Englishedition:Ch。III，2a-Ed。]Itisfortheselleroflabouratransformationofhiscommodityintothemoney-form。Thelaborerspendsthemoneysoobtainedgraduallyforanumberofcommoditiesrequiredforthesatisfactionofhisneeds，forarticlesofconsumption。ThecompletecirculationofhiscommoditythereforeappearsasL——M——C，thatistosayfirstasL——M(=C——M)andsecondlyasM——C；henceinthegeneralformofthesimplecirculationofcommodities，C——M——C。Moneyisinthiscasemerelyapassingmeansofcirculation，ameremediumintheexchangeofonecommodityforanother。

M——Listhecharacteristicmomentinthetransformationofmoney-capitalintoproductivecapital，becauseitistheessentialconditionfortherealtransformationofvalueadvancedintheformofmoneyintocapital，intoavalueproducingsurplus-value。M——MPisnecessaryonlyforthepurposeofrealisingthequantityoflabourboughtintheprocessM——L，whichwasdiscussedfromthispointofviewinBookI，PartII，undertheheadof”TheTransformationofMoneyintoCapital。”Weshallhavetoconsiderthematteratthispointalsofromanotherangle，relatingespeciallytomoney-capitaltheforminwhichcapitalmanifestsitself。

GenerallyM——Lisregardedascharacteristicofthecapitalistmodeofproduction。Howevernotatallforthereasongivenabove，thatthepurchaseoflabour-powerrepresentsacontractofpurchasewhichstipulatesforthedeliveryofaquantityoflabourinexcessofthatneededtoreplacethepriceofthelabour-power，thewages；hencedeliveryofsurplus-labour，thefundamentalconditionforthecapitalisationofthevalueadvanced，orfortheproductionofsurplus-value，whichisthesamething。Onthecontrary，itissoregardedbecauseofitsform，sincemoneyintheformofwagesbuyslabour，andthisisthecharacteristicmarkofthemoneysystem。

Norisittheirrationalityoftheformwhichistakenascharacteristic。

Onthecontrary，oneoverlookstheirrational。Theirrationalityconsistsinthefactthatlabouritselfasavalue-creatingelementcannothaveanyvalue，norcanthereforeanydefiniteamountoflabourhaveanyvalueexpressedinitsprice，initsequivalencetoadefinitequantityofmoney。

Butweknowthatwagesarebutadisguisedform，aforminwhichforinstancethepriceofoneday’slabour-powerpresentsitselfasthepriceofthelabourrenderedfluentbythislabour-powerinoneday。Thevalueproducedbythislabour-powerin，say，sixhoursoflabouristhusexpressedasthevalueoftwelvehours’functioningoroperationofthelabour-power。

M——Lisregardedasthecharacteristicfeature，thehallmarkoftheso-calledmoneysystem，becauselabourthereappearsasthecommodityofitsowner，andmoneythereforeasthebuyer——henceonaccountofthemoney-relation(i。e。，thesaleandpurchaseofhumanactivity)。Moneyhoweverappearsveryearlyasabuyerofso-calledservices，withoutthetransformationofMintomoney-capital，andwithoutanychangeinthegeneralcharacteroftheeconomicsystem。

Itmakesnodifferencetomoneyintowhatsortofcommoditiesitistransformed。Itistheuniversalequivalentofallcommoditieswhichshow，ifonlybytheirprices，thatideallytheyrepresentacertainsumofmoney，anticipatetheirtransformationintomoney，anddonotacquiretheforminwhichtheymaybeconvertedintouse-valuesfortheirownersuntiltheychangeplaceswithmoney。Oncelabour-powerhascomeintothemarketasthecommodityofitsowneranditssaletakestheformofpaymentforlabour，assumestheshapeofwages，itspurchaseandsaleisnomorestartlingthanthepurchaseandsaleofanyothercommodity。Thecharacteristicthingisnotthatthecommoditylabour-powerispurchasablebutthatlabour-powerappearsasacommodity。

