ABSTRACT
In order to preserve the unity of his system and for the same reasons for which he rejected ‘labour commanded’ as a basis of value, Ricardo had to prove that the existence of capital has little or no influence on values and prices. Ricardo starts with denying implicitly the difference between capital and labour, by dissolving capital into labour. Capital becomes ‘accumulated labour’. This enables him to formulate the thesis that the value of the final product is regulated not solely by the time and labour necessary for its direct production but also by the time and labour necessary for producing the capital. With the help of the definition of capital as accumulated labour, Ricardo solves the problem of the differences in exchange values of goods produced with the same amount of direct labour but with different amounts of capital, without having to admit any influence of capital on value.
