Listen to Sraffa's silences: a new interpretation of Sraffa's Production of Commodities

Abstract

This paper argues that the received interpretation of Sraffa's prices as classical 'natural prices' that would prevail when the system is at the centre of gravitation cannot be retained. It offers an alternative interpretation in which Sraffa's prices are completely independent of demand considerations or the condition of equilibrium of demand and supply. The requirement of the uniform rate of profits in Sraffa's price equations is argued to be a logical consequence of the assumption that wages are uniform and fixed from outside the system. The paper provides evidence from Sraffa's published and unpublished writings to buttress its new interpretation. It also provides answers to the major criticisms and questions raised against the new interpretation. Copyright , Oxford University Press.