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RMW Assignment - Transition Debate from Dobb-Sweezy to Brenner's Debate.

Transition Debate from Dobb-Sweezy to Brenner's Debate.
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BA (Hons.) History

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Name:- Sparsh Mayank

Roll Number:- 21/

Section:- B

TOPIC:-How and Why did the Brenner debate of 1970’s provide a necessary correction to the

earlier transition debate of 1950’s commonly known as Dobb-Sweezy controversy?

Dobb-Sweezy Debate or The Transition debate:-

Feudalism in Europe emerged around 10th century and around 15th century faced crisis and

paved way for the rise of capitalism. The most lively academic debate is "transition debate"

which relate to question of what led to decline of feudalism and the connection, this decline

had with birth of capitalism , and causes that led to transition whether were internal or external ,

not only between marxists and non marxists scholars but also within Marxists scholars. The 4

major explanation for decline of feudalism around which debate revolves are:-

1) "INNER CONTRADICTION MODEL" or "PROPERTY-RELATION PERSPECTIVE

"supported by Maurice Dobb , Rodney Hilton, Christopher Hill, Kohachiro Takahashi.

2) "MARKET or COMMERCIAL MODEL" or "EXCHANGE-RELATIONS PERSPECTIVE"

backed by Paul sweezy , Immanuel Wallerstein and Henrrie Pirenne

3) "MALTHUSIAN MODEL"or "DEMOGRAPHIC MODEL" (non marxist explanation)supported

by Emmanuel Le Roy Ladurie, MM Postan

4) CLASS-RELATION MODEL" given by a Marxist scholar Robert Brenner.

An unending debate began with the publication of Maurice Dobb's work -"studies in the

development of capitalism"(1946) in which he elaborated Marxist debate over western pattern of

transition from feudalism to capitalism and even challenged commercialization model. Dobb defines

feudalism as being identical with serfdom(an obligation laid on the producer by force and independently

of his own volition to fulfill certain economic demands of an overlord ,these demands take the form of

services to be performed or of dues to be paid in money or in kind). He considers low level of

technique,simple and inexpensive instruments of production ,production for use not for wider market

,political decentralization as the basic characteristics of feudal society .He also asserts that feudal

economy doesn't imply natural economy or absence of money transactions. Imply is that markets are

local and long distance trade doesn't determine method of production. Dobb founds Pirenne's

explanation inadequate. According to Dobb trade never disappeared from feudal society. He gives

evidence of eastern Europe where the very development of trade led to the reinforcement of feudal

obligations in 16th and 18th centuries and called as period of "second Serfdom" in Engels phrase.

Therefore growth of money economy per se led to an intensification of serfdom.

In Dobb's view inefficiency of feudalism as a system of production coupled with growing needs of

ruling class for revenue and over exploitation of labour force were primarily responsible for decline of

feudalism. This need for additional revenue promoted an increase in pressure on the producers which

became unbearable and over exploitation of labour force compelled serfs to desert lords estate. Those

remained were few and overworked to enable the system to maintain.

Along with Dobb other scholars such as Rodney Hilton, Takahashi, Eric Hobsbawn believed that it was

internal relationship of feudal mode of production that determines its disintegration. The absence of

technology, low productivity, attempts by lords to augment taxes, increased needs for revenue for wars

,brigandage and crusades and extravagance of nobles through costly displays and lavish feasts all

combined as a special drain on feudal revenues and pushed feudalism towards a crisis.

According to Dobb, "feudalism in Europe was moribune, but not dead before capitalism was born."

The social relation in countryside between producer and their lords retained much of medieval character

in transition phase. The period was essentially feudal because peasant was still restricted in his

movements and in ways dependent on landlords. This view of Dobb was supported by Christopher Hill,

he says that peasants paying rent in 16th century may be dependent in numerous other ways on

landlords under whom they live ,therefore dominat relation of exploitation was still feudal. This was

period of decline of feudalism with simultaneous development of capitalism.

Dobb provided 2 thesis on the rise of capitalism. First was, "ORIGIN OF INDUSTRIAL CAPITALIST",

in this section of producers accumulated capital and took to trade and began to organize production on

capitalist basis. Second is , "PROCESS OF ORIGINAL ACCUMULATION", in this section of existing

merchant class began to take possessions directly of production and involved 2 phases-

ACCUMULATION PHASE in which bourgeoisie acquires certain assets and claim to wealth at bargain

prices. REALIZATIONPHASE in which objects of original accumulation were sold to make investment

in industrial problems.

