| This question <73|78> overall <74|76> Jimmie: <54|189>. |
| Question 198: Which characteristics of value are expressed better in the Expanded form of value than in the Simple form, and what are the defects of the Expanded form? |
| [75] Jimmie: Diesel makes some good points in his response but misses some key ideas. The last part of the question was not answered in his response. First, I would like to build on his comments. The Expanded value gives the value of the commodity by comparing to all the other commodities in the world. Because of the diversities of commodities to compare with, you get a more accurate look of the labor congealed in commodities, as stated in the text. In other words, “the body of every other commodity becomes a mirror the linen value,” in terms of linen. The value instilled in commodities is more accurately expressed through the expanded form of value. It establishes a relationship with the whole world of commodities. In addition, through the relationship of many different commodities, the expanded form of value validates human labor in all its different forms, through comparison of commodities. Be it iron, gold, wool, shoes, or shampoo. Despite the fact that they have different forms of labor, all those forms of labor are made valid. |
| Diesel missed the defects of the expanded value. As stated in the text, the expanded form is not unique. In other words it does not hold the same value at all times and in all places. This issue shows itself in instances where one commodity has multiple use-values. Dependent on what the commodity is used for in a certain time, the commodity is given a different value. |
| The second defect in the commodity is not simple. The commodity is composed of different components and must be represented by all of its different parts. There are many different use-values but in reality only one use-value will be addressed at a time. |
| The last defect is its lack of uniformity. The value of a commodity has many expressions and is different than any other commodity. In order to find similarities between two commodities it might be necessary to introduce another commodity, which will likely still be inconsistent with the two original commodities. |
| Through comparison of simple and expanded forms of value it is easy to see where they differ and these differences lead to an understanding of the complexities of the expanded form of value. Ideally a system of value with unending possibilities should be used but market constraints make this idea difficult to achieve. |
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