World systems: low equilibria traps for capital or capitalism pre-1900

Speculation at the other board on monstrous 20th centuries led me to answer: capitalism goes low equilibria as a weak radical workers movement causes Ford-Taylorism to be unnecessary to buy off / discipline / sweat labour.

But as a world-system capitalism a socialist we know it, and its precursors in mercantile capitals, could well also have suffered from selections of low growth equilibria. Potentially actual history selected low growth equilibria, though prior to imperialism the fractured nature of capital / capitalisms precludes this as another fractured economy could select the alternate.

Now I happen to follow the autonomist-workerist perspective, which means in my selection below I am going to focus on successful labour discipline of the old form making new techniques unnecessary.

The chief low equilibria potential is the New World being as difficult to subject to commodity extraction as Africa or India or Indonesia. The repulse of European capital extraction from the Caribbean, Central and Southern americas would have made these areas as economically indifferent as British North America.

Following on, the reinfeudation of the serfs of Germany and Poland, while a result of Dutch, French and English capital concentrations, would have reduced the expanded circulation of capital due to a lack of specialisation at the international scale.

England's enclosure / poor law system could correspondingly have been subverted by reinfeudation, leading to reduced output she in agricultural capital, and such a lower growth would have stopped capital flight to the higher rate of return textiles.

Had the weavers and frame knitters been chastised by the putting out system, both King Ludd and steam/factory labour would have been much less desirable: sweat replaced the machine as late as 1860 in starving frame knitting households. Sweat them in 1760 and you don't need the machines factories and starvling girls to break labour's power.

Napoleon's peasantry, lasting to the end of the period, is a perfect example of low equilibria selection. In this case as a straight political buy off of labouring class strength. But definitely lower rate of return than the plantation or enclosure factory style farms.

Late in the period cutting the nuts off the palest pink UK unions, and a pinkertons' "why not kill them all," in the US might set the stage for a "No Taylorism necessary" 1860s stagnation forever.

Japan might well "open" like China or Siam.

Any other low equilibria possible in Dutch or Italian capitals?

Yours,
Sam R.
 
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Im normally quite forgiving when it comes to grammar and spelling, but I will be honest in saying I have no clue what on earth you are asking.
 
http://www.bradford-delong.com/2016...-mark-elvins-high-level-equilibrium-trap.html
http://www.bradford-delong.com/2016/07/the-gunpowder-empire-scenario-incomplete-draft.html

Going by history with a recognizable, at least until 1815-1830 when modern growth becomes a thing, chances are you just delay things 100-150 years. A world where technology, economics labor relations in say 2018 are somewhere between 1868 and 1918 could be doable. you'd likely have to go earlier if you want a longer delay to create the jules verne steampunk dystopia/high end gunpowder and sail mercantillist/early capitalist world you're describing.
 
the jules verne steampunk dystopia/high end gunpowder and sail mercantillist/early capitalist world you're describing.

Doubt it. The topic is more about the continuation of German serfdom, or the British conditions of 1848 lasting to 1888, etc. While I agree that some techniques might become luxury Science! items, I'm more interested in GDP/capita being held down and in relation more archaic relations between master & servant.
 
Well, those 2 things strike me as likely results without industrialization kicking off. You've got rising populations, which means cheaper labor and ah better terms for landlords. That's all you need for lower GDP per capita and serfdom sticking, right?
 

Deleted member 114175

Due to abundance of resources and arable land per capita in the settler colonies of the US, Canada, and Australia, it seems unlikely that 19th century industrialization could get stuck in a low equilibrium trap. Even if Europe stagnated industrial development would continue in the colonies and former colonies.
 

Vuu

Banned
Thank God I go to an economic school so I can understand something

Anyway, such a state would be very hard to maintain for long - people would still, over time, accumulate more money, and at a certain point yet again you get the ludicrous growth that happened

An interesting factor is if the world gets more connected in the meantime, so when the surge occurs, it will occur more globally, not just in western Europe and north America
 
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Due to abundance of resources and arable land per capita in the settler colonies of the US, Canada, and Australia, it seems unlikely that 19th century industrialization could get stuck in a low equilibrium trap. Even if Europe stagnated industrial development would continue in the colonies and former colonies.

Not so sure about this given the states which would become Australia's recessions of the late 19th century. There are also critical path issues outside of the United States.

Thank god I go to an economic school so I can understand something

I'm glad your economics training has proved pleasurable as well as edifying!

Anyway, such a state would be very hard to maintain for long - people would still, over time, accumulate more money, and at a certain point yet again you get the ludicrous growth that happened

It would be hard to maintain for long prior to a globalisation of the commodity form. The chief argument here being the failure of Chinese capitals to boot into Capitalism. I'm aware of the arguments regarding the division of Europe politically being advantageous for Capital seizing a national economy, but consider Northern Italy vide the Netherlands vide South East England. Italy and the Netherlands seemed to enter into reduced equilibria, compared to England where local capital formed a generalised system of reproduction that hungrily ate up agriculture, then textiles, then iron. The other consideration is the French Mechanised cloths industry: mechanised without generalised capitalism. It was a boutique affair, with a great deal of state taxation inhibiting capital reproduction, and a traditional labour form set inhibiting "the factory system" of labour brutalisation.

An interesting factor is if the world gets more connected in the meantime, so when the surge occurs, it will occur more globally, not just in western Europe and north America

This, I think, is a contribution I've not considered. While delayed capital => Capitalism occurs, capital accumulations will still occur in tentative forms, and more broadly in a geographic sense. More rapid boot points than Belgium, Holland, France.

cheers,
Sam R.
 
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