What does Marx mean when he refers to “magnitude”? Take, for example, the following passage: “Whatever their exchange relation may be, it can always be represented by an equation in which a given quantity of corn is equated to some quantity of iron, for instance 1 quarter of corn == x cwt of iron. What does this equation signify? It signifies that a common element of identical magnitude exists in two different things, in 1 quarter of corn and similarly in x cwt of iron.”

Does “magnitude” here refer to the amount of usefulness, or something else?

Thank you in advance.

  • @redjoker
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    44 years ago

    He’s building up the idea of abstract exchange-value. He then goes on to explain the arising of the concrete form of the universal exchange-value commodity, which is the money commodity

    • @TheoryNoobOP
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      24 years ago

      Oh I see, so in “a common element of identical magnitude exists in two different things”, this is alluding to what he is building towards, which is “a certain amount of money exists which they are both equal to”. Is this correct?

      • @redjoker
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        44 years ago

        Sort of. First he’s establishing barter systems where you can exchange any commodity for any other commodity, and that they have this abstract exchange-value that is more abstract than money. Then he introduces the concept of a common exchangeable commodity, because while a pound of potatoes might be worth a few yards of linen to one person, they might not be to another. This becomes the money commodity, which is the physical manifestation of exchange-value. So exchange-value precedes money. That’s why Marx doesn’t get into the money form until later

  • Muad'DibberA
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    34 years ago

    I always tend to think in labor time as a way to simplify things, and to use as a common account, rather than trying to differentiate between use-value, exchange-value, and price.

    In that case the magnitude / amount of X corn which would equal X iron, would be the labor time necessary to harvest / process it. So 1 lb of corn might be 0.1 labor hours, and 1 lb of iron might be 1 labor hour.

    In Capital, Marx works from the other direction, showing that at the end of the exchange process, we see underlying quantities of human labor time that determine the exchange rates.