Theories of Surplus Value, Part II, Chapter 12 - Part 22

[d) Changes in the Total Rent, Dependent on Changes in the Market-Value]

Marx returns to his analysis of the Tables A & B presented earlier, and of the movements from more fertile to less fertile lands, and vice versa.

Table A

Class	C Capital £'s	T Output Tons	TV Total Value £'s	MV Market-Value £'s Per Ton	IV Individual Value £'s per Ton	DV Differential Value £'s per Ton	CP Cost-Price (price of production) £'s per ton	AR Absolute Rent £'s	DR Differential Rent £'s	AR in T Absolute Rent in Tons	DR in T Differential Rent in Tons	TR Total Rent £'s	TR in T Total Rent in Tons
I	100	60	120	2.00	2.00	0	1.833	10	0	5	0	10	5
II	100	65	130	2.00	1.846	0.153	1.692	10	10	5	5	20	10
III	100	75	150	2.00	1.600	0.400	1.466	10	30	5	15	40	20
Total	300	200	400					30	40	15	20	70	35

“Returning to Table A it thus follows, that the assumption, that the profit of 10 per cent has come about through a decrease (in that the rate of profit, starting from III was higher, in II it was lower than in III, but still higher than in I, where it was 10 per cent) may be correct, namely, if the development actually proceeded along the descending line; but this assumption by no means necessarily follows from the gradation of rents, the mere existence of differential rents; on the contrary with the ascending line, this [gradation of rents] presupposes that the rate of profit remains the same over a long period." 

Table B

Class	C Capital £'s	T Output Tons	TV Total Value £'s	MV Market-Value £'s Per Ton	IV Individual Value £'s per Ton	DV Differential Value £'s per Ton	CP Cost-Price (price of production) £'s per ton	AR Absolute Rent £'s	DR Differential Rent £'s	AR in T Absolute Rent in Tons	DR in T Differential Rent in Tons	TR Total Rent £'s	TR in T Total Rent in Tons
II	50	32.5	60	1.846	1.846	0	1.692	5	0	2.708	0	5	2.708
III	100	75	138.461	1.846	1.600	0.246	1.466	10	18.461	5.250	10	28.461	15.416
IV	100	92.5	170.769	1.846	1.297	0.548	1.189	10	50.769	5.416	27.50	60.769	32.916
Total	250	200	369.230					25	69.230	13.541	37.50	94.230	51.041

"Table B. As has already been explained above, in this example the competition from III and IV, forces [the cultivator of] II to withdraw half his capital. With a descending line, it would on the contrary appear that an additional supply of only 32 1/2 tons is required, hence only a capital of £50 has to be invested in II.” (p 289-90)

Back To Part 21

Forward To Part 23