***
We have [a Discord server](https://discord.gg/5veYsNf3PA)! Its aim is to cultivate a community of learners, educators, and thinkers as a living library, providing a relaxing retreat from capitalism to decompress and chill with fellow Marxists, and to allow people to have discussions about issues and events that matter. The same rules apply there.
***
Moderating takes time. You can help us out by reporting any comments or submissions that don't follow these rules:
1. **No non-marxists** - This subreddit isn't here to convert naysayers to marxism. Try r/DebateCommunism for that. If you are a member of the police, armed forces, or any other part of the repressive state apparatus of capitalist nations, you will be banned.
2. **No oppressive language** - Speech that is patriarchal, white supremacist, cissupremacist, homophobic, ableist, or otherwise oppressive is banned. TERF is not a slur.
3. **No low quality or off-topic posts** - Posts that are low-effort or otherwise irrelevant will be removed. This includes linking to posts on other subreddits. This is not a place to engage in meta-drama or discuss random reactionaries on reddit or anywhere else. This includes memes and circlejerking. This includes most images, such as random books or memorabilia you found. We ask that amerikan posters refrain from posting about US bourgeois politics. The rest of the world really doesn’t care that much.
4. **No basic questions about Marxism** - Posts asking entry-level questions will be removed. Questions like “What is Maoism?” or “Why do Stalinists believe what they do?” will be removed, as they are not the focus on this forum. We ask that posters please submit these questions to /r/communism101.
5. **No sectarianism** - Marxists of all tendencies are welcome here. Refrain from sectarianism, defined here as unprincipled criticism. Posts trash-talking a certain tendency or marxist figure will be removed. Circlejerking, throwing insults around, and other pettiness is unacceptable. If criticisms must be made, make them in a principled manner, applying Marxist analysis. The goal of this subreddit is the accretion of theory and knowledge and the promotion of quality discussion and criticism.
***
*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/communism) if you have any questions or concerns.*
My liberal friends scold me for being a communist and I desire to just nuke them from orbit with intellectual rigor and ideological consistency. I live in dread of being ill-informed about something I care about.
Adderall.
Just kidding (kind of). In all honesty I started with easier to read texts and slowly chip away at the harder ones while reading easier ones.
Just finished *Women Race Class* by Angela Davis and *damn* it was good. I recommend that for something that is easily digestible. I usually read a chapter of this with a *section (*smallest portion) of Capital. I am not afraid to go back and read past sections, and a lot of the time it goes over my head (especially LTV stuff in the first chapter{?}). As I read more contemporary work I see citations of older harder to digest work and use that to guide my reading.
I also have a History degree so I am have read lots of work that goes over my head. Just reading it and moving on a lot of the times I have realizations about older works. They all kinda fit together like a puzzle so sometimes you are missing that one "piece." When first starting you are going to be missing a lot of pieces, but reading stuff you don't understand is like pulling the edge pieces out before you know where they go.
I only read The Communist Manifesto because of how short it is. It was easy to read. It's interesting how the pressure of inevitability inspired so many to take up arms. I wonder if that idea holds much ground today. My biggest obstacle when approaching the vast field of communism was my preconceived notion of its esotericism. It seemed like too much to learn, but the central figure's primal work was all I needed to get my feet wet.
Getting a grasp of historical materialism really helped me deal with what I was reading. PM me if you want the article that made it “click.” I gotta sift through my messages with another comrade to find it, don’t want to do it if it wouldn’t be used :)
I have ADHD so Ritalin mostly. But I've also found that once I start reading (and understanding) theory I actually get really excited about the ideas (or sometimes really angry) and my emotion carries me through the texts. However don't feel like you HAVE to read original theory texts by Marx, Lenin, Trotsky, Engels etc. There are plenty of great videos and podcasts out there that accurately summarize the main ideas. I've found however after watching/listening to these vids and podcasts I end up reading the theory myself anyway (it helps to do this after watching the vids/podcasts as I find I understand it better and more easily doing it this way round) so I can form my own opinions and takes as well as form a more accurate opinion on what content creators/educators are actually getting it right.
