Introduction

This book is part of a three-volume work looking in greater depth at Marx’s theory of price, a theory that is one of the two foundations on which his explanation of the functioning of the capitalist economic system rests, the other being the theory of profit. Taken together the three volumes seek to expand on and develop Marx’s theory of price. The focus of the present volume, as the title indicates, is price and money. Its purpose is to expand on, and develop, Marx’s theory of money price. In doing so I provide a new interpretation of Marx’s theories of value and money. I use my interpretation of Marx’s explanation of money price to critically evaluate other explanations of money price as well as other Marxist interpretations of his explanation of money price. The other interpretations I focus on are those of Smith, Ricardo, Sraffa, Post-Keynesians, and Neoclassicals. The purpose of the consideration of the other explanations of the money price of the commodity is to showcase Marx’s explanation and argue that his is the most logical and intuitively plausible explanation among all of these.