Theories of Modern Capitalism

1. Compare neoclassical with classical, Marxian or post-Keynesian price/ value theory. How do they differ? Which do you think gives the most satisfactory vision, and why? 2. What explains the existence of a surplus (i.e. incomes other than from labour: profit, interest, rent) in a capitalist economy? What factors influence the average rate of profit? 3. Is it useful to think of the capitalist economy as tending towards a general equilibrium (neoclassical) or long period (classical/Marx) position? Is this incompatible with understanding the economy as evolving in historical time? Why, or why not? 4. What are the implications of the fact that the capitalist economy is inherently a ‘monetary economy’? Are we better off seeing money as a ‘veil’ to be stripped away, revealing the ‘real economy’ beneath? Or does it need to be integrated into economic analysis? Why?      

Sample Solution