ABSTRACT
This conclusion presents an overview of key concepts discussed in the preceding chapters of this book. The book asserts that the pre-industrial artisans were tied to vertical organisations that gave their lives meaning and order, and also regulated their work in a communitarian and religious context. The simple commodity production (SCP) notion is useful for distinguishing between artisans who employ no wage-labour, and those who employ a relatively large number of wage-earners. The concept of relations of production can be very fruitful not only in macro-historical comparisons, but also when examining a specific social situation at the micro-level of analysis. The SCP terminology proved valuable when considering the enormous difficulties in the way of artisans wishing to expand their businesses to become small capitalists. SCP in the advanced capitalist societies cannot but be embedded in the overall process of capitalist accumulation.
