Ricardian socialism
Encyclopedia
Ricardian socialism refers to a branch of socialist economic thought based upon the work of economist David Ricardo
. The Ricardian socialists reasoned that the free-market was the route to socialism, and that rent, profit and interest were not natural outgrowths of the free-market. The central beliefs of Ricardian socialism are that all exchange value
is created from labor, and that labor is entitled to all it produces.
The first imputation that early British and Irish socialists were influenced by Ricardo is made by Marx
in his 1846 Poverty of Philosophy:
The link is later re-asserted by Herbert Foxwell
in his introduction to the English translation of Anton Menger
's "The Right to the Whole Produce of Labor" (1899). Consequently the category of Ricardian socialist came to be accepted by supporters and opponents both of Marxism by the early 20th century.
However, in recent years a number of scholars have challenged the validity of the category based on the lack of evidence that its proposed members had either read Ricardo's "Principles of Political Economy" or the contradictory internal evidence of their own value theory which appears to owe more to Adam Smith
than Ricardo. So much so that one scholar proposes the label of "Smithian Socialists" as a more accurate representation.
David Ricardo
David Ricardo was an English political economist, often credited with systematising economics, and was one of the most influential of the classical economists, along with Thomas Malthus, Adam Smith, and John Stuart Mill. He was also a member of Parliament, businessman, financier and speculator,...
. The Ricardian socialists reasoned that the free-market was the route to socialism, and that rent, profit and interest were not natural outgrowths of the free-market. The central beliefs of Ricardian socialism are that all exchange value
Exchange value
In political economy and especially Marxian economics, exchange value refers to one of four major attributes of a commodity, i.e., an item or service produced for, and sold on the market...
is created from labor, and that labor is entitled to all it produces.
Economics
Ricardian socialism is a putative form of socialism based on the arguments made by Ricardo that the equilibrium value of commodities approximated producer prices when those commodities were in elastic supply, and that these producer prices corresponded to the embodied labor; and that profit, interest and rent were deductions from this exchange-value. This is deduced from the axiom of Ricardo and Adam Smith that labor is the source of all value.The first imputation that early British and Irish socialists were influenced by Ricardo is made by Marx
Karl Marx
Karl Heinrich Marx was a German philosopher, economist, sociologist, historian, journalist, and revolutionary socialist. His ideas played a significant role in the development of social science and the socialist political movement...
in his 1846 Poverty of Philosophy:
Anyone who is in any way familiar with the trend of political economy in England cannot fail to know that almost all the Socialists in that country have, at different periods, proposed the equalitarian application of the Ricardian theory. We quote for M. Proudhon: Hodgskin, Political Economy, 1827; William Thompson, An Inquiry into the Principles of the Distribution of Wealth Most Conducive to Human Happiness, 1824; T. R. Edmonds, Practical Moral and Political Economy, 1828 [18], etc., etc., and four pages more of etc. We shall content ourselves with listening to an English Communist, Mr. Bray. We shall give the decisive passages in his remarkable work, Labor's Wrongs and Labor's Remedy, Leeds, 1839...
The link is later re-asserted by Herbert Foxwell
Herbert Foxwell
Herbert Somerton Foxwell was an English economist. He played an important role in the fostering of economic studies in Britain through his teaching, his work with the Royal Economic Society and other organisations, and his prodigious book collecting...
in his introduction to the English translation of Anton Menger
Anton Menger
Anton Menger von Wolfensgrün , Austrian, is the author of "The Right to the Whole Produce of Labor", "The Civil Law and the Poors" among others. He is Austrian economist Carl Menger's brother....
's "The Right to the Whole Produce of Labor" (1899). Consequently the category of Ricardian socialist came to be accepted by supporters and opponents both of Marxism by the early 20th century.
However, in recent years a number of scholars have challenged the validity of the category based on the lack of evidence that its proposed members had either read Ricardo's "Principles of Political Economy" or the contradictory internal evidence of their own value theory which appears to owe more to Adam Smith
Adam Smith
Adam Smith was a Scottish social philosopher and a pioneer of political economy. One of the key figures of the Scottish Enlightenment, Smith is the author of The Theory of Moral Sentiments and An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations...
than Ricardo. So much so that one scholar proposes the label of "Smithian Socialists" as a more accurate representation.
Ricardian socialists
- Thomas HodgskinThomas HodgskinThomas Hodgskin was an Englishsocialist writer on political economy, critic of capitalism, free-market anarchist and defender of free trade and early trade unions...
- Charles HallCharles Hall (economist)Charles Hall was a British physician, social critic and Ricardian socialist who published The Effects of Civilization on the People in European States in 1805, condemning capitalism for its inability to provide for the poor. In the book, Hall argued that inequalities in wealth and the production...
- John Francis BrayJohn Francis BrayJohn Francis Bray was a radical, Chartist, writer on socialist economics and activist in both Britain and hisnative America in the 19th century. He was hailed in later life as the 'Benjamin Franklin' of American labor.- Life :...
- John GrayJohn Gray (19th century socialist)John Gray was a British socialist economist.-Life and views:Very little personal information about John Gray is available. He lived mostly in Edinburgh. According to his own account, he was a poor student who dropped out of school early, went to London and took up factory work as a youngster...
- William ThompsonWilliam Thompson-Academics and scientists:* William Thompson , Irish ornithologist and botanist* William Thompson , Englishman who developed the Thompson Seedless grape...
See also
- MutualismMutualism (economic theory)Mutualism is an anarchist school of thought that originates in the writings of Pierre-Joseph Proudhon, who envisioned a society where each person might possess a means of production, either individually or collectively, with trade representing equivalent amounts of labor in the free market...
- Market SocialismMarket socialismMarket socialism refers to various economic systems where the means of production are either publicly owned or cooperatively owned and operated for a profit in a market economy. The profit generated by the firms system would be used to directly remunerate employees or would be the source of public...
- David RicardoDavid RicardoDavid Ricardo was an English political economist, often credited with systematising economics, and was one of the most influential of the classical economists, along with Thomas Malthus, Adam Smith, and John Stuart Mill. He was also a member of Parliament, businessman, financier and speculator,...
- Labor Theory of ValueLabor theory of valueThe labor theories of value are heterodox economic theories of value which argue that the value of a commodity is related to the labor needed to produce or obtain that commodity. The concept is most often associated with Marxian economics...