So far in terms of theory I've only read Chomsky, looking to enter the proper communist sphere now.
I think Lenin is pretty accessible, go for it comrade. The best/most popular Lenin to start with is probably "Imperialism, the Highest Stage of Capitalism" or "The State and Revolution".
Or just go wild: https://www.marxists.org/archive/lenin/works/sw/index.htm
read the manifesto first and then hop to lenin. manifesto is pretty short. its a good idea imo to read all the short books of theory from all the big names. tbh i think some sort of libsoc-ml (non-trot) hybrid would be very successful in america, distrust of government and party structures are at an all time high so its a unique environment to have to create a main line for
Personally I think Engel's Principles of Communism is a really good summary compared to the manifesto.
Michael Parenti is awesome, I love his stuff. Also, he stayed at my family's home once! My mom organized a local anti-war group during the gulf war, and she set up a few lectures with various speakers. Well, one of those speakers was Michael Parenti. He took the bus up to our neck of the woods and spent the night at our house. It was a couple years before I was born, but I still think it's really cool. My mom says he was really cool, super humble and very sweet. My older brother was like 2 or 3 years old at the time and apparently Michael pushed him on the swing and played some games with him, having a wonderful time.
I actually only learned about this less than a year ago, I mentioned Parenti in passing and my mom said "oh did I ever tell you that he once spent the night at our house?"
Anyway, just thought I would share that story :)
• • • • • • •
PS: if anyone's interested, you can find the entirety of Blackshirts And Reds on youtube.
This is bad advice. German idealism is dense, and not the for the lay person to wade into.
no way this is necessary. Chapter 1-3 are a bit dense but you can understand Capital on the whole without reading Hegel
hooooly fuck how do you libs not get that this is a bit?
Capital is dense, sure, but nothing compared to fucking Hegel and Kant. Kant's Critiques are mind numbing, he's spending the entire time trying to work out a system that there literally are not words for describing. Hegel is even more impenetrable. Phenomenology of Spirit is a massive slog and Hegel didn't even consider it to be like, what he was trying to work on. It's the intro for what he really wanted to say in Science of Logic.
Give Moissaye J. Olgin a try in his work "Why Communism?" It's a good intro into Communist theory with complex shit broken down for the average worker to understand.
Let me share the first two paragraphs to let you see if it's up your alley.
YOU are a worker. You have had a job for a number of years. Your pay was not high, but you managed to get along. You were a faithful worker. You never shirked. Perhaps you saved up a few dollars against a rainy day. Perhaps you married and raised a family. You were decent, law-abiding.
One nice morning you are told your services are no longer needed. In plain words: you are fired. You are thrown out. There is a depression, they say. The employer has no more work for you. He cuts operations or he shuts his plant altogether. While you remain without a livelihood, he goes to his country estate or abroad to have a good time. He does not care to think what will happen to you. You plainly do not exist for the “company” any longer. It has no obligations towards its unemployed.
Marx is just one of hundreds of Marxist thinkers. I think it’s good to start off with some 20th and 21st century Marxists so you get used to the methodology with more contemporary examples. Lenin is good for that! Check out Red Menace episodes for some of the background of some of what he was writing about.
I honestly think neither, people ought to start with Engels' " Principles of Communism ." From there I would read Lenin's " The Three Sources and Three Component Parts of Marxism " followed by his short book " Karl Marx: A Brief Biographical Sketch With an Exposition of Marxism ". I think that'll give you plenty of context for then diving into the Manifesto and Engels' Socialism: Utopian and Scientific
Here is a good primer that I often recommend. It's helpful to get a broad overview while also diving into the main texts: http://massalijn.nl/theory/marxism-leninism-maoism-basic-course/
Pedagogy of the Oppressed is another good place to start.
Why do you think that it's Lenin who you should jump to especially after Chomsky? Genuine question.
For me it was /r/cth constantly screaming "read lenin" so I just wondered what the fuss was about
Cos from the Chomsky readings I've got some good critiques of capitalism and a shitload bout US foreign policy, but when it comes down to nitty gritty economics and a replacement for capitalism I'm in the dark.
Start with Marx's Wage Labor and Capital . It covers some of Marx's key economic ideas without requiring you to actually read all of Capital.
Read Marx’s Wage Labour and Capital pamphlet, so you understand his economic arguments, read the Gundrisse so you understand his political arguments, then read Lenin. There’s State and Revolution, What is to be done, and Imperialism.
