Terms of Trade and Class Relations: An Essay in Political Economy

Consider the state of economic theory even as late as on the eve of the Second World War. By and large, itwas the domain of peaceful-looking geometrical curves, representing either indifference surfaces ortechnical transformation possibilities; first- or second-order derivatives of the tricks of calculus contributedtheir mite, and occasional footnotes acted as conductors of esoteric knowledge. In the lecture rooms, marginalism and perfect competition held sway. Since both Joan Robinson and E.H. Chamberlin had alreadyproduced their tracts, it would have been singular bad manners not to set aside.