Where did you start?

[pyrotechnicslab]

I'm brand spankin' new to everything associated with Revleft.com. I'm sorry if this is just an annoyance to you all. I've been trying my hardest to gain an understanding of leftist ideals...There's just too much I can learn to know what to get started with. Where did you start when you were a complete beginner? I'm only a sophmore in highschool, but my desire to learn is strong for these subjects. Any help is appreciated...Thanks all.

[Schrödinger's Cat]

Annoyance? Anyone in the pursuit of knowledge shouldn't have to apologize for such a desire. :)

Presuming you are completely new to the Left, the Communist Manifesto by Karl Marx (http://www.bibliomania.com/2/1/261/2448/frameset.html) is a good place to start. Leftists can and do disagree with Marx to varying degrees, but the principle of establishing a classless society remains true, in addition to the abolishment of the state and wages. There are small editorials and articles that can be easily accessed via the internet that detail basic principles: What is Anarchism? (http://www.geocities.com/capitolhill/2419/anaintro.html), Infoshop: What is Anarchism (http://www.infoshop.org/faq/secA1.html), What is Socialism? (http://www.worldsocialism.org/articles/what_is_socialism.php), and What Will Socialism Look Like? (http://www.socialistworker.org/2005-2/549/549_10_Socialism.shtml) come off from the top of my head. Google can probably provide you with much more.

After reading these few pages, you can delve into heavier stuff found in this (http://www.revleft.com/index.php?showtopic=11920) thread. Also, at the top of the Learning forum you'll find plenty of resources.

Start at the basics and simple, then move ahead. There's a lot to learn and I dare go as far as to say it's impossible to know everything.

[pyrotechnicslab]

I assume you guys get these threads every week...Haha. Thanks for the encouragement. I found all the links very helpful, and printed them all out. I appreciate it :)

[Ismail]

Marxists.org is a great source concerning Marx and Engels.

Generally if you want to learn about Marxism itself, try this:
Principles of Communism (http://marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1847/11/prin-com.htm) (written before the manifesto, much greater help since it actually explains the basics of Communism first)
Manifesto, as pointed out before
Wage Labor and Capital (http://marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1847/wage-labour/index.htm)
Socialism: Utopian and Scientific (http://marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1880/soc-utop/index.htm)
Capital vol. I (http://marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1867-c1/ch01.htm) (note that this isn't easy and you should obviously read up and get a fairly good understanding of Marxism, economics, etc before you tackle this)

[R_P_A_S]

Originally posted by [email protected] 20, 2007 02:08 am
I'm brand spankin' new to everything associated with Revleft.com. I'm sorry if this is just an annoyance to you all. I've been trying my hardest to gain an understanding of leftist ideals...There's just too much I can learn to know what to get started with. Where did you start when you were a complete beginner? I'm only a sophmore in highschool, but my desire to learn is strong for these subjects. Any help is appreciated...Thanks all.
I came here for the first time in May 2006. I had just left a massive 500,000 rally for immigration rights in which I met tons of people that gave me flyers and pamphlets.. I went to the websites and some how ended here.

I came here ignorant, confused and curious. and so far just by reading post, asking questions and such I have learn so much in over a year. to the point I'm no longer a zombie. I can think for my self and viewing the world through my eyes with class consciousness and packed with revolutionary ideas, theories and what not, it's the best and most clearest I've ever seen the world.

just read, ask, look up words you don't understand, go back in history and read, read read. ask ask ask. ;)

[mikelepore]

Originally posted by [email protected] 20, 2007 02:08 am
Where did you start when you were a complete beginner?




I hope you will be careful of "experts" who are eager to provide "the" answers. There is one past, one present, and an infinite number of possible futures. The people here don't all agree about the goal, don't all agree about the methods for achieving the goal, and don't even agree on the meanings of the vocabulary words. I suggest that a beginner pay attention to how one writer's interpretations differs from another writer's interpretations, and not attempt to conclude very quickly with "this is the official answer to that."

I agree with the previous suggestions to read a lot at marxists.org.

I suggest making an exercise of looking at society's problems in the daily news, and thinking about, "What is it about the present social system that caused that effect to occur? What's fundamentally wrong with the system, that such a result would arise out of it?"

