O PROCESSO DE TRABALHO E VALORIZAÇÃO DO CAPITAL: APONTAMENTOS DO CAPÍTULO V DE “O CAPITAL

Abstract

This work aims to present an introductory and accessible reading of Chapter V of Capital, using the 2013 Boitempo edition. The goal is to offer an understanding that allows even readers who have never before encountered the philosopher Karl Marx to grasp one of the central points of his critique: the genesis of surplus value and the relationship between labor, value, and exploitation. The choice of Section III of Chapter V, entitled "The Labour Process and the Valorization Process," is justified by its fundamental role in the theoretical structure of the work, constituting one of the moments in which Marx most clearly exposes the inner workings of the capitalist system. The body of the work is divided into an introduction, Chapter 1, and Chapter 2. The prelude will cover the conceptual points presented in the first pages of Chapter V, addressing the labour process, the relationship between man and nature, and the implications of these elements for understanding the worker as a seller of his own labor power in the market. Following this, the next chapter will present the labour process and the valorization process in a more systematic way. Through a didactic analysis, this study seeks to explore the importance of this chapter for a critical understanding of the reality of labor in the present day, as well as for understanding wages based on the arguments developed by Marx in his time. By articulating Marxist concepts with the contemporary challenges faced by workers, it is hoped to stimulate reflection on the permanence and transformations of forms of exploitation in the world of work. Finally, the main objective is to propose an accessible starting point for reading Capital, specifically Chapter V, enabling reflection on the centrality of the worker in the process of exploitation of labor power and also on the essential elements of the chapter for understanding the internal workings of capitalism. In this way, it seeks to contribute to the critical formation of new readers and to the deepening of the debate about the organization of work in contemporary society.