Louis Proyect wrote: > The question that needs addressing is not how and why feudalism in Europe > evolved into capitalism, > The problem for Marxists is how to evaluate the spread of EUROPEAN > capitalism into NON-EUROPEAN pre-capitalist societies. These two statements amount to much the same thing: the evolution of the modes of production. That evolution was (as Marx and Jim D have argued) from both internal and external causes. The export of capital & capitalism from England can be traced to the usual causes in the classic theory of imperialism; a way of avoiding confrontation with the working class at home, the need to cheapen constant capital because of the falling profit rate and need to create markets (i.e. realize surplus value.) Pre-capitalist societies like feudalism or "asiatic"/"tributary" modes remained stagnant because of low productivity. The surplus that was created, through extra-economic coercion, was squandered by the ruling class on temples, palaces and churches instead of being plowed back into creating more productive capacity. Thus the relations of production acted as a fetter on the productive forces. This is where Brenner comes in I think-explaining how the whole process of capitalist capital accumulation got going in the first place. I don't see why one couldn't combine the rape of the colonies and changing relations of production internally in an explanation. Dissolution of pre-capitalist formations can be explained by the greater productive capacity of capitalism and the class struggle of the bourgeoise against landowners. Interestingly, Bettelheim argues that capitalism leads to the simultaneous preservation and destruction of pre-capitalist modes. Re-reading Brenner's NLR 'critique of neo-smithian approaches' paper last night, I was struck by the theoretical nature of the argument. Not too much about agriculture in England. He argues that Sweezy, Wallerstein and Frank are in essence repeating Smith's argument that the growth of international capitalism is based on the growth of the int'l division of labor and trade relations but failed to analyze the class basis of the spread of K. The upshot is that the solution for 3rd world countries is autarky and not socialism. I find Brenner quite convincing. Sam Pawlett
