:

Weber :
Rationally goal pursuing based on calculated m
eans
Value-based rationality ( ):

Instrumental rationality ( ):

 Max Weber :
?

: ?(
)

: ( )

Weber


Accumulation: Specific drives of profit-ma
ximization
Productivity: Through cost-efficient produc
tion
Market dependency: Producing for market


Adam Smith :
Market expansion ( ): absence of constraints on human nat
ure to truck, barter, and exchange
Karl Marx :
?
Weber:
Marxist:

Two contrasting perspectives on Capitali

sm
Smithian: an economic system of sustained econo
mic growth, commerce and market expansion (qua
ntitative growth)
Origin--- Ancient Greek and Rome (did not last)
Marxist: A production system for profit making by c
ost-efficient way (qualitative change)
Origin---16th century England

Smithian view
The Rise of Capitalism:
from Ancient Origins to 1848
The Cambridge History of Capitalism p
rovides a comprehensive account of th
e evolution of capitalism from its earlie
st beginnings. Starting with its distant
origins in ancient Babylon, successive c
hapters trace progression up to the 'Pr
omised Land' of capitalism in America

Published, 2014

 The Agrarian Origins of Capitalism, Elle

n Meiksins Wood, Monthly Review, 1998,
Vol.30 (3). ( Was agrarian capitalism really
capitalist ?)
Ellen Wood cost-efficient pr
oductivity


Ellen Wood

Agrarian origin of capitalism

Wood argues that the capitalist system is
the most efficient mode of production in t
he history of humankind.
Capitalist production first become domin
ant mode of production in English agricult
ure

Why in 16th century England agriculture?

New social
system of 16th
century England
(2)

Agrarian
capitalism (1)
Market-oriented
Profit-making
Method-efficient

Mature capitalist
production
elsewhere
(3)

Ellen Wood:
Distinctiveness of Capitalist System
Capitalist vs. non(pre)-capitalist appropriation of surplus
Political and military power (extra-economic, paying ta
x)
vs. market (economic, paying rent to use land)
Profit-maximization in production (vs. trade and market
expansion)

13th English Feudalism

before Norman Conquest

Peasants worked under

military, political , i.e.
extra-economic power
Lords used coercion to
extract more surplus

Agrarian Capitalism in 16th century Engla

nd
Concentration of land ownership in few lords
Lords extract surplus by raising rent
Rent for land was competitive among peasants
Seeking to sell surplus for higher profit to pay higher to bi
d for land.
Enhance productivity through cost-efficient method (
)

Crop rotation

Compared with France

France: wealthier, and technologically more
advanced than England in 16th century
Feudal society did not change till 18th century
Lords used extra-economic power to approp
riate surplus; peasants owned most of land.
Non-capitalist agriculture production

New social system in England

Centralized power after Norman Conquest
English lords losing many political control, depende
d less on their extra-economic power
They could only make use of their economic power
as landlords to extract and appropriate surplus.
The relations between appropriators (lords) and pro
ducers (peasants) transformed

 (I):Idea of Improvement
Improve: making better profit out of land
Improver: make land more productive an
d profitable
Scientists (Newton) taking part in agricult
ural improvement

 (II):
Change in Conception of Property
Elimination of old customs and practices of land u
se to improve productive use of land
Old customs: Part of land (common land) used to
be for taking care of peasant community, distribut
ing more equally and taking care of the most unfo
rtunate.
After capitalist mode, private ownership had exclu
sive right to use the land.

Redefinition of property
John Locke considered productive and pr
ofitable utilization of property as the base
of natural right of property.

Effects on other sectors

1. Efficient method of production means less la
bor input required for agriculture
2. Releasing large workforce to industry
2. Wage-dependent laborers consumption enla
rged market demand
3. Great wealth for imperial expansion


:
:
:

Origin of British Capitalism?

Fernand Braudel: civilization and capitali

sm 15th -18th century
the economic dominance
of a particular city at differ
ent periods of history, fro
m Venice to Amsterdam, L
ondon, New York.
Monopoly in Long-distanc
e Trade as the origin of ca
pitalism

Fernand Braudel:
Capitalism originated from
state/business monopoly
Braudel argued that capitalists have typically been monopolists and not, as is usually
assumed, entrepreneurs operating in competitive markets. He argued that capitalists
did not use free markets and did not necessarily involved in production, thus divergin
g from both Smithian and Marxist perspectives.

In Braudel's view, the state in capitalist countries has served as a guarantor of monop
olists rather than a protector of competition, as it is usually portrayed.

He asserted that capitalists have had power against the majority of the population

References
Brenner, R., (1977), The Origins of Capitalist Development: a Critique of N
eo-Smithian Marxism. New Left Review, 104, pp.25-92
Comninel, G., (2000), English Feudalism and the Origins of Capitalism. The
Journal of Peasant Studies, 27(4), pp.1-53.
Dimmock, S., (2014), The Origin of Capitalism in England, 1400-1600. Leid
en: Brill
Duplessis, R., (1997), Transitions to Capitalism in Early Modern Europe: N
ew Approaches to European History. Cambridge: Cambridge university pr
ess.
Fulcher, J., (2004), Capitalism: a Very Short Introduction. Oxford: Oxford u
niversity press.
Wood, E., (1998) The Agrarian Origins of Capitalism. Monthly Review, 50
(3), July August, pp.23-42.
Wood, E., (2002), The Origins of Capitalism: a Longer view . London: Verso.


Lessons from Agrarian Capi
talism ( )

? (
, 300-500 )