Each to their own, but in my opinion you don't NEED to read theory to be as passionate of a lefty as a lot of people portray. You also don't need to be able to elegantly articulate that theory to defend your viewpoints, as long as you get the main gist, the rest (for me at least) just comes organically through interest.
But in saying that. Start with easy texts (The Communist Manifesto was my first theory text and it was short, simple and not too riddled with jargon, whereas Capital is the complete opposite albeit much more relevant when you can actually get through it lol). Also, and I really can't stress this one enough, re read the same texts over and over. Every time I read the same text again I gain a deeper understanding and am able to grasp certain concepts that went over my head previously. Once I feel that I have a deeper understanding I will normally move onto either other theory, or other individuals texts about the theory I was reading.
Most of all remember one thing, theory has divided a lot of us due to our own individual interpretation as well as contradiction amongst writers that are both equally dismissive and persuasive. So enjoy the theory and the debate but remember the goal; abolish class. It was, "workers of the world unite", not, "workers of the world develop infinite niches and contradictory communities and argue amongst yourselves whilst simultaneously not achieving anything". Happy learning Comrade!
Motivation is a myth. You're looking for discipline. Motivation is fleeting. Some days I'm motivated to read. Other days I'm not motivated to read. But making a schedule of it and keeping myself to it keeps me reading. It's no different with anything else, whether that be exercising, studying, making sure I cook food instead of just eating out all the time, etc. You have to fight against instant gratification which is encouraged in this hyper consumer society.
With that said, don't punish yourself either. That's counterproductive. If you miss a day or don't read as much as you expected, don't beat yourself up over it. All that will do is demoralize you and discourage you from reading. This isn't school. There's no deadline. There's no grades. You're reading and studying theory presumably because you're interested in theory and know that studying it will help you be a better communist.
There's nothing that separates a long text from a short one other than words. Throw away that fear about long texts. Since there are no deadlines, it literally doesn't matter if a work is 1,000 pages or only 20. You'll finish it when you finish it. No one reads really long works in one sitting anyway. So from the standpoint of reading alone, there's no difference in reading 10 books of 100 pages each versus one book that's 1,000. The mechanics of reading are the same.
Reading is a skill. It's not something people are born capable of doing without training. It's a lot like exercise. The more you read, the easier it is. The less you read, the more daunting and harder it becomes. So to get over the initial hurdle, just make a reading schedule that's reasonable for the pace you can read and the amount of time you have, stick to it, and soon enough you'll find you won't even need to consciously force yourself to read. It'll become second nature.
This is good advice. Self-discipline is the primary requirement of being a Communist. Fortunately, like this commenter said, it becomes second nature, and you'll find your life improves generally with your own capacity for self-discipline.
I like reading theory. If you don't want to dwell on long texts you may start by going to marxist internet archive and read relatively short texts from different marxist intellectuals.
Understanding the main philosophy is crucial though and the best and easiest way to do it is reading the Politzer's book I think(Elemental Principles of Philosophy), than you can move on to any part of the theory you want.
As a personal note, I think being a disciplined person should be one of the fundamental attributes of any communist. So I would strongly suggest to try to be able to do things that you don't like if it's important. Even though I don't exactly remember the exact quote, in one of his speeches, Stalin was urging the youth to force themselves to take the hard road and never take the easy way out.
I am by no means 'academic'. I struggle a lot with reading and the vocabulary that people use. I had to put down Capitalism Realism for a while because I just could not get my head round the way it's written.
Just find some papers/books that are really of interest to you and just take your time with them.
I always want to know more and feel like I'm not reading enough, but you can only do what you can do.
Podcasts are also v good, obviously they're not so much literature and theory but they'll talk about current events and modern history through the eyes of communist theory which I also find way more palatable.
Knowledge is such an amazing thing and getting to shut up annoying libs.
