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[2] Discus: What is Wealth? According to Marx the idea of wealth associates itself to anything that
provides enhancement to one's life. This may include food for someone with an
empty stomach, clothing for the underdressed individual or the new porsche in the
driveway for a deprived economics professor. In coming up with a direct
answer or definition for wealth one is faced with the same dilemma as the
politician trying to cut down on the monsterous size of our tax codes. It is
not the codes that are the problem but it is the definition of income which
in Marx's mind is a component of wealth. Do we as intellectuals define
wealth in the simplest terms or in a much broader category as Marx seems to
have done in “Capital.” The answer to what is wealth now seems to be as
complexing as is the even older question what is the meaning of life. In
short wealth now becomes a separate thing in each person's mind and it is that
definition we attempt to analyze with. This may present a problem as one
attempts to analyze “Capital.” We must leave behind our modern thoughts and
try to use the world of Marx and their definitions in order to get a better
understanding of what he is trying to say. In short one could say wealth is
all-encompassing because all things in this world bring some sort of
enhancement to each individual. |
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