ECONOMICS 249
MARXIST AND POST-MARXIST ECONOMICS
Wellesley College, Fall 1995

Julie Matthaei
304 Pendleton East
283-2181
Office Hours:
T 10:15-11, Th 1:45-2:45
& by appointment

COURSE DESCRIPTION:

In this course, we trace the development of Marxian economics through the late twentieth century. After a reading of key texts by Marx, we will study post-Marxists' extension and revision of Marxian economics into feminist, anti-racist, and ecological economics. Then we will read Western Marxists' evaluations of the economic crises and transformations in the Soviet and Eastern Europe--do these changes mean that a socialist alternative to capitalism is impossible? Finally, we will look at contemporary Marxist and radical political economists' visions of socialist transformation in the United States.

COURSE REQUIREMENTS:

1. CLASS ATTENDANCE AND PARTICIPATION. This class will be run as a seminar, and class participation is very important. Students who miss more than two classes will not receive credit for the course (whatever the reason); plan ahead and save your absences in case of illness or outside commitments.

2. READING AND RESPONSE/EVALUATION SHEETS. This class is reading intensive. Course requirements include reading the assigned readings and filling out response/evaluation sheets on them BEFORE the class meeting (not doing so can mean a reduction in points from your final grade--see grading section). Make sure that you discuss all of the readings assigned to you for a particular class on that class' response/evaluation sheet (not necessarily on all the questions, but on some question).

Three books that we will be reading extensively from -- Volume I of Marx's Capital, Barbara Brandt's Whole Life Economics, and Michael Albert and Robin Hahnel's Looking Forward -- will be available at the bookstore. All of the other required and recommended readings will be available in the Clapp Reserve Room.

3. CURRENT EVENTS. Each class will begin with 5 to 15 minutes on current events related to the course, including economic events and radical organizing (feminist, anti-racist, environmental, worker, gay and lesbian, etc.). Each student should bring up at least one current event during the semester. You are encouraged to read the radical press to keep up with current events from a radical perspective. Some radical publications include Dollars and Sense, Monthly Review, Sojourner, Dissent, Off Our Backs, In These Times, The Nation, Labor Notes, and Z. If some article really moves you, you might want to make copies for the rest of the class.

4. TAKE-HOME EXAMINATIONS. There will be 2 take-home, open book examinations. The first, on Marxist economics, will be handed out on Sept. 20 and due Sept. 27; the second will be handed out on Oct. 11, due Oct. 18. Assignments which are handed in on time may be rewritten and resubmitted within a week of being handed back; the grade will then be an average of the original and rewrite grades. If you do not hand the assignment in by its due date, you forfeit your right to rewrite it; it is then due the date that the rewrites are due. The expected dates that your assignments will be returned to you, and that the rewrites will be due, are on the course outline.

You may work on the take-homes alone or in pairs; if you work in a pair, each must work on each question, and each will receive the same grade. I encourage you to work on the assignments with your classmates, whether or not you decide to write them together.

5. PAPER AND CLASS PRESENTATION. During the last third of the semester, you will work on a paper on a topic of your choice related to Marxist or post-Marxist economics. This paper could either be an extended essay a topic related to the course readings, supplemented by other readings on the topic, or a paper presenting your research on a topic in radical political economics not covered in class. The paper should be from 12-20 typed double-spaced pages. You can work on this paper alone or in pairs. We will have a preliminary in-class discussion of the topics you are considering on Nov. 8. Students will schedule appointments to discuss their proposed topics with me on Nov. 13 (for this meeting, they should bring an outline or a paragraph describing their proposed paper); they will also make second appointments to discuss their progress on and issues with their papers on Nov. 20. First drafts of papers will be due in class on Wednesday, Nov. 29, and I will return them, with my comments (ungraded) by 5 pm on Friday, Dec. 1; only students who hand in draft by Nov. 29 will receive written comments from me. Final drafts of papers will be due on Dec. 19, the last day of finals.

Students will give presentations based on their papers on the last day of classes, Dec. 6. Anticipated presentation length will be 15 minutes per student (i.e. 30 minutes for two students presenting together); students should speak for about 12 minutes, allowing time for questions and discussion. We may have to extend the class period on that day to accommodate all presentations.

If students wish, they could also write up and present one side of a debate in lieu of the paper topics above. Possible debate topics include capitalism vs. socialism; market socialism vs. the "Looking Forward" model; and mainstream vs. radical/Marxist economic theory.

GRADING:

Valued will be level of understanding, coherence, clarity, depth, and originality. Your Marx take-home will count for 25% of your final grade; your written assignment on post-Marxist economics, 30%; your paper, 30%; and your presentation, 15%. Class participation may improve a borderline grade. As explained above, the grade for any rewritten assignment will be an average of the original and the rewrite grades (this doesn't apply however to the paper, whose first draft will be commented upon but ungraded).