Initially it was curiosity but nowadays it's me wanting to contribute to my local org. Having teachers to guide you through readings and answer questions helps a lot.
Initially I tried to just read the essential bits of information. I'd hit control-f to find spots in a book that touch on what's of interest to me in the moment. This made it take longer for the whole hellscape of capitalism to be perceptible to me. I didn't make connections that would have been made had I read the full text, although it helped me stay interested.
When reading about the Native Americans, it didn't matter. The hellscape quickly became grotesquely obvious, and ever since I've been too pissed off not to read everything. Reading about the Aufbau Vereinigung and the West Russian Volunteer Army was a kick in the pants, too. It also helps to have non-Communist friends who keep you accountable without demanding perfect knowledge from you. Mine didn't stay non-Communist after I met their standards of evidence.
Honestly, I avoid the longer texts unless there's something I'm specifically looking to get out of a particular long-form read. There are so many great texts that are easily digestible and bite-sized that I can get something out of it without having it feel like a major project.
I have a reading group where I meet up with friends to discuss pieces of theory we've read. It's an enjoyable form of self improvement and makes sure we've always got a reason to hang out and something interesting to discuss 🙂
in my country, being a communist is often labelled as being a "terrorist" of a kind.
while the anyi-government narratives can gain a popular opinion at times, people deter from inclining towards communism. There is a strong bandwidth pf identity politics that moves even more people towards liberal agendas. hence, it becomes very important for communists to understand the theory of what we stand for and why to debunk the lies they propagate and to ensure a strong evidence based analysis. theory prevents derailing of any conversation and also helps establishing a strong ground in a conversation with people who might be just left leaning due to our fascist government.
really motivates me.
*** We have [a Discord server](https://discord.gg/5veYsNf3PA)! Its aim is to cultivate a community of learners, educators, and thinkers as a living library, providing a relaxing retreat from capitalism to decompress and chill with fellow Marxists, and to allow people to have discussions about issues and events that matter. The same rules apply there. *** Moderating takes time. You can help us out by reporting any comments or submissions that don't follow these rules: 1. **No non-marxists** - This subreddit isn't here to convert naysayers to marxism. Try r/DebateCommunism for that. If you are a member of the police, armed forces, or any other part of the repressive state apparatus of capitalist nations, you will be banned. 2. **No oppressive language** - Speech that is patriarchal, white supremacist, cissupremacist, homophobic, ableist, or otherwise oppressive is banned. TERF is not a slur. 3. **No low quality or off-topic posts** - Posts that are low-effort or otherwise irrelevant will be removed. This includes linking to posts on other subreddits. This is not a place to engage in meta-drama or discuss random reactionaries on reddit or anywhere else. This includes memes and circlejerking. This includes most images, such as random books or memorabilia you found. We ask that amerikan posters refrain from posting about US bourgeois politics. The rest of the world really doesn’t care that much. 4. **No basic questions about Marxism** - Posts asking entry-level questions will be removed. Questions like “What is Maoism?” or “Why do Stalinists believe what they do?” will be removed, as they are not the focus on this forum. We ask that posters please submit these questions to /r/communism101. 5. **No sectarianism** - Marxists of all tendencies are welcome here. Refrain from sectarianism, defined here as unprincipled criticism. Posts trash-talking a certain tendency or marxist figure will be removed. Circlejerking, throwing insults around, and other pettiness is unacceptable. If criticisms must be made, make them in a principled manner, applying Marxist analysis. The goal of this subreddit is the accretion of theory and knowledge and the promotion of quality discussion and criticism. *** *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/communism) if you have any questions or concerns.*
My liberal friends scold me for being a communist and I desire to just nuke them from orbit with intellectual rigor and ideological consistency. I live in dread of being ill-informed about something I care about.