Marxist economist Paul Sweezy contested Dobb’s views on the decline of feudalism. He suggested that

an external force, the growth of trade and increase in production for exchange were needed to undermine

the system. He rejected Dobb’s view of internal contradiction for the decline of feudalism. He disagreed

that the prime mover of change was internal to the feudal system. Sweezy criticized Dobb for not

signaling the existence of a system of pre-capitalist commodity production which was neither feudal nor

capitalist in the wake of feudalism’s demise agreed with Dobb that serfdom was the dominant relation

of production in Western feudalism. He argued organized around the economically self-sufficient

manor was a mode of production for use, and as such tended to stagnation.

Brenner Debate:-

The Brenner debate was a major debate amongst Marxist historians during the late 1970s and early 1980s,

regarding the origins of capitalism. The debate began with Robert Brenner's 1976 journal article

"Agrarian class structure and economic development in pre-industrial Europe", published in the

influential historical journal Past & Present has been seen as a successor to the so-called "transition

debate" (or Dobb-Sweezy debate) that followed Maurice Dobb's 1946 Studies in the Development of

Capitalism, and Paul Sweezy's 1950 article "The transition from feudalism to capitalism", in the journal

Science & Society articles were subsequently collected and published as a book, also entitled The

Transition from Feudalism to Capitalism, in 1976 Trevor Aston and C. H. E. Philpin (1985)

characterised the Brenner debate as "one of the most important historical debates of recent years.

Brenner's main argument in "Agrarian class structure and economic development in pre-industrial

Europe" is to challenge traditional explanations for economic development in late-medieval and early-

modern Europe particular, Brenner critiques the two overarching interpretations of economic change in

this period, which he calls the demographic and commercialization models. In the demographic model,

long-term economic changes are primarily attributed to changes in population, while the

commercialization model attributes changes primarily to the growth of trade and the market. Contrary to

these explanations, Brenner argues that class relations, or class power, determine the degree to which

demographic or commercial changes affect long-run trends in the distribution of income and economic

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RMW Assignment - Transition Debate from Dobb-Sweezy to Brenner's Debate.

Course: BA (Hons.) History

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Name:- Sparsh Mayank
Roll Number:- 21/85193
Section:- B
TOPIC:-How and Why did the Brenner debate of 1970’s provide a necessary correction to the
earlier transition debate of 1950’s commonly known as Dobb-Sweezy controversy?
Dobb-Sweezy Debate or The Transition debate:-
Feudalism in Europe emerged around 10th century and around 15th century faced crisis and
paved way for the rise of capitalism. The most lively academic debate is "transition debate"
which relate to question of what led to decline of feudalism and the connection, this decline
had with birth of capitalism , and causes that led to transition whether were internal or external ,
not only between marxists and non marxists scholars but also within Marxists scholars. The 4
major explanation for decline of feudalism around which debate revolves are:-
1) "INNER CONTRADICTION MODEL" or "PROPERTY-RELATION PERSPECTIVE
"supported by Maurice Dobb , Rodney Hilton, Christopher Hill, Kohachiro Takahashi.
2) "MARKET or COMMERCIAL MODEL" or "EXCHANGE-RELATIONS PERSPECTIVE"
backed by Paul sweezy , Immanuel Wallerstein and Henrrie Pirenne
3) "MALTHUSIAN MODEL"or "DEMOGRAPHIC MODEL" (non marxist explanation)supported
by Emmanuel Le Roy Ladurie, MM Postan
4) CLASS-RELATION MODEL" given by a Marxist scholar Robert Brenner.
An unending debate began with the publication of Maurice Dobb's work -"studies in the
development of capitalism"(1946) in which he elaborated Marxist debate over western pattern of
transition from feudalism to capitalism and even challenged commercialization model. Dobb defines
feudalism as being identical with serfdom(an obligation laid on the producer by force and independently
of his own volition to fulfill certain economic demands of an overlord ,these demands take the form of
services to be performed or of dues to be paid in money or in kind). He considers low level of
technique,simple and inexpensive instruments of production ,production for use not for wider market
,political decentralization as the basic characteristics of feudal society .He also asserts that feudal
economy doesn't imply natural economy or absence of money transactions. Imply is that markets are
local and long distance trade doesn't determine method of production. Dobb founds Pirenne's
explanation inadequate. According to Dobb trade never disappeared from feudal society . He gives
evidence of eastern Europe where the very development of trade led to the reinforcement of feudal
obligations in 16th and 18th centuries and called as period of "second Serfdom" in Engels phrase.
Therefore growth of money economy per se led to an intensification of serfdom.
In Dobb's view inefficiency of feudalism as a system of production coupled with growing needs of
ruling class for revenue and over exploitation of labour force were primarily responsible for decline of
feudalism . This need for additional revenue promoted an increase in pressure on the producers which
became unbearable and over exploitation of labour force compelled serfs to desert lords estate. Those
remained were few and overworked to enable the system to maintain.
Along with Dobb other scholars such as Rodney Hilton, Takahashi, Eric Hobsbawn believed that it was
internal relationship of feudal mode of production that determines its disintegration. The absence of

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