The response/evaluation sheets are ungraded. However, points will be deducted from your FINAL grade for response/evaluations not handed in on time, as follows. All handed in, with one or fewer late, no points deducted; all handed in, with two late, 1 point deducted; all handed in, with three late, 2 points deducted; all handed in with four late, 3 points deducted, etc. Further, one point will be deducted for each response/evaluation sheet that you fail to hand in at all.

Grading will not be on the curve; work will be graded on a scale of 0-100 where <60 = F, 60-62 = D-, 63-66 = D, 67-69 = D+, 70-72 = C-, 73-76 = C, 77-79 = C, 80-82 = B-, 83-86 = B, 87-89 = B+, 90-92 = A-, >92 = A.

OFFICE HOURS:

Please come and see me during my office hours, or by appointment. My office is Room 304, Pendleton East. My office hours are Wed. 1:30 to 2:30 pm. I am also always available to see you outside of office hours but to insure seeing me, you must make an appointment; please see me before or after class (or call x2181) to do so.

INFORMAL GET-TOGETHERS:

I enjoy getting to know students more informally, and would be happy to meet with one or a group for lunch or dinner in the dorms; invite me! Also, we will arrange a class party sometime during the semester that is convenient. If you would like to suggest any other class projects, trips, or events, please bring them up with me or with the class.

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COURSE OUTLINE AND READINGS

A detailed course outline is attached. Readings marked with * are optional; all others are required. All required readings, other than those in Capital, Vol. I, Whole Life Economics, or Looking Forward, will be handed out in class (classes 2 and 3) or will be in the reading packet. All readings -- required and optional -- are also on reserve in Clapp Library.

PART I. MARX'S ECONOMICS

1. Introduction to One Another, to the Course, Discussion of Suggested Ground Rules, and Basic Introduction to Marx (9/6)
HAND-OUTS:
Karl Marx, "Theses on Feuerbach," "Preface to A Contribution to the Critique of Political Economy," and "The Communist Manfesto" (excerpts)
"Suggested Ground Rules for Econ 249"
Response/Evaluation Sheets

2. The Basics of Marx's Economics: The Labor Theory of Value, Capital, Exploitation, and Alienation (9/13)
HAND-OUTS on the labor theory of value
Karl Marx, Capital, Vol. I. Part I, Chapter 1, Commodities, Section 1 only; Part II, Chapters IV-VI; Part III, Chapter VII; Part IV: Chapter XIV, Section 5 only; Chapter XV, Section 1, first page only, Section 3a, and Section 4, from fifth page to end (beginning at "Although then, technically speaking..."), and Section 5.
Marx, "First Manuscript: Alienated Labor," in Erich Fromm, Marx's Concept of Man, pp. 93-109. (Fromm on reserve, as well as uncat copies of article under uncat F)
* Erich Fromm, Marx's Concept of Man, Chapter 5, "Alienation."
* E.K. Hunt, History of Economic Thought: A Critical Perspective, Chapter 10.
* John Gurley, "The Theory of Surplus Value," reading 3.1 in Edwards, Reich, and Weisskopf, The Capitalist System, 2ndedition.

3. The Historical Tendencies of Capitalism, and the Inevitability of Socialism (9/20)
HAND-OUT on the falling rate of profit
Marx, Capital, Vol. I. Part VIII, "The So-Called Primitive Accumulation," all chapters and sections (Ch. XXVI-XXXIII), except, for Chapter XXVIII, only the first 4 pages.
Marx, Capital, Vol. I. Chapter XXV, "The General Law of Capitalist Accumulation," all sections, skim section 5.
Marx, Capital, Vol. III. Chapter XIII, first 3 pages (handed out in class on 9/13).

TAKE-HOME EXAMINATION ON MARXIST ECONOMICS HANDED OUT; DUE IN CLASS ON 9/27
IN-CLASS MOVIE: "Controlling Interest," on power of large corporations in the global economy

