Suggested Marx reading list

[Tomas Kovacik]

Hi all,

just started biting through the complete works of Marx and, possibly, Engels. Does anyone have a suggestion as to must read from Marx?

Thank You.

[jondwhite]

Marx wrote Wage Labour and Capital and Value Price and Profit as two simple short pamphlets aimed at ordinary workers. The Communist Manifesto is short (by Marx standards) too. I quite like what little I've read of Engels work, and prefer his writing style. The German Ideology and Socialism: Utopian and Scientific (part of a larger work called Anti-Duhring). Like many, I've tried to read Capital and given up before I got into it.What is your academic level and how straightforward would you like the text to be? What subject would you like, economics, philosophy, history? You can always read modern interpretations of Marx if you like.

[DJP]

A nice selection of most of the juicy bits of Marx is in Karl Marx: Selected Writings edited by David McLellan.There's a compilation of Engels writings edited by W.O Henderson and published by Pelican, but this has been out of print for a long time.

[ALB]

I agree with JohnD, I'd start with Engels's Socialism, Utopian and Scientific.Then it depends on what you're interested in: Marx's theory of history or his theory of how capitalism works.If history, there's:The German Ideology (chapter 1) (with Engels)The Communist Manifesto (with Engels)Preface to A Contribution to the Critique of Political EconomyThe Origins of the Family, Private Property and the State (by Engels)If economics,Value, Price and ProfitA Contribution to the Critique of Political EconomyCapital (volume 1, from chapter 4 if you like, as A Contribution to the Critique covers the same ground as chapters 1-3 but in simpler language).

[dweenlander]

I would recommend jumping straight in… but with the aid of some well-chosen water wings.Capital Vol. 1 is very long, dull as dishwater in parts, but is one of the most rewarding books I have ever read. The water wings come in the form of David Harvey’s excellent Companion to Marx’s Capital (the companion to Vol. 2 comes out in September) and his free online lectures which cover the same ground. In addition I would recommend Michael Heinrich’s An Introduction to the Three Volumes of Karl Marx’s Capital – which focuses largely on Vol. 1 and contains some marvellous stuff on the labour theory of value.  

[Tomas Kovacik]

My academic level is a university and I like the text to be straightforward not in Marx´s classical style. You know, almost 1000 pages on a topic of capital and another volumes follows. Since Marx is mostly appreciated as a critic of a political economy, I would like the subject of economics. What interpretations?

[ALB]

Tomáš Kovačík wrote:

My academic level is a university and I like the text to be straightforward not in Marx´s classical style. You know, almost 1000 pages on a topic of capital and another volumes follows. Since Marx is mostly appreciated as a critic of a political economy, I would like the subject of economics. What interpretations?

So you are looking for interpretations rather than mere popularisations? In which case have a look at this from elsewhere on this site:http://www.worldsocialism.org/spgb/education/study-guides/books-and-pamphlets-marxian-economicsActually, isn't Marx just as much appreciated as for his theory of history as for his analysis of capitalism and his critique of  its intellectual defenders?

[Tomas Kovacik]

ALB wrote:

Tomáš Kovačík wrote:

My academic level is a university and I like the text to be straightforward not in Marx´s classical style. You know, almost 1000 pages on a topic of capital and another volumes follows. Since Marx is mostly appreciated as a critic of a political economy, I would like the subject of economics. What interpretations?

So you are looking for interpretations rather than mere popularisations? In which case have a look at this from elsewhere on this site:http://www.worldsocialism.org/spgb/education/study-guides/books-and-pamphlets-marxian-economicsActually, isn't Marx just as much appreciated as for his theory of history as for his analysis of capitalism and his critique of  its intellectual defenders?

Popularisation, phew! Gimme a break! I mean… He is indeed. Do You mean…?

[DJP]

Actually I like the introduction to the Grundrisse this would make a good general introduction to the rest of Marx's workhttp://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1857/grundrisse/ch01.htm

[Tomas Kovacik]

Thanks for all the suggestions, comrades!

[jondwhite]

Let us know any further thoughts you have on the works of Marx.

[Tomas Kovacik]

My thoughts aren´t that important. Das Kapital isn´t that hard to read, You just have to read on and the sense will pop up later. Marx´s style is abstract, full of logic, especially his early works, like On the theft of wood and else…

[ALB]

dweenlander wrote:

In addition I would recommend Michael Heinrich’s An Introduction to the Three Volumes of Karl Marx’s Capital – which focuses largely on Vol. 1 and contains some marvellous stuff on the labour theory of value. 

If this is the sort of stick Heinrich's gets for challenging the falling-rate-of-profit theory of cyclical crises then it sounds as if he is worth a read:http://www.marxisthumanistinitiative.org/economic-crisis/the-unmaking-of-marxs-capital-heinrichs-attempt-to-eliminate-marxs-crisis-theory.htmlI think I'll start with the article of his they criticise:http://monthlyreview.org/2013/04/01/crisis-theory-the-law-of-the-tendency-of-the-profit-rate-to-fall-and-marxs-studies-in-the-1870s

[alanjjohnstone]

There is a long thread on Libcom on Heinrich and TFROP which you may also wish to skim through http://libcom.org/forums/theory/heinrich-contra-law-falling-rate-profit-10042013

[Author]

Posts