Political Economy -- The Capitalist Section

Author: Zhang Liancheng, Editor-in-Chief
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-04-01
Features: Based on the scientific system and content of Marx's Capital, as well as the needs of teaching Marxist political economy and postgraduate entrance examinations, we have condensed the fundamental principles of political economy and presented this textbook to readers. Although we pointed out in the preface that, based solely on the name, there is no fundamental difference between political economy and economics, as a social science, both political economy and economics are class-based. Currently, the Western economics community rarely uses the term "political economy," and in the minds of most Chinese people, political economy refers specifically to Marxist economics, which seems to have become an established convention. Marx's Capital scientifically reveals the essence of capitalist economic relations and the laws governing their emergence and development from a critical perspective. Therefore, as a textbook for the capitalist section of Marxist political economy, it should be based on the content and system of Marx's Capital, which is not an issue in itself. Unfortunately, in some recent textbooks on the capitalist section of political economy, many elements that do not belong to Marxist political economy have been included, such as theories of market failure and transaction costs from Western economics, among others. Additionally, some textbooks have significantly disrupted the scientific system of Marxist political economy while still being labeled as such, which is clearly inappropriate. Whether from the perspective of the scientific content and system of Marxist political economy or as an independent course, it should not incorporate content from other disciplines. This is not only a respect for the discipline itself but also a responsibility to students, as our students will still need to study other courses such as Western economics.