PART II. POST-MARXIST AND RADICAL ECONOMISTS' ANALYSES OF CAPITALISM

4. Gender, Sexuality, and Capitalist Patriarchy (9/27)
Julie Matthaei, "Marxist-Feminist Contributions to Radical Economics," in Susan Feiner and Bruce Roberts, eds., Radical Economics.
Julie Matthaei, "Why Marxist, Feminist and Anti-Racist Economists Should Be Marxist-Feminist-Anti-Racist Economists." Feminist Economics (forthcoming). UNCAT.
Gerre Goodman, No Turning Back: Lesbian and Gay Liberation, Chapter 2, "An Analysis of the System of Gay Oppression."
* bel hooks, Feminist Theory: From Margin to Center, Ch. 1, "Black Women: Shaping Feminist Theory," Ch. 6, "Changing Perspectives on Power," and Ch. 12, "Feminist Revolution: Development through Struggle."
* Heidi Hartmann, "The Unhappy Marriage of Marxism and Feminism: Towards a More Progressive Union," in Women and Revolution, ed. by Lydia Sargent.
* John d'Emilio, "Capitalism and Gay Identity," in Ann Snitow et al, eds., Powers of Desire.
* Evelyn Nakano Glenn, "From Servitude to Service Work: Historical Continuities in the Racial Division of Paid Reproductive Labor," Signs: Journal of Women in Culture and Society 18:1 (Autumn 1992), 1-43.

TAKE-HOME EXAMINATION ON MARXIST ECONOMICS DUE IN CLASS

5. Colonialism, Neo-Colonialism, Racism, and Patriarchy (10/4)
J.M. Blaut, "Colonialism and the Rise of Capitalism," Science & Society 53:3 (Fall 1989), pp. 260-296.
John Rex, "Racism and the Structure of Colonial Societies," Ch. 11 in Robert Ross, ed., Racism and Colonialism.
Gita Sen and Karen Grown, Development, Crises, and Alternative Visions: Third World Women's Perspectives, Chapter 1, "Gender and Class in Development Experience."
* Keith Griffin and John Gurley, "Radical Analyses of Imperialism, The Third World, and the Transition to Socialism: A Survey Article," Journal of Economic Literature CCIII (Sept. 1985), pp. 1089-1120 only.
* Real World International: An Economics Reader from Dollars and Sense.

TAKE-HOME EXAMINATION ON MARXIST ECONOMICS HANDED BACK; REWRITE DUE CLASS 6

6. Racial and Gender Oppression in the U.S. (week of Oct. 11)
Teresa Amott and Julie Matthaei, Race, Gender & Work, pp. 291-320 and 341-348.
Rhonda Williams, "A Reconsideration of Racial Earnings Inequality." Review of Radical Political Economics 19(2):1-15 (1987).
Cornell West, Race Matters, Ch. 2, "The Pitfalls of Racial Reasoning."
* Michael Omi and Howard Winant, Racial Formation in Advanced Capitalism, Ch. 4, "Racial Formation."
* Herbert Hill, "Black Labor and Affirmative Action: An Historical Perspective," in Steve Shulman and William Darity, eds., The Question of Discrimination: Racial Inequality in the U.S. Labor Market.
* Steve Shulman, "Controversies in Marxian Analysis of Racial Discrimination," Review of Radical Political Economics 21:4, 73-80.

REWRITES OF TAKE-HOME EXAMINATION ON MARXIST ECONOMICS DUE;
TAKE-HOME EXAMINATION ON POST-MARXIST ECONOMICS HANDED OUT, DUE 10/18

7. Ecology I: Capitalism and Ecological Destruction (10/18)
James O'Connor, "Uneven and combined development and ecological crisis: a theoretical introduction," from "Un-greening the Third World: food, ecology and power," Special Issue of Race & Class, 1990.
Bina Agarwal, "The Gender and Environment Debate: Lessons from India," Feminist Studies 18:1 (Spring 1992).
Robert Bullard, "Anatomy of Environmental Racism and the Environmental Justice Movement," Ch. 1 in Bullard, ed., Confronting Environmental Racism: Voices from the Grassroots. Boston: South End Press 1993.
Howard Hawkins, "The Politics of Ecology: Environmentalism, Ecologism, and the Greens," Resist 217 (July/August 1989).
* Nathan Hare, "Black Ecology," in Environmental Ethics, ed. K.S. Shrader-Frechette, 1981, pp. 229-36.
* Ynestra King, "Toward an Ecological Feminism and a Feminist Ecology," in Joan Rothschild, ed. Machina Ex Dea: Feminist Perspectives on Technology.

TAKE-HOME EXAMINATION ON POST-MARXIST ECONOMICS DUE
IN-CLASS MOVIE: "Deadly Deception: General Electric, Nuclear Weapons, and Our Environment," Academy-Award winning documentary by media activist Debra Chasnoff (Wellesley Class of 1978)(30 minutes)

8. Ecology II: Critiques of Consumerism, Workaholism, and Growthmania, and Proposals for a Steady State/Whole Life Alternative (10/25)
Barbara Brandt, Whole Life Economics: Revaluing Daily Life, Chs. 4-10, and Chs. 17-18.
Herman Daly, "Introduction to the Steady-State Economy," from Daly, ed., Economics, Ecology, Ethics. pp. 8-11, 16, 19-22.
* Julie Matthaei, "Rethinking Scarcity: Neoclassicism, NeoMalthusianism, and NeoMarxism," Review of Radical Political Economics 16:2-3 (Summer/Fall 1984), 81-94.
* Julie Schor, The Overworked American.

