Abstract
What role does means of production play in the history of capitalism? Is the relation between capital and labor static? In other words, what does it imply to the relation between capital and labor when the ownership of means of production appears to be vague? “License leasing” - a long existed phenomenon in the truck industry in Taiwan - can be regarded as a counterexample to the common statement that, in capitalism, the capitalist possesses means of production while the labor possesses nothing but themselves. Therefore, in this sense, license leasing appears to be a paradox for the logic of capitalism. This study, through investigation over such phenomenon in truck industry in Taiwan, aims at attaining a better understanding of concepts such as mean of production and relation between capital and labor. There exists two distinctive features that make truck industry unique and inspiring: firstly, the ownership and rights of disposition of the very mean of production - namely the trucks - are vague; secondly, its relation of capital and labor is rather immature. Through investigation over the history of truck industry in Taiwan, this study finds the vagueness that is mentioned above, moreover, it is found that the causal factors of license leasing could be traced back to the early post-war period, but was firmly founded only after the 1960s. This study also conducts field research on working sites, depicting how such phenomenon is manifested in the practices and worldview of the actors. This study concludes that such vagueness of the role of mean of production in this industry is not only the outcome of power struggle, but a mean of power struggle as well. This study further attributes to the role of the state as the main cause of the phenomenon discussed above. The state was responsible to the shaping of the whole truck industry, nevertheless, the regulations and laws posed upon the mean of production were vague all along, there exists a room for all actors to compete, resulting in dynamic, ever-changing definition and disposition of the mean of production. This study, in contrast to most Marxist studies that centers around the issue of surplus value, focuses on mean of production, trying to shed new lights on Marxist paradigm.