Value Theory and Dialectics. The Überhaupt on the Hegelian Legacy of Critical Economic Theory

Abstract

In the history of Marxism, the question of the relevance of Hegelian legacy has always been more important than merely being the subject of specialised philosophical investigations to clarify Hegel’s impact on Marx. Hegel’s repeated devaluation and revaluation coincided with crucial turning points. This is no different in the case of Überhaupt. This work not only breaks with Hegel, but also brings about a much more general turn: it becomes the main source of progressive theoretical anti-Marxism in Hungary before the regime change of 1989/90. In my paper, I argue, on the basis of the interpretive tradition of Neue Marx-Lektüre, that the well-known objections to the „proof procedures” of Capital – including the thorough and subtle criticisms of Überhaupt – are partly misguided, and this is closely related to the unfavourable verdict on the dialectical method.