Definition of the Capitalist Mode of Production: A Re-Examination (With Application to Non-Capitalist Modes of Production).

Abstract: In this paper I attempt to review the theoretical criteria for definition of the capitalist mode of production, and thus of the capitalist and working classes, through an investigation of the Marxian analysis in Capital. I discover that the conceptual instruments of the original Althusserian tradition are indispensable for the purposes of this study. Finally, I use my research as the point of departure for a short review of non-capitalist modes of production under conditions of capitalist predominance, thereby, so to speak, testing the explanatory power and coherence of my analysis. 1 Introductory Admissions