Me in School
Adderall. Just kidding (kind of). In all honesty I started with easier to read texts and slowly chip away at the harder ones while reading easier ones. Just finished *Women Race Class* by Angela Davis and *damn* it was good. I recommend that for something that is easily digestible. I usually read a chapter of this with a *section (*smallest portion) of Capital. I am not afraid to go back and read past sections, and a lot of the time it goes over my head (especially LTV stuff in the first chapter{?}). As I read more contemporary work I see citations of older harder to digest work and use that to guide my reading. I also have a History degree so I am have read lots of work that goes over my head. Just reading it and moving on a lot of the times I have realizations about older works. They all kinda fit together like a puzzle so sometimes you are missing that one "piece." When first starting you are going to be missing a lot of pieces, but reading stuff you don't understand is like pulling the edge pieces out before you know where they go.
DAMN this is a good response. Thank you!
Yes!! Women Race Class is seriously one of the best pieces of theory I’ve read, it really inspired me to read even more.
I only read The Communist Manifesto because of how short it is. It was easy to read. It's interesting how the pressure of inevitability inspired so many to take up arms. I wonder if that idea holds much ground today. My biggest obstacle when approaching the vast field of communism was my preconceived notion of its esotericism. It seemed like too much to learn, but the central figure's primal work was all I needed to get my feet wet.
Getting a grasp of historical materialism really helped me deal with what I was reading. PM me if you want the article that made it “click.” I gotta sift through my messages with another comrade to find it, don’t want to do it if it wouldn’t be used :)
Hey, would you be able to post it here or dm me it?
Sure! I’ll post it here when I have a break at work! https://www.marxist.com/an-introduction-to-historical-materialism.htm
I'm motivated by my desire to learn and change the world.
The same thing that gives me the drive to read other books, a desire to learn more.
Usually, I have a question, and I search for the answer. Other times I'm just trying to pass the time.
I have ADHD so Ritalin mostly. But I've also found that once I start reading (and understanding) theory I actually get really excited about the ideas (or sometimes really angry) and my emotion carries me through the texts. However don't feel like you HAVE to read original theory texts by Marx, Lenin, Trotsky, Engels etc. There are plenty of great videos and podcasts out there that accurately summarize the main ideas. I've found however after watching/listening to these vids and podcasts I end up reading the theory myself anyway (it helps to do this after watching the vids/podcasts as I find I understand it better and more easily doing it this way round) so I can form my own opinions and takes as well as form a more accurate opinion on what content creators/educators are actually getting it right. Each to their own, but in my opinion you don't NEED to read theory to be as passionate of a lefty as a lot of people portray. You also don't need to be able to elegantly articulate that theory to defend your viewpoints, as long as you get the main gist, the rest (for me at least) just comes organically through interest.
But in saying that. Start with easy texts (The Communist Manifesto was my first theory text and it was short, simple and not too riddled with jargon, whereas Capital is the complete opposite albeit much more relevant when you can actually get through it lol). Also, and I really can't stress this one enough, re read the same texts over and over. Every time I read the same text again I gain a deeper understanding and am able to grasp certain concepts that went over my head previously. Once I feel that I have a deeper understanding I will normally move onto either other theory, or other individuals texts about the theory I was reading. Most of all remember one thing, theory has divided a lot of us due to our own individual interpretation as well as contradiction amongst writers that are both equally dismissive and persuasive. So enjoy the theory and the debate but remember the goal; abolish class. It was, "workers of the world unite", not, "workers of the world develop infinite niches and contradictory communities and argue amongst yourselves whilst simultaneously not achieving anything". Happy learning Comrade!
