AndyI didn't join the revolution to read
Eric JenningsYou should read some of Bakunin’s works about that. 😉
DessalinesThe US military is always asking for recruits. If you don’t read, you won’t know that “helping them” means killing civilians.
UnderpantsWeevilPutting on my D.A.R.E. T-shirt and clutching my state issued copy of the Ten Commandments and snapping in my Amazon Ring Camera, so I help the state identify any of those nasty, America hating Antifa I’ve been hearing so much about.
I’m helping!
pipe01
Javier Ruiz Barquín@andrewrgross @isaactly_s Mencanta. :)
TropicalDingdongI’m in this meme and I like it.
thezerobit@andrewrgross
ML: It's important to educate yourself. Maybe read a book or two?
A: That's ableist.
ML: Comrades have read these books out loud and posted the recordings on YouTube for folks to listen while doing the dishes or driving to work.
A: I would never use YouTube, or drive a car. In my collective we only do things we enjoy, I don't enjoy doing dishes.
ML: So, you're girlfriend does the dishes because she enjoys it? Look, I could dub a cassette. Knowledge is power.
A: #AbolishPower!
Knowledge is important, but values and character are more so, IMO. Many complex ideas are founded on the belief of/are distilled from basic humanity.
“Wait a second…is that from the ‘83 tour?!”
Anarchists wrote books too ya know, you can’t just escape reading by changing you’re allegiance.
The only real problem with the people who don’t want to read theory is they just love talking over the people who did. The Dunning Kruger effect exists in revolutionary spaces.
Reading theory ≠ being highly competent, though. Dunning Kruger states that people with low competence (in specific areas) overestimate themselves, and highly competent people underestimate themselves.
Reading doesnt necessarily make you better at things (though obviously it can help). A community organizer that’s been feeding the hungry for 40 years but has never read a political book will be more competent than someone who’s read hundreds of books but never gone out and done stuff.
Cowbee [he/they]Both will be less effective than someone that balances both. It isn’t either-or, but both/and.
Food pantries and soup kitckens have been feeding the hungry for more than 40 years and yet none of those places brought about political revolution. This is why theory is not negligible.
chaonautFood pantries and soup kitckens have been feeding the hungry for more than 40 years and yet none of those places brought about political revolution
You, uh, might want to consider how that argument applies to reading theory. I’m all for people getting well-read, but if there is one thing that I’ve picked up from successful movements that bring change, it’s that diversity of tactics is required because there are no golden roads to getting the work done, and you need many people all working in the ways they can towards the results the collective desires.
Depends what yah read though, doesn’t it
Remember kids, you can’t be a good communist if you don’t have any skills. We already have people well practised at arguing on the internet.
𝔄 𝔰𝔢𝔫𝔱𝔦𝔢𝔫𝔱 𝔭𝔦𝔢𝔠𝔢 𝔬𝔣 𝔠𝔥𝔢𝔢𝔰𝔢I can just beat someone with praxis. Take that, theorists!
Surprise twist: I am aware anarchists like reading; I like reading; and I’m not actually an anarchist!
It’s just a fun meme making fun of upright overly intellectual Marxist-Leninists (that part is sincere).
I know, I like the meme, and we can have fun here :)
You can’t read a revolution into existence, but you can’t have a successful revolution without properly preparing for it and studying revolution. You wouldn’t want someone to perform surgery just because they want to help, they will almost certainly end up doing more harm than good. Revolution is the same way, we stand against the most brutal global system of imperialism, we must be prepared for it!
If anyone wants a place to start with theory, I wrote a new basic Marxist-Leninist study guide. Give it a look!
Marxism-Leninism Study Guide: Basic Course - Lemmy
The following is a guided study plan for Marxism-Leninism. This is not a comprehensive guide, and is instead meant to build solid fundamentals that you can carry on to the advanced course [https://lemmy.ml/post/22417306] if you wish to extend the depth of your knowledge. This guide is also meant to help you in your real life organizing work, and encourage you to get involved. This is not a history or evaluation of actually existing socialism (AES), nor will it cover advanced topics like cultural hegemony, colonialism, warfare, and so forth. Everything is made to be readable on a smartphone, with .epubs and audiobooks provided when available. The entire basic course is targetting 20 hours or less (I find Red Sails has higher estimates of reading times than is realistic), so it can be completed in 1-2 months of consistent self-study. Forming a study circle is also highly recommended, as is following this guide in the order it is presented, without skipping anything. At the bottom of this page, there are links to resources you can use while you go through this course, and an FAQ. Feedback is welcome! Let’s get started! *** ::: spoiler 1. Introduction [~30 min] [https://lemmy.ml/pictrs/image/15d74743-08a7-4043-8a53-a548ba2ec23a.jpeg] Before beginning your studies, it’s important to learn how to best economize our time, and why we should study Marxism-Leninism in the first place. 1. General Rules for Independent Study - N. Krupskaya Webpage [https://redsails.org/general-rules-for-independent-study/] [~5 min] Written by one of the founding Bolsheviks for students in the early USSR, this is a concise guide on how to best absorb the information to come as efficiently as possible by Nadezhda Krupskaya. 2. Why Socialism? - A. Einstein Webpage [https://en.prolewiki.org/wiki/Library:Why_Socialism%3F] | Audiobook [https://tankie.tube/w/6HASr3wjrVupTcH8v8YJYe] [~10 min / 22 min] Wanting to persuade his contemporaries to pursue a path of intentional development in order to avoid nuclear war and escape the profit motive, Einstein argues the case for moving onto a planned and collectivized economy over the chaos of markets and the profit motive. 3. Why Marxism? - R. Day Webpage [https://redsails.org/why-marxism/] [~15 min] Roderic Day makes his case for why now, in the 21st century, Marxism-Leninism remains the strongest tool for working-class liberation, and why we should defend the achievements of actually existing socialism. ::: *** ::: spoiler 2. Fundamentals [~1.5 hr] [https://lemmy.ml/pictrs/image/d83d580c-712e-489d-bc68-3d41ce7dcf8b.jpeg] To start off your studies, a clear understanding of basic terminology, as well as the historical context that gave rise to Marxism, is necessary. 1. Principles of Communism - F. Engels Webpage/.epub [https://c.encryptionin.space/epubs/principles-of-communism/] | Audiobook [https://tankie.tube/w/8JtpMuYQ6Ho6gzYtLLuL4k] [~30 min /48 min] A