BymeansofM——C<LMP，thetransformationofmoney-capitalintoproductivecapital，thecapitalisteffectsthecombinationoftheobjectiveandpersonalfactorsofproductionsofarastheyconsistofcommodities。Ifmoneyistransformedintoproductivecapitalforthefirsttimeorifitperformsforthefirsttimethefunctionofmoney-capitalforitsowner，hemustbeginbybuyingmeansofproduction，suchasbuildings，machinery，etc。，beforehebuysanylabour-power。Forassoonashecompelslabour-powertoactinobediencetohissway，hemusthavemeansofproductiontowhichhecanapplyitaslabour-power。

Thisisthecapitalist’spresentationofthecase。

Thelabourer’scaseisasfollows:Theproductiveapplicationofhislabour-powerisnotpossibleuntilitissoldandbroughtintoconnectionwithmeansofproduction。Beforeitssale，labour-powerexiststhereforeseparatelyfromthemeansofproduction，fromthematerialconditionsofitsapplication。Inthisstateofseparationitcannotbeusedeitherdirectlyfortheproductionofuse-valuesforitsownerorfortheproductionofcommodities，bythesaleofwhichhecouldlive。Butfromthemomentthatasaresultofitssaleitisbroughtintoconnectionwithmeansofproduction，itformspartoftheproductivecapitalofitspurchaser，thesameasthemeansofproduction。

True，intheactM——Ltheownerofmoneyandtheowneroflabour-powerenteronlyintotherelationofbuyerandseller，confrontoneanotheronlyasmoney-ownerandcommodity-owner。Inthisrespecttheyentermerelyintoamoney-relation。Yetatthesametimethebuyerappearsalsofromtheoutsetinthecapacityofanownerofmeansofproduction，whicharethematerialconditionsfortheproductiveexpenditureoflabour-powerbyitsowner。Inotherwords，thesemeansofproductionareinoppositiontotheownerofthelabour-power，beingpropertyofanother。Ontheotherhandtheselleroflabourfacesitsbuyeraslabour-powerofanotherwhichmustbemadetodohisbidding，mustbeintegratedintohiscapital，inorderthatitmayreallybecomeproductivecapital。Theclassrelationbetweencapitalistandwage-laborerthereforeexists，ispresupposedfromthemomentthetwofaceeachotherintheactM——L(L——Monthepartofthelaborer)。Itisapurchaseandsale，amoney-relation，butapurchaseandsaleinwhichthebuyerisassumedtobeacapitalistandthesellerawage-laborer。Andthisrelationarisesoutofthefactthattheconditionsrequiredfortherealisationoflabour-power，viz。，meansofsubsistenceandmeansofproduction，areseparatedfromtheowneroflabour-power，beingthepropertyofanother。

Wearenotconcernedherewiththeoriginofthisseparation。

ItexistsassoonasM——Lgoeson。Thethingwhichinterestsushereisthis:IfM——Lappearshereasafunctionofmoney-capitalormoneyastheformofexistenceofcapital，thesolereasonthatmoneyhereassumestheroleofameansofpayingforausefulhumanactivityorservice；hencebynomeansinconsequenceofthefunctionofmoneyasameansofpayment。

Moneycanbeexpendedinthisformonlybecauselabour-powerfindsitselfinastateofseparationfromitsmeansofproduction(includingthemeansofsubsistenceasmeansofproductionofthelabour-poweritself)，andbecausethisseparationcanbeovercomeonlybythesaleofthelabour-powertotheownerofthemeansofproduction；becausethereforethefunctioningoflabour-power，whichisnotatalllimitedtothequantityoflabourrequiredforthereproductionofitsownprice，islikewisetheconcernofitsbuyer。Thecapital-relationduringtheprocessofproductionarisesonlybecauseitisinherentintheactofcirculation，inthedifferentfundamentaleconomicconditionsinwhichbuyerandsellerconfronteachother，intheirclassrelation。Itisnotmoneywhichbyitsnaturecreatesthisrelation；itisrathertheexistenceofthisrelationwhichpermitsofthetransformationofameremoney-functionintoacapital-function。

