The social surplus approach: historical origins and present state

This chapter traces the historical development of the social surplus approach, starting with the classical political economists, while distinguishing between Marshall’s development of a neoclassical social surplus approach and the Cambridge Keynesians, who developed the social surplus approach with an explicit reference to Marx’s elaboration of the circular reproduction schemes of classical political economy. The chapter tries to explain how the social surplus approach provides a promising route for the development of heterodox economic theory in a direction that addresses the current socio-economic and ecological challenges. The emphasis of this chapter is on the traditions that attempt to establish an explicit connection to the classical-Marxian surplus approach, but without neglecting other heterodox perspectives, including Veblen’s, who provided the most influential non-Marxian perspective that draws upon (or at least presupposes) a social surplus approach (in which the surplus is appropriated by a leisure class).