Bring on the tough stuff - there’s not just one right answer.
- Marx says waged labor is not paid as much as it contributes, and the difference is pocketed as surplus-value by capitalists. But what about unwaged work? Where does unpaid work fit in when it supports a family or community—say, a retired grandmother who babysits her grandchildren for free and still must buy commodities, pay sales tax, pay fees, etc.? She's not a wage-laborer, so is she still exploited? Is she a source of surplus-value for the system?
- In Chapter 14, Marx advocated for social planning of the overall economy. What happened when the Soviet Union tried to run a command economy? If planning an economy is no good, is capitalism's use of competition as an organizing principle any better? What other types of economy besides capitalism or communism are possible? Research and consider gift economy, reputation economy, approval economy, or others.
- Marx says we're given a false image of capitalism as a transhistorical or permanent economic mode of production: people act as if capitalism has always been here and always will be here. Is he right? What in the media suggests that capitalism is a permanent state? Consider that what's omitted can be just as important as what's presented.
- How does Marx define worker and work (see Chapter 7)? How do you define workers? Is someone who's injured and tending to his or her recuperation working, even if no paycheck is arriving? What kind of work supports or eases things for everyone in society, and what kind of work doesn't? Is there any difference between how pro-social and anti-social work are typically paid?
- Which economists have argued against Marx, and how? Consider Joseph Schumpeter, for example. Does the labor theory of value explain where surplus-value comes from well enough?