[rocker935]

Go here

www.rs2k.revleft.com

EDIT:
I guess they took it off of the site, thats too bad it was rly good.

[pyrotechnicslab]

Thanks everyone. I've got the basics down flat. I appreciate all the help. Close/possibly delete thread if you wish.

[Random Precision]

I'd be careful about lists of "required reading" for leftists, depending of course on your reading schedule and what your commitment level is to reading 19th century texts on economics such as Das Kapital. I think unless you have a lot of time on your hands to really study it, it's probably not worth it. But there is a pretty damn good introduction to it here (http://www.revleft.com/index.php?showtopic=45625). And here (http://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1847/11/prin-com.htm) is Engels' Principles of Communism, which is pretty much the absolute basic summation of Marxian communist thought, which in my opinion anyway does the job a lot better than the Manifesto.

The one book I can recommend that you get, if you can afford it, is the Marx-Engels Reader (http://www.amazon.com/Marx-Engels-Reader-Second-Karl-Marx/dp/039309040X), which is essentially a boiled-down version of both men's work, which is also the best introduction to their thought out there, that's in their own unadulterated words.

[Bad Grrrl Agro]

Look into Frank P. Zeidler (http://reds.linefeed.org/bios/zeidler.html). He was the last Socialist mayor of Milwaukee. I knew him and looked up to him as a hero since I was little. However the page in which the link goes to is out of date because it doesn't mention the fact that Frank passed away. I remember his funeral. It was a sad day for Milwaukee. He may not have had views as radical as mine, but he made a VERY positive difference in the history of Milwaukee. He made more of a difference than any other Milwaukean that I know of.

[which doctor]

I started out with the Communist Manifesto when I was 13 or 14 years old. I admit I barely understood it. I've probably learned more from people on this board than reading the "required texts."

[Die Neue Zeit]

Originally posted by [email protected] 21, 2007 10:31 pm
I started out with the Communist Manifesto when I was 13 or 14 years old. I admit I barely understood it. I've probably learned more from people on this board than reading the "required texts."
^^^ The funny thing is that I still haven't read the Manifesto of the Communist Party except for the last section (and I haven't read the rest of Marx's works except for his First Draft of Letter To Vera Zasulich). I glanced at WITBD, but there are too many historical references that turned me off from reading further (although I agree with the basic premise). Also, I've never read State and Revolution or the April Theses.

The works that I've read are First Draft of Letter To Vera Zasulich (as noted above), Imperialism: THSOC, Economics and Politics in the Era of the [DOTP], Left-Wing Childishness, and How We Should Reorganise [Rabkrin].

[pyrotechnicslab]

I finished the Manifesto yesterday and understood most of it. Very compelling. I'm reading a few books by Noam Chomsky now..."The Prosperous Few and the Restless Many." & "Chomsky on MisEducation."

[blackstone]

Originally posted by Jacob Richter+December 22, 2007 01:31 am--> (Jacob Richter @ December 22, 2007 01:31 am)
[email protected] 21, 2007 10:31 pm
I started out with the Communist Manifesto when I was 13 or 14 years old. I admit I barely understood it. I've probably learned more from people on this board than reading the "required texts."
^^^ The funny thing is that I still haven't read the Manifesto of the Communist Party except for the last section (and I haven't read the rest of Marx's works except for his First Draft of Letter To Vera Zasulich). I glanced at WITBD, but there are too many historical references that turned me off from reading further (although I agree with the basic premise). Also, I've never read State and Revolution or the April Theses.

The works that I've read are First Draft of Letter To Vera Zasulich (as noted above), Imperialism: THSOC, Economics and Politics in the Era of the [DOTP], Left-Wing Childishness, and How We Should Reorganise [Rabkrin]. [/b]
I've never read the Manifesto in whole, or any of Marx's or Engel's or any popular leftist's work in whole. LMAO.

[Forward Union]

Originally posted by [email protected] 22, 2007 03:49 pm
I finished the Manifesto yesterday and understood most of it. Very compelling. I'm reading a few books by Noam Chomsky now..."The Prosperous Few and the Restless Many." & "Chomsky on MisEducation."
Reading all that stuff good but I've never done it really. If you have any questions please feel free to ask us anything u didn't get and we'll hopefulyl put it into English for ya!

Welcome to RL mate.