Summary
Marx reveals how different mathematical formulas for calculating profit create vastly different impressions of how much workers are being exploited. He shows three ways to measure the same situation: the honest way that reveals true exploitation, and two misleading ways commonly used in business that make exploitation look much smaller. Using a 12-hour workday example, Marx demonstrates how the real rate of exploitation might be 100% (workers create twice as much value as they're paid), but the standard business formula makes it appear to be only 50%. This isn't just an accounting trick - it fundamentally changes how we understand the relationship between workers and owners. The misleading formulas make it seem like workers and capitalists are partners sharing the day's work proportionally, when in reality the capitalist is getting hours of completely unpaid labor. Marx introduces the concept of 'unpaid labor' - the portion of a worker's day where they're creating value for the owner but receiving nothing in return. He argues this unpaid labor is the true source of all profit, interest, and rent in the economy. The chapter exposes how seemingly neutral mathematical presentations can obscure exploitation and make unfair arrangements appear natural and reasonable.
Coming Up in Chapter 19
Marx now turns to examine how this exploitation gets disguised even further through the concept of 'wages' - and why thinking in terms of payment per hour rather than payment for labor-power completely transforms how we understand work.
Share it with friends
An excerpt from the original text.(~500 words)
ARIOUS FORMULAE FOR THE RATE OF SURPLUS-VALUE Economic Manuscripts: Capital Vol. I - Chapter Eighteen Karl Marx. Capital Volume One Chapter Eighteen: Various Formula for the Rate of Surplus-Value We have seen that the rate of surplus-value is represented by the following formulae: I.Surplus-value(s)=Surplus-value=Surplus-labour Variable CapitalvValue of labour-powerNecessary labour The two first of these formulae represent, as a ratio of values, that which, in the third, is represented as a ratio of the times during which those values are produced. These formulae, supplementary the one to the other, are rigorously definite and correct. We therefore find them substantially, but not consciously, worked out in classical Political Economy. There we meet with the following derivative formulae. II.Surplus-labour =Surplus-value=Surplus-product Working-day Value of the ProductTotal Product One and the same ratio is here expressed as a ratio of labour-times, of the values in which those labour-times are embodied, and of the products in which those values exist. It is of course understood that, by “Value of the Product,” is meant only the value newly created in a working-day, the constant part of the value of the product being excluded. In all of these formulae (II.), the actual degree of exploitation of labour, or the rate of surplus-value, is falsely expressed. Let the working-day be 12 hours. Then, making the same assumptions as in former instances, the real degree of exploitation of labour will be represented in the following proportions. 6 hours surplus-labour=Surplus-value of 3 sh.= 100% 6 hours necessary labourVariable Capital of 3 sh. From formulae II. we get very differently, 6 hours surplus-labour=Surplus-value of 3 sh.= 50% Working-day of 12 hoursValue created of 6 sh. These derivative formulae express, in reality, only the proportion in which the working-day, or the value produced by it, is divided between capitalist and labourer. If they are to be treated as direct expressions of the degree of self-expansion of capital, the following erroneous law would hold good: Surplus-labour or surplus-value can never reach 100%. Since the surplus-labour is only an aliquot part of the working-day, or since surplus-value is only an aliquot part of the value created, the surplus-labour must necessarily be always less than the working-day, or the surplus-value always less than the total value created. In order, however, to attain the ratio of 100:100 they must be equal. In order that the surplus-labour may absorb the whole day (i.e., an average day of any week or year), the necessary labour must sink to zero. But if the necessary labour vanish, so too does the surplus-labour, since it is only a function of the former. The ratio Surplus-labourorSurplus-value Working-dayValue created can therefore never reach the limit 100/100, still less rise to 100 + x/100. But not so the rate of surplus-value, the real degree of exploitation of labour. Take, e.g., the estimate of L. de Lavergne, according to which the English agricultural labourer gets only 1/4, the capitalist (farmer) on the other hand 3/4 of the product or its value, apart from the question of...
