How do I get started?

[Re Alexis]

Hey guys, I have some questions I've been wanting to ask...So, I have never studied politics in the sense of actually reading about it. So, now I want to start but I don't know where from. I want to study Anarchism, Communism and other tendencies, but I don't know which book shall I start from, or even which tendency to start from. I.e. do I study Marx and Lenin first, and then, Bakunin and Kropotkin, or the other way around? Help pls :) Also, sorry if this has been posted before. I couldn't find anything :)

[Blake's Baby]

The 'Communist Manifesto' is a classic, for both Marxists and Anarchists. Obviously it's somewhat dated (like 165 years old) and not everything is applicable (and if you do read it make sure you get a version with the various prefaces to the different editions).

There are various important works by loads of people, as well as interesting stuff by all sorts of groups. There is no 'study programme' for communism. Marx, Engels, Kropotkin (I think Proudhon is useless and Bakunin is rubbish, personally), Luxemburg, Trotsky, Lenin - they're all important to understanding how 'socialist theory' has developed but so are maybe 'lesser' figures like Bukharin or Pannekoek; but it's not all 'theory' anyway: Goldman, Berkman, Mett and Maximov all write about the degeneration of the revolution in Russia from an Anarchist perspective, and Serge from an anarchist-turned-Bolshevik position; and the polemics of different groups with each other can also be very illuminating, both historical and contemporary.

I don't know whether that helps at all; I hope so.

[ВАЛТЕР]

I always suggest these three to beginners. I've linked each work below.

"Principles of Communism (http://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1847/11/prin-com.htm)" - F. Engels

"Wage Labour and Capital (http://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1847/wage-labour/)" - K. Marx

"The Communist Manifesto (http://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1848/communist-manifesto/)" - K. Marx, F. Engels

As stated above some things written in the communist manifesto aren't applicable today. Such as the portions where it is outlined what parties the communists align themselves with and whatnot, but it helps give you a basic understanding of things.

[Jesus Saves Gretzky Scores]

I haven't read it in some time, but when I was getting into this, The Conquest of Bread by Peter Kropotkin was really helpful, or at least the first few chapters.

http://libcom.org/library/conquestofbread1906peterkropotkin1

[Ethics Gradient, Traitor For All Ages]

I came across The Reproduction of Daily Life in my mid 20s but I really wish I had found it when I was younger. I think it puts a lot of the concepts found in Marx's writings into context.

http://libcom.org/library/reproduction-everyday-life-fredy-perlman

[HoboHomesteader]

see if there is any kind of radical reading group/salon in your area. U will learn a lot just talking with comrades and hearing about folx experiences and ideas.

[The Garbage Disposal Unit]

For the record, I'm a communist and an anarchist who thinks the manifesto is one of Marx's less impressive works. It's got a few brilliantly quote-worthy lines, it's of significant historical importance, and it's short, so it's worth reading on that basis; it's also theoretically dangerously simple, and politically backward.

Wage Labour and Capital, recommended above is a good place to start for grasping Marx's analysis of capitalism in economic terms, and The Reproduction of Daily Life (also linked above) does a good job of situating its implications politically. On the topic of reproduction, I'd also recommend Silvia Federici's Wages Against Housework (http://caringlabor.wordpress.com/2010/09/15/silvia-federici-wages-against-housework/) (it's short!), since gender is a key axis of struggle that gets ignored often.

If you feel like taking on something book-length by Karl, I recommend The Civil War in France (http://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1871/civil-war-france/) since in one shot you get a picture of the Paris Commune (mad historically important!) and some of Marx's limited explicit grappling with politics, the state, and revolution. Despite being a book, it's more digestible than La Commune (Paris 1871), Peter Watkins 6-hour avant garde fourth-wall-breaking masterpiece, which, by the way, you should totally watch if you're "into" film / a weird art student.

[Blake's Baby]

For the record, I'm a communist and an anarchist who thinks the manifesto is one of Marx's less impressive works. It's got a few brilliantly quote-worthy lines, it's of significant historical importance, and it's short, so it's worth reading on that basis; it's also theoretically dangerously simple, and politically backward...

Really?

Care to elaborate on that? Maybe best to start another thread on it, though I guess it could also apply to recommendations for and against...

[RedMaterialist]

If it is possible where you live (I hear Cyprus and Greece can be hard core rightist), you might want to think about joining a discussion group where you can ask questions, listen to a discussion about Marxism and socialism. I know that is what this site is supposed to do, but somehow there is something about a live discussion that is better.

I know from personal experience that trying to teach yourself about Marxism is extremely difficult. I read Capital , not the whole thing, and Wages, Price and Profit dozens of times over the course of probably 10-15 yrs before it dawned on me how surplus value and the labor theory of value work. I think I had gotten caught up in the revolutionary side of Marx.

At any rate, good luck!

[WilliamGreen]

You can get a good anthology to that may be used in a philosophy of politics or political science class :)

[Conscript]

I recommend Emile Burn's 'What is Marxism?' to any newcomer.