| This question <64|49> overall <44|46> Goshen: <612|185>. graded B+ |
| Question 148: Can one say the coat, in the equation 20 yds of linen = 1 coat, symbolizes the value of the linen? |
| [45] Goshen: Coat as the Symbol. In the current form of this equation (20 yds of linen = 1 coat), the coat does not symbolize the value of linen. If the yards of linen and coat are reduced to labor hours however, the coat does symbolize the value of the linen. |
| The equation 20 yards of linen are worth 1 coat should be considered “a price tag denomination” [Hans 82] in terms of coats. The coat does not symbolize the value of the linen in the equation 20 yards of linen = 1 coat. The equation should be read 1 coat has the value of 20 yards of linen. It does not mean their respective values are equal as stated by Hans on page 82. Instead, the coat has an intrinsic use value that the linen producer is willing to accept in trading her linen. It is in this relationship that the linen derives its value, not through the equation itself, but the willingness of the producer to give up that linen to gain a different use of 1 coat. |
| Take the example a man on a desert island who hasn't had water for 2 days. The man has $1000 cash in his wallet. A woman is also on that island with many bottles of water. The man with $1000 cash is willing to pay $1000 for just 1 bottle of water. Does that mean that 1 bottle of water is worth $1000? The answer again is no. The water has a use-value that the consumer is willing to pay, but in this example, the use value has no relationship to the form value involved. 1000 pieces of paper can not be made into 1 bottle of water, so the equation in this case doesn't symbolize value, but rather symbolizes what the man is willing to give up in order to fulfill a basic need. |
| In the above equation, both the linen and the coat can be reduced to the number of labor hours to produce them. In terms of labor, the coat in this equation does symbolize the value of the linen. In this situation the linen producer has needs to fulfill by obtaining a coat. Her labor on 20 yards of linen is worth 1 coat. If that 1 coat takes only 10 hours of labor then it can be said that 20 hours of linen labor = 10 hours of coat labor. In this case tailoring hours are worth more than weaving hours of labor, but it can still be said that the coat is a symbolic representation in terms of labor value of 20 yards of linen. |
| Hans: You were trying to read the relevant places in the Annotations but you didn't quite get it. Since the linen-weaver is willing to accept a coat in exchange for 20 yards of linen, Marx says the use-value of the coat is the value of the 20 yards of linen, but it is it in a different form, in a form independent of the use-value of the linen. What the linen weaver produces is not just an object, it is a commodity, it is a useful object with a value-soul. This value-soul can leave the original object and impersonate itself in a different object. |
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