Can anyone recommend me some Orthodox Marxist texts?

  1. Yet_Another_Boring_Marxist
    Yet_Another_Boring_Marxist
    I've been reading alot of Andrea Dworkin, Huey Newton, Alexandrea Kolentia(excuse the mispelling of her name, I'm copy-pasting something in my notes as I type this out so I don't want to lose it by copying her name from wikipedia, I'll do it in a second) and a couple Indian Marxist-Feminist theorists lately. However I think it would do me good to return to the basics. Do you have any recommendations from Orthodox Marxism?
  2. Die Neue Zeit
    Die Neue Zeit
    Much of the Kautsky archive before 1910 count as recommendations.
  3. Ostrinski
  4. Ostrinski
    I'll probably make a blog for this eventually.
  5. Die Neue Zeit
    Die Neue Zeit
    A comradely reminder (and self-promotion ) is in order: Historical texts aren't the only ones for the reading. Contemporary works by "proletarians who stand out due to their intellectual development, and [are attempting to bring modern socialism] into the class struggle of the proletariat where conditions allow" are also recommended. Comrade Cockshott's can be found here:

    http://reality.gn.apc.org/
    http://reality.gn.apc.org/polemic/

    New comrades can PM me if they're interested in mine via e-mail, since one of them is listed there, but is out of date.
  6. Yet_Another_Boring_Marxist
    Yet_Another_Boring_Marxist
    Hey, just because I'm a Maoist doesn't mean I'm that illiterate in Marxism.

    But in all seriousness, thanks. I'll read the other stuff by Kaufsky
  7. Die Neue Zeit
    Die Neue Zeit
    FYI, a better read than Lenin's S&R is Kautsky's Republic and Social Democracy in France, once the English translation is released.
  8. l'Enfermé
    ^Probably. State and Revolution is an unfinished little book anyway(sadly).
  9. Ostrinski
    It's a pretty broad question to be honest. There are probably plenty of works that many comrades would have differing opinions on within this little group such as the work of Leon Trotsky.

    Also, comrade: Kautsky, not Kaufsky.
  10. Zeus the Moose
    Zeus the Moose
    FYI, a better read than Lenin's S&R is Kautsky's Republic and Social Democracy in France, once the English translation is released.
    Yeah, just got to keep poking at the translator to make that happen!
  11. Die Neue Zeit
    Die Neue Zeit
    ^^^ I've poked Ben more than once, and no link has been given. You go ahead and give him the go.
  12. Q
    Q
    ^^^ I've poked Ben more than once, and no link has been given. You go ahead and give him the go.
    Poked.

    Waiting for answer
  13. Ostrinski
    Comrades, do you think we should compile a general list of reading material for the politics of this group as well as reasoning for and significance of them being put on said list?
  14. Art Vandelay
    I think that would be a really good idea actually.
  15. Zeus the Moose
    Zeus the Moose
    Well, I gave him an oblique poke with this picture:



    He says the translation is finished, so what's left is the introduction and editing.

    I like Ostrinski's idea. Coming up with a list of reading material with some explanations would probably be a good thing for folks who are interested in revolutionary Marxism as a "tendency." A more modern piece might be Moshe Machover's article on Democratic Decision Making and Supervision in a Communist Society, as an explanation for needing to at least think about future state forms now, as well as a (at least partial) criticism of councilists: http://www.zcommunications.org/colle...moshe-machover
  16. Q
    Q
    He says the translation is finished, so what's left is the introduction and editing.
    Yeah, he says that the ETA is somewhere in mid 2013. I've asked if we can expect more in the WW before that.

    A more modern piece might be Moshe Machover's article on Democratic Decision Making and Supervision in a Communist Society, as an explanation for needing to at least think about future state forms now, as well as a (at least partial) criticism of councilists: http://www.zcommunications.org/colle...moshe-machover
    I started some work in creating a usable epub file of that document. Haven't finished yet, but I'm somewhere of a quarter done with the rough editing.

    Is there any interest in that? I could finish it in a week or so.
  17. Q
    Q
    Comrades, do you think we should compile a general list of reading material for the politics of this group as well as reasoning for and significance of them being put on said list?
    Maybe an updated/expanded version of this list?
  18. Ostrinski
    Here are two parts to Republic and Social Democracy In France as edited by Ben Lewis.

    http://www.cpgb.org.uk/home/weekly-w...ame-hymn-sheet
    http://www.cpgb.org.uk/home/weekly-w...the-socialists

    I will read later and see what I think about it being better than S&R.
  19. Ostrinski
    Maybe an updated/expanded version of this list?
    I actually had that list in mind when I made the suggestion.
  20. bad ideas actualised by alcohol
    bad ideas actualised by alcohol
    Maybe an updated/expanded version of this list?
    That list definitely needs a bit more Lenin if you ask me.
  21. Ostrinski
    ^What do you have in mind?
  22. bad ideas actualised by alcohol
    bad ideas actualised by alcohol
    Materialism and Empirio-criticism, S&R and What is to be done? are things that I think should be read.
  23. Q
    Q
    Materialism and Empirio-criticism, S&R and What is to be done? are things that I think should be read.
    I think these are typical examples for someone within the mindset of "Lenin, the great revolutionary thinker after Marx". To be sure, S&R is a nice read (although limited), but WITBD has many issues (since you're in the Lenin Rediscovered group, you should at least be aware of them). But most of Lenin's "important works", like S&R and Imperialism, are what Lih calls "aggressively unoriginal".

    By this phrase he means that Lenin wrote these in a period (from 1915 to 1917) where the movement is adrift and Lenin goes out to his readers, virtually grabs them at their troats and shakes them violently yelling "THIS IS NOTHING NEW, BUT WHAT WE'VE BEEN PROFESSING FOR DECADES NOW". To understand that, you need to know about the German SPD and the crucial impact of Kautsky and others.

    That is why I, consciously, kept Lenin out of that list as much as possible.
  24. bad ideas actualised by alcohol
    bad ideas actualised by alcohol
    Just because the works have flaws doesn't mean they shouldn't be read though.
    I think that if there is to be an expanded version of that list, Lenin should at least be mentioned. Especially when you have some Trotsky there and CPGB-stuff, I think skipping Lenin there is somewhat strange.

    I am a member of that group but I want to read the book before actually looking at the stuff in the group. Not that I actually own the book though...
  25. Q
    Q
    Just because the works have flaws doesn't mean they shouldn't be read though.
    A startup reader is just that: A startingpoint. Of course it doesn't exclude Lenin, or whoever.
    I think that if there is to be an expanded version of that list, Lenin should at least be mentioned. Especially when you have some Trotsky there and CPGB-stuff, I think skipping Lenin there is somewhat strange.
    I do not pretend to be the golden authority in regards of startup reading lists. I merely gave a rationale for my choices. And besides, S&R is mentioned

    But I'm a big fan of readers, whenever I come across them. Here are some noteworthy ones:
    - CPGB set of readers.
    - Kasama set of readers.
  26. Ostrinski
    I always thought a "reader" was like a selected writings and speeches of someone or a group. Those are good to get a hold of too.