Distribution theories

David M. Gordon

pp. 129-140

in: John Eatwell, Murray Milgate, Peter Newman (eds), Marxian economics, Basingstoke, Palgrave Macmillan, 1990

Abstract

It is hard to imagine a more important topic within Marxian economics than the distribution of income and the means of production among the principal classes in capitalist economies. For example: (1) The share of profits (or, inversely, the share of wages) constitutes one important component of the rate of profit. (2) The rate of profit operates as a fundamental determinant of the pace of investment and, therefore, of accumulation. (3) The rate of accumulation serves as a kind of life-force invigorating capitalist economies over time — regulating their growth and development, and the wealth of their participants. (4) Distribution, production and accumulation are thus fundamentally interconnected, forming the foundation of lives and livelihoods in capitalist societies.

Cited authors

Marx Karl