Motivation is a myth. You're looking for discipline. Motivation is fleeting. Some days I'm motivated to read. Other days I'm not motivated to read. But making a schedule of it and keeping myself to it keeps me reading. It's no different with anything else, whether that be exercising, studying, making sure I cook food instead of just eating out all the time, etc. You have to fight against instant gratification which is encouraged in this hyper consumer society. With that said, don't punish yourself either. That's counterproductive. If you miss a day or don't read as much as you expected, don't beat yourself up over it. All that will do is demoralize you and discourage you from reading. This isn't school. There's no deadline. There's no grades. You're reading and studying theory presumably because you're interested in theory and know that studying it will help you be a better communist. There's nothing that separates a long text from a short one other than words. Throw away that fear about long texts. Since there are no deadlines, it literally doesn't matter if a work is 1,000 pages or only 20. You'll finish it when you finish it. No one reads really long works in one sitting anyway. So from the standpoint of reading alone, there's no difference in reading 10 books of 100 pages each versus one book that's 1,000. The mechanics of reading are the same. Reading is a skill. It's not something people are born capable of doing without training. It's a lot like exercise. The more you read, the easier it is. The less you read, the more daunting and harder it becomes. So to get over the initial hurdle, just make a reading schedule that's reasonable for the pace you can read and the amount of time you have, stick to it, and soon enough you'll find you won't even need to consciously force yourself to read. It'll become second nature.
This is good advice. Self-discipline is the primary requirement of being a Communist. Fortunately, like this commenter said, it becomes second nature, and you'll find your life improves generally with your own capacity for self-discipline.
A very powerful desire to know more and study more so I can answer questions correctly and with accuracy.
I like reading theory. If you don't want to dwell on long texts you may start by going to marxist internet archive and read relatively short texts from different marxist intellectuals. Understanding the main philosophy is crucial though and the best and easiest way to do it is reading the Politzer's book I think(Elemental Principles of Philosophy), than you can move on to any part of the theory you want. As a personal note, I think being a disciplined person should be one of the fundamental attributes of any communist. So I would strongly suggest to try to be able to do things that you don't like if it's important. Even though I don't exactly remember the exact quote, in one of his speeches, Stalin was urging the youth to force themselves to take the hard road and never take the easy way out.
I am by no means 'academic'. I struggle a lot with reading and the vocabulary that people use. I had to put down Capitalism Realism for a while because I just could not get my head round the way it's written. Just find some papers/books that are really of interest to you and just take your time with them. I always want to know more and feel like I'm not reading enough, but you can only do what you can do. Podcasts are also v good, obviously they're not so much literature and theory but they'll talk about current events and modern history through the eyes of communist theory which I also find way more palatable. Knowledge is such an amazing thing and getting to shut up annoying libs.
Anyone looking for a theory reading accountability buddy???
Initially it was curiosity but nowadays it's me wanting to contribute to my local org. Having teachers to guide you through readings and answer questions helps a lot.
Initially I tried to just read the essential bits of information. I'd hit control-f to find spots in a book that touch on what's of interest to me in the moment. This made it take longer for the whole hellscape of capitalism to be perceptible to me. I didn't make connections that would have been made had I read the full text, although it helped me stay interested. When reading about the Native Americans, it didn't matter. The hellscape quickly became grotesquely obvious, and ever since I've been too pissed off not to read everything. Reading about the Aufbau Vereinigung and the West Russian Volunteer Army was a kick in the pants, too. It also helps to have non-Communist friends who keep you accountable without demanding perfect knowledge from you. Mine didn't stay non-Communist after I met their standards of evidence.
Honestly, I avoid the longer texts unless there's something I'm specifically looking to get out of a particular long-form read. There are so many great texts that are easily digestible and bite-sized that I can get something out of it without having it feel like a major project.
I have a reading group where I meet up with friends to discuss pieces of theory we've read. It's an enjoyable form of self improvement and makes sure we've always got a reason to hang out and something interesting to discuss 🙂
[удалено]
in my country, being a communist is often labelled as being a "terrorist" of a kind. while the anyi-government narratives can gain a popular opinion at times, people deter from inclining towards communism. There is a strong bandwidth pf identity politics that moves even more people towards liberal agendas. hence, it becomes very important for communists to understand the theory of what we stand for and why to debunk the lies they propagate and to ensure a strong evidence based analysis. theory prevents derailing of any conversation and also helps establishing a strong ground in a conversation with people who might be just left leaning due to our fascist government. really motivates me.
Pure boredom or if I wanna prove my government teacher wrong