TAKE-HOME EXAMINATION ON POST-MARXIST ECONOMICS HANDED BACK; REWRITE DUE 11/1

9. U.S. Capitalism and Democracy: The State as Classist, Racist, and Sexist (11/1)
Richard Edwards et al, The Capitalist System 3rd edition, Ch. 5, "Class Conflict and the State," Introduction (pp. 167-174).
Wendy Brown, "Finding the Man in the State," Feminist Studies 18:1 (Spring 1992), pp. 7-34.
Michael Omi and Howard Winant, Racial Formation, Ch. 5, "The Racial State."
* Carole Pateman, "The Patriarchal Welfare State," from Amy Gutmann, ed., Democracy and the Welfare State.

REWRITE OF TAKE-HOME EXAMINATION ON POST-MARXIST ECONOMICS DUE

PART III. ALTERNATIVES TO CAPITALISM

10. What Went Wrong? Marx's Vision vs. Existing "Socialist" Countries (11/8)
Bertell Ollman, "Marx's Vision of Communism: A Reconstruction," in Seweryn Bialer and Sophia Sluzar, eds., Radicalism in the Contemporary Age, Vol. 2, Radical Visions of the Future.
Daniel Singer, "Prometheus Rebound?", in "The Future of Socialism," Special Issue of Monthly Review 42:3 (July-August 1990).
Michael Albert and Robin Hahnel, Looking Forward, "Prologue."
Mieke Meurs, Review of 3 recent books on women in Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union. Feminist Economcs 1:1 (Spring 1995), pp. 222-230.
* Eric Canepa, "Boris Kagarlitsky on Capitalization in the Soviet Union: Paradoxes, DIfficulties and Resistance," Socialism and Democracy 8:1 (1992).
* Noam Chomsky, "U.S. Still at War Against the World," Resist 226 (May 1990)
* Robert Cox, "'Real Socialism' in Historical Perspective," Socialist Register 1991, Monthly Review Press.

REWRITE OF TAKE-HOME ON POST-MARXIST ECONOMICS HANDED BACK
PRELIMINARY DISCUSSION OF PAPER/PRESENTATION TOPICS DURING THE LAST 15 MINUTES OF CLASS; MAKE APPOINTMENTS FOR MONDAY, NOV. 13
11/13 FIRST APPOINTMENT TO DISCUSS PAPER, AS SCHEDULED

11. Worker Cooperatives and Market Socialism (11/15)
Alec Nove, The Economics of Feasible Socialism, Part 5, "Feasible Socialism."
Len Krimerman and Frank Lindenfeld, eds., When Workers Decide: Workplace Democracy Takes Root in North American, pp. 1-49.
Barbara Brandt, Whole Life Economics, Ch. 11, "Not Business-As-Usual: New Directions for Enterprises."
* Samuel Bowles et al, After the Wasteland: A Democratic Economics for the Year 2000, Part IV, "The Promise of Democratic Economics."
* Roy Morrison, We Build the Road as We Travel, pp. 8-20, 71-84, 117-32.
* Ernest Mandel, "The Myth of Market Socialism," New Left Review, 169, pp. 108-20.

MAKE APPOINTMENTS FOR MONDAY, NOV. 20 TO DISCUSS PAPERS

IN-CLASS MOVIE: "The MONDRAGON EXPERIMENT," on complex of worker cooperatives in the Basque region of Spain

11/20 SECOND APPOINTMENT TO DISCUSS PAPER, AS SCHEDULED
WEDNESDAY, NOV. 22: THANKSGIVING EVE; NO CLASS (rescheduled for week of Oct. 11)

12. Beyond Markets: Decentralized Planning (11/29)
Michael Albert & Robin Hahnel, Looking Forward: Participatory Economics For The Twenty First Century.
* Comments on above book in Z Magazine, 1991
* Lou Ferleger and Jay Mandle, "Socialism Without Markets?", Socialist Review 22/2 (April-June 1992), 119-24.

FIRST DRAFTS OF PAPERS DUE

FRIDAY, DEC. 1, 5 PM: FIRST DRAFTS OF PAPERS RETURNED TO STUDENTS WITH COMMENTS (UNGRADED); PICK UP IN MATTHAEI "OUT" BOX IN ECONOMICS DEPT. MAIL ISLAND, PNE 3RD FLOOR

13. Student Presentations on Topics of Their Choice and/or Debates (12/6)

TUESDAY, DEC. 19, 4:30 PM: FINAL DRAFTS OF PAPERS DUE