Intheconceptionofmoney-capital(forthetimebeingwedealwiththelatteronlywithintheconfinesofthespecialfunctioninwhichitfacesushere)twoerrorsrunparalleltoeachotherorcrosseachother。

Inthefirstplacethefunctionsperformedbycapital-valueinitscapacityasmoney-capital，whichitcanperformpreciselyowingtoitsmoney-form，areerroneouslyderivedfromitscharacterascapital，whereastheyaredueonlytothemoney-formofcapital-value，toitsformofappearanceasmoney。Inthesecondplace，onthecontrary，thespecificcontentofthemoney-function，whichrendersitsimultaneouslyacapital-function，istracedtothenatureofmoney(moneybeinghereconfusedwithcapital)，whilethemoneyfunctionpremisessocialconditions，suchasarehereindicatedbytheactM——L，whichdonotatallexistinthemerecirculationofcommoditiesandthecorrespondingcirculationofmoney。

Thepurchaseandsaleofslavesisformallyalsoapurchaseandsaleofcommodities。Butmoneycannotperformthisfunctionwithouttheexistenceofslavery。Ifslaveryexists，thenmoneycanbeinvestedinthepurchaseofslaves。Ontheotherhandthemerepossessionofmoneycannotmakeslaverypossible。

Inorderthatthesaleofone’sownlabour-power(intheformofthesaleofone’sownlabourorintheformofwages)mayconstitutenotanisolatedphenomenonbutasociallydecisivepremisefortheproductionofcommodities，inorderthatmoney-capitalmaythereforeperform，onasocialscale，theabove-discussedfunctionM——C<LMP，historicalprocessesareassumedbywhichtheoriginalconnectionofthemeansofproductionwithlabour-powerwasdissolved——processesinconsequenceofwhichthemassofthepeople，thelabourers，have，asnon-owners，comefacetofacewithnon-labourersastheownersofthesemeansofproduction。

Itmakesnodifferenceinthiscasewhethertheconnectionbeforeitsdissolutionwassuchinformthatthelaborer，beinghimselfameansofproduction，belongedtotheothermeansofproductionorwhetherhewastheirowner。

WhatliesbackofM——C<LMPisdistribution；

notdistributionintheordinarymeaningofadistributionofarticlesofconsumption，butthedistributionoftheelementsofproductionitself，thematerialfactorsofwhichareconcentratedononeside，andlabour-power，isolated，ontheother。

Themeansofproduction，thematerialpartofproductivecapital，mustthereforefacethelaborerassuch，ascapital，beforetheactM——L

canbecomeauniversal，socialone。

Wehaveseenonpreviousoccasions[Englishedition:KarlMarx，Capital，Vol。I，PartVII，Moscow，1954——Ed。]thatinitsfurtherdevelopmentcapitalistproduction，onceitisestablished，notonlyreproducesthisseparationbutextendsitsscopefurtherandfurtheruntilitbecomestheprevailingcondition。However，thereisstillanothersidetothisquestion。Inorderthatcapitalmaybeabletoariseandtakecontrolofproduction，adefinitestageinthedevelopmentoftradeisassumed。Thisappliesthereforealsotothecirculationofcommodities，andhencetotheproductionofcommodities；fornoarticlescanentercirculationascommoditiesunlesstheyareproducedforsale，henceascommodities。

Buttheproductionofcommoditiesdoesnotbecomethenormal，dominanttypeofproductionuntilcapitalistproductionservesasitsbasis。

TheRussianlandowners，whoasaresultoftheso-calledemancipationofthepeasantsarenowcompelledtocarryonagriculturewiththehelpofwage-labourersinsteadoftheforcedlabourofserfs，complainabouttwothings:First，aboutthelackofmoney-capital。Theysayforinstancethatcomparativelylargesumsmustbepaidtowage-labourersbeforethecropsaresold，andjustthenthereisadearthofreadycash，theprimecondition。Capitalintheformofmoneymustalwaysbeavailable，particularlyforthepaymentofwages，beforeproductioncanbecarriedoncapitalistically。

