"Immeasurability": a critique of Hardt and Negri

The paper offers a practical criticism of Hardt and Negri’s Empire, focusing on the concept of ‘immeasurability’. It analyses key sections of the book and related passages from Negri’s other works, illustrating their vagueness and inconsistency. Their relationship to Marx’s theory of value is analysed and the robustness of their arguments contrasted. A further section contrasts the constructs used by Hardt and Negri with developments in management theory and organisational economics and assesses their real world practicality. The paper concludes that the immeasurability concept fails to undermine value theory and is itself valueless.