After watching the video, I realized that two key concepts that stand out to me are the means of
production and labor. The means of production refer to the physical and non-physical resources
used to produce goods and services, such as factories, land, and machinery. For example, a
clothing factory and the sewing machines inside it would be considered part of the means of
production. On the other hand, labor is the work individuals do to create goods or
services. In the case of the clothing factory, labor would be the work done by the workers who
sew garments together.

The video also touches on the idea of value, which refers to the worth of a product or service.
Value is often determined by the amount of labor that goes into producing something and its social importance. For instance, the value of a handcrafted piece of furniture comes
from the materials used and the skilled labor and time required to make it. What
gives value to something is primarily based on the labor invested in it and society’s perception of
its usefulness or desirability.
Labor and value are deeply connected because labor is what creates value. Without labor, the
means of production alone would not result in anything valuable. The relationship between labor
and labor power is also essential to understand. Labor refers to the actual work done, while labor
power is the worker’s capacity to perform labor, which they sell in exchange for
wages.
Surplus value is the extra value laborers produce over and above what they are paid in
wages. This is important in studying social classes because it explains how capitalists
accumulate wealth—by extracting surplus value from the workers’ labor. For example, if a

worker is paid $10 for an hour of labor but produces $20 worth of goods in that time, the $10
the difference is the surplus value that the capitalist gains. This surplus is central to understanding
the exploitation of labor in capitalist societies.