The Connotation Of Production Relations Of The Value-Form Theory In Das Capital

In Das Kapital,Marx constructs the inner relation among commodity,money and capital through the value-form theory.In recent years,the value-form theory has gradually become a hot topic in the study of Das Kapital.But in previous studies,both the near-Kantian and the near-Hegelian interpretations tend to understand value forms in terms of exchange relations and reverse the relationship between production and exchange,thus producing some misinterpretations of Marx’s thought itself.In order to clarify the theoretical essence of the value-form theory,this paper on the basis of distinguishing the two interpretive paths tries to reveal the connotation and significance of Marx’s theory of value-form from the perspective of production relations.The first chapter of this paper analyzes the two interpretations of the value-form theory in Das Kapital,reveals the connection between the value-form theory and Kantian epistemology,and Hegel’s dialectics,and analyzes the shortcomings of the two interpretations from the perspective of the inversion of production and exchange.Specifically,the Kantian interpretation of the value-form theory connects the form of money with transcendental apperception and believes that money realizes the synthesis of the commodity world.The Hegelian interpretation of the valu-form theory holds that commodities,money and capital as different forms of value realize the self-movement with value as the subject.What they have in common is to understand the form of value from the perspective of exchange process,and to understand the value as the result of commodity exchange,thus reversing the relationship between production and exchange.Their theoretical contribution is to discover the connotation of social relations of value,value must be expressed as exchange value.However,based on the position that exchange comes before production,they explain the source of value and the reason of value proliferation from the process of exchange,which is fundamentally different from Marx’s criticism of capitalism from the field of production.In Marx’s view,the value form is rooted in the relations of production in a particular historical stage.The relations of production is an important dimension to grasp the form of value.Marx reveals through the development process of commodities,money and capital that the condition for the universalization of the form of value is the establishment of capitalist relations of production.To be specific,first of all,commodities are not only the premise of the generation of capital,but also the result of capital relations.The development from simple commodities to capitalist commodities is a radical transformation of production relations.Only under the premise of capitalist private ownership can commodities become a universal form of social wealth.Secondly,on the one hand,the monetary form solves the difficulties of commodity exchange.On the other hand,it establishes an equal relationship between the exchange subject as the owner of the commodity,and then covers up the free possession of the surplus value of the capital in the production process.Finally,Marx reveals the reason for the multiplication of value through the analysis of the form of capital,namely the commercialization of labor.The difference between the exchange value and the use value of the labor commodity provides a continuous power for the multiplication of capital.By examining the production relations dimension of the value form,we can find that the value form is not the negation of Marx’s labor theory of value and the theory of surplus value.On the one hand,in terms of the labor theory of value,Marx believes that the value of commodities comes from the abstract labor of producing commodities.Marx explained the origin of the form of value from the inherent contradiction of labor.On the other hand,in terms of the theory of surplus value,Marx believes that the proliferation of value is realized in the process of production.In the process of production,the use value of labor creates more value than its own exchange value,so the proliferation of value is restricted by the capitalist relations of production.The dimension of production relations of the value form reflects the historical characteristics of the value form.The value form is the product of the capitalist relations of production,so with the dissolution of the capitalist relations of production,the value form will also disintegrate.Therefore,Marx’s criticism of the value form is oriented to the criticism of the capitalist relations of production.Marx advocates that through the reform of the relations of production,the abstract rule of capital should be exceeded.This is of great significance for us to understand and transform today’s society.Although with the further development of capitalism,the abstractness of capital rule and the exploitation of labor by capital are further deepened,the contradiction between the socialized trend of production and the private possession of the means of production is still impossible for capital itself to overcome.Capital creates the conditions and foundation for the elimination of itself during its continuous expansion.Marx revealed the possibility of sublating capital from the contradiction between productive forces and relations of production.