Butthelandownersmaytakehope。Everythingcomestothosewhowait，andinduetimetheindustrialcapitalistwillhaveathisdisposalnotalonehisownmoneybutalsothatofothers。

Thesecondcomplaintismorecharacteristic。Itistotheeffectthatevenifonehasmoney，notenoughlabourersaretobehadatanytime。

ThereasonisthattheRussianfarm-laborer，owingtothecommonownershipoflandinthevillagecommunity，hasnotyetbeenfullyseparatedfromhismeansofproductionandhenceisnotyeta”freewage-laborer”inthefullsenseoftheword。ButtheexistenceofthelatteronasocialscaleisasinequanonforM——C，theconversionofmoneyintocommodities，tobeabletorepresentthetransformationofmoney-capitalintoproductivecapital。

Itisthereforequiteclearthattheformulaforthecircuitofmoney-capital，M——C……C’——M’，isthematter-of-courseformofthecircuitofcapitalonlyonthebasisofalreadydevelopedcapitalistproduction，becauseitpresupposestheexistenceofaclassofwage-labourersonasocialscale。Wehaveseenthatcapitalistproductiondoesnotonlycreatecommoditiesandsurplus-value，butalsoreproducestoaneverincreasingextenttheclassofwage-labourers，intowhomittransformsthevastmajorityofdirectproducers。Sincethefirstconditionforitsrealisationisthepermanentexistenceofaclassofwage-labourers，M——C……P……C’——M’

presupposesacapitalintheformofproductivecapital，andhencetheformofthecircuitofproductivecapital。

II。SECONDSTAGE。FUNCTIONOFPRODUCTIVECAPITAL

Thecircuitofcapital，whichwehavehereconsidered，beginswiththeactofcirculationM——C，thetransmutationofmoneyintocommodities——

purchase。CirculationmustthereforebecomplementedbytheantitheticalmetamorphosisC——M，thetransformationofcommoditiesintomoney——sale。

ButthedirectresultofM——C<LMPistheinterruptionofthecirculationofthecapital-valueadvancedintheformofmoney。

Bythetransformationofmoney-capitalintoproductivecapitalthecapital-valuehasacquiredabodilyforminwhichitcannotcontinuetocirculatebutmustenterintoconsumption，viz。，intoproductiveconsumption。Theuseoflabour-power，labour，canbematerialisedonlyinthelabour-process。

Thecapitalistcannotresellthelaborerasacommoditybecauseheisnothischattelslaveandthecapitalisthasnotboughtanythingexcepttherighttousehislabour-powerforacertaintime。Ontheotherhandthecapitalistcannotusethislabour-powerinanyotherwaythanbyutilisingmeansofproductiontocreatecommoditieswithitshelp。Theresultofthefirststageisthereforeentranceintothesecond，theproductivestageofcapital。

ThismovementisrepresentedbyM——C<LMP……P，inwhichthedotsindicatethatthecirculationofcapitalisinterrupted，whileitscircularmovementcontinues，sinceitpassesfromthesphereofcirculationofcommoditiesintothatofproduction。Thefirststage，thetransformationofmoney-capitalintoproductivecapital，isthereforemerelytheharbingerandintroductoryphaseofthesecondstage，thefunctioningofproductivecapital。

M——C<LMPpresupposesthattheindividualperformingthisactnotonlyhasathisdisposalvaluesinanyuse-form，butalsothathehasthemintheformofmoney，thatheistheownerofmoney。Butastheactconsistspreciselyingivingawaymoney，theindividualcanremaintheownerofmoneyonlyinsofarastheactofgivingawayimpliesareturnofmoney。Butmoneycanreturntohimonlythroughthesaleofcommodities。Hencetheaboveactassumeshimtobeaproducerofcommodities。

M——L。Thewage-laborerlivesonlybythesaleofhislabour-power。

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