▁individuals , ▁it ▁may ▁appear ▁that ▁economic ▁value ▁is ▁an ▁intr insic ▁property ▁of ▁products , ▁or ▁altern ately , ▁that ▁it ▁is ▁simply ▁a ▁characteristic ▁that ▁results ▁from ▁negoti ations ▁between ▁market ▁actors ▁with ▁different ▁subject ive ▁prefer ences . ▁Marx ▁recogn ised ▁that ▁value ▁has ▁both ▁objective ▁and ▁subject ive ▁aspects , ▁but ▁he ▁was ▁primarily ▁concerned ▁with ▁the ▁object ification ▁of ▁value ▁through ▁market ▁trade , ▁where ▁object ified ▁( re ified ) ▁value ▁relations ▁rule ▁human ▁affairs ▁( see ▁value - form ). ▁Par ado x ically , ▁he ▁arg ues , ▁this ▁phenomen on ▁meant ▁that ▁human ▁lives ▁became ▁" ru led ▁and ▁domin ated " ▁by ▁the ▁products ▁which ▁people ▁themselves ▁had ▁produced , ▁and ▁more ▁specifically ▁by ▁the ▁trad ing ▁values ▁of ▁those ▁products . ▁ ▁When ▁more ▁and ▁more ▁of ▁human ▁requirements ▁are ▁market ised , ▁and ▁a ▁complex ▁division ▁of ▁labor ▁develop s , ▁the ▁link ▁between ▁value ▁and ▁labor - time ▁becomes ▁obsc ured ▁or ▁op aque , ▁and ▁economic ▁value ▁seems ▁to ▁exist ▁only ▁as ▁an ▁imp erson al ▁" market ▁force " ▁( a ▁given ▁structure ▁of ▁pr iced ▁costs ▁and ▁sale - values ) ▁to ▁which ▁all ▁people ▁must ▁adjust ▁their ▁behaviour . ▁Human ▁labor ▁becomes ▁domin ated ▁by ▁the ▁economic ▁exchange ▁of ▁the ▁products ▁of ▁that ▁labor , ▁and ▁labor ▁itself ▁becomes ▁a ▁trade able ▁abstract ▁value ▁( see ▁Abstract ▁labour ▁and ▁concrete ▁labour ). ▁ ▁The ▁result ▁of ▁the ▁difficulties ▁in ▁explaining ▁economic ▁value ▁and ▁its ▁sources ▁is