| This question <55|55> overall <54|56> Sinatra: <331-1|107>. |
| Question 54: How is the value of raw materials determined in Marx's theory? How does the scarcity of these materials influence their value? Is Marx's argument still valid in the case of an exhaustible resource, which is present only in finite supply? |
| [55] Sinatra: Determining the value of raw materials With value being seen as a measure of average human value taken to produce a product, scarcity's value can be measured in terms of labour taken in the search for the scarce raw material, as well as extraction costs from the surrounding environment. His example of diamonds show how discovory costs are counted in labour time of production in his theory. |
| This arguement fits well with exhaustible resources, which by definition includes all raw materials on Earth since all are present in limited supply. As supplies dwindle, more labour hours must be invested to discover new sources, and value rises accordingly. Once all supplies of a resource are exhausted, it seems the value would be infinite, since an infinite number of labour hours could be exhausted without producing the material. |
| Hans: This theory is not a plausible theory with exhaustible resources. Behind Marx's labor theory of value is always the assumption that supply in the long run will adjust to demand. For exhaustible resources this is not the case. |
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