Master this chapter. Complete your experience
Purchase the complete book to access all chapters and support classic literature
As an Amazon Associate, we earn a small commission from qualifying purchases at no additional cost to you.
Available in paperback, hardcover, and e-book formats
Intelligence Amplifier™ Analysis
The Road of Hidden Math - How Numbers Lie to Protect Power
When those in power use technically correct but strategically presented calculations to make exploitation or unfairness appear reasonable and natural.
Why This Matters
Connect literature to life
This chapter teaches how to spot when numbers are presented to obscure rather than illuminate truth.
Practice This Today
This week, notice when percentages are used without showing the actual amounts, and always ask what's being left out of the calculation.
Now let's explore the literary elements.
Terms to Know
Rate of surplus-value
The mathematical way to measure how much unpaid work an employee does compared to the work they're actually paid for. If you work 8 hours but only get paid for the value you create in 4 hours, your rate of surplus-value is 100%.
Modern Usage:
This is like when you generate $200 worth of business for your company in a day but only get paid $100 - the other $100 is unpaid labor.
Variable capital
The money a business spends on wages and salaries - called 'variable' because it's the only expense that can create more value than it costs. Raw materials just transfer their value, but workers create new value.
Modern Usage:
This is your payroll budget - the only business expense that can actually generate profit rather than just maintain operations.
Surplus labor
The hours you work beyond what's needed to pay for your own wages and benefits. If you earn your keep in 4 hours but work 8, those extra 4 hours are surplus labor that becomes the owner's profit.
Modern Usage:
This is working overtime without overtime pay, or being so productive that you could earn your salary in half a day but still working full-time.
Necessary labor
The portion of your workday that covers the cost of your wages, benefits, and what you need to survive. Everything you work beyond this becomes someone else's profit.
Modern Usage:
If your daily productivity covers your daily pay by 2 PM, everything after 2 PM is necessary labor - the rest is surplus.
Working-day
The total hours an employee works, which Marx divides into necessary labor (paying for wages) and surplus labor (creating profit for owners). Understanding this split reveals the true economics of employment.
Modern Usage:
Your 8-hour shift might break down as 3 hours earning your pay and 5 hours generating profit for your employer.
Degree of exploitation
How much unpaid work you do relative to paid work, expressed as a percentage. A 100% rate means you work twice as much as you're paid for - half your day is unpaid.
Modern Usage:
This measures how much your productivity exceeds your compensation - like being paid $15/hour while generating $30/hour in value.
Characters in This Chapter
The Capitalist
Economic antagonist
Represents the business owner who uses misleading formulas to hide how much unpaid labor they extract from workers. Benefits from mathematical presentations that make exploitation appear fair and natural.
Modern Equivalent:
The CEO who talks about 'team success' while paying minimum wage for maximum-profit work
The Worker
Economic protagonist
The employee whose labor creates all value but only receives payment for part of their productive work. Their unpaid labor becomes the source of all business profit, interest, and rent.
Modern Equivalent:
The retail worker whose sales generate thousands daily but earns $12/hour
Classical Political Economists
Unwitting enablers
Academic theorists who created and promoted the misleading formulas that hide exploitation. They present these calculations as neutral math, not recognizing their political implications.
Modern Equivalent:
Business school professors who teach 'efficient labor allocation' without mentioning wage theft
Key Quotes & Analysis
"In all of these formulae, the actual degree of exploitation of labour, or the rate of surplus-value, is falsely expressed."
Context: When explaining how standard business formulas hide the true extent of unpaid labor
Marx reveals that the way we typically calculate business profits systematically conceals how much workers are being shortchanged. The math isn't neutral - it's designed to make exploitation look reasonable.
In Today's Words:
The way companies do their books makes it look like they're being fair when they're actually ripping off their workers.
"The two first of these formulae represent, as a ratio of values, that which, in the third, is represented as a ratio of the times during which those values are produced."
Context: Explaining how different mathematical approaches measure the same exploitation
Marx shows that whether you measure exploitation in money, time, or products, you're looking at the same unfair relationship. The math might look different, but the reality of unpaid work remains constant.
In Today's Words:
Whether you count dollars, hours, or products, the bottom line is the same - workers aren't getting paid for all the value they create.
"It is of course understood that, by 'Value of the Product,' is meant only the value newly created in a working-day, the constant part of the value of the product being excluded."
Context: Clarifying how to properly calculate the value workers actually create
Marx insists on precision - workers don't create the value of raw materials or machinery, only the new value added through their labor. This distinction is crucial for understanding true productivity versus inherited value.
In Today's Words:
When we talk about what workers produce, we're only counting the new value they add - not the cost of materials and equipment they work with.
Thematic Threads
Deception
In This Chapter
Mathematical formulas used to obscure the true rate of worker exploitation
Development
Builds on earlier themes of surface vs. reality, now showing how numbers themselves become tools of concealment
In Your Life:
You might see this when your employer calculates your 'total compensation' to justify a low salary, or when companies present statistics that technically aren't lies but definitely aren't the whole truth.
Power
In This Chapter
Capitalists control not just the work but how the work gets measured and presented
Development
Expands from physical control of production to intellectual control of how value gets calculated and understood
In Your Life:
You might notice this when your boss sets metrics that make their decisions look good while making your performance look questionable.
Class
In This Chapter
The same mathematical relationship looks completely different depending on which formula serves the ruling class
Development
Deepens the class analysis by showing how even 'objective' math serves class interests
In Your Life:
You might experience this when loan officers, insurance agents, or financial advisors present the same deal using numbers that benefit them, not you.
Labor
In This Chapter
Introduction of 'unpaid labor' as the hidden source of all profit in the economy
Development
Moves from describing exploitation to quantifying exactly how much work goes unpaid
In Your Life:
You might recognize this in your own job when you calculate how much value you create versus how much you're actually paid.
Truth
In This Chapter
Multiple ways to present the same facts, with dramatically different implications for understanding fairness
Development
Builds on earlier themes about seeing through appearances, now focusing specifically on numerical presentations
In Your Life:
You might encounter this when comparing job offers, evaluating investments, or trying to understand any financial arrangement that affects your life.
You now have the context. Time to form your own thoughts.
Discussion Questions
- 1
Marx shows three different ways to calculate the same worker's exploitation - one shows 100% exploitation, another shows only 50%. What's the difference between these calculations, and why do the numbers change so dramatically?
analysis • surface - 2
Why would business owners prefer to use the formula that makes exploitation look smaller? What does this tell us about how people in power present information?
analysis • medium - 3
Where have you seen this 'Hidden Math' pattern in your own life - times when someone used technically correct numbers to make an unfair situation look reasonable?
application • medium - 4
When you're presented with percentages or statistics about your work, benefits, or finances, what questions should you ask to see if the math is hiding something important?
application • deep - 5
Marx argues that 'unpaid labor' - hours you work but don't get paid for - is the source of all profit. How does this change how you think about the relationship between workers and owners?
reflection • deep
Critical Thinking Exercise
Decode the Hidden Math
Think of a recent financial decision or work situation where someone presented numbers to you - a job offer, loan terms, productivity metrics, or budget presentation. Write down the numbers as they were presented, then try to recalculate them using a different formula. What changes when you use total hours instead of just work hours, or actual take-home pay instead of 'total compensation'?
Consider:
- •What was included in their calculation that might not benefit you directly?
- •What time period did they use, and would a different timeframe tell a different story?
- •Who benefits when the numbers are presented this way versus other ways?
Journaling Prompt
Write about a time when you realized someone had used 'technically correct' information to mislead you. How did it feel when you figured it out, and what did you learn about asking better questions?
Coming Up Next...
Chapter 19: The Wage Illusion Revealed
Moving forward, we'll examine employers disguise unpaid work as 'fair wages', and understand the phrase 'value of labor' is economically meaningless. These insights bridge the gap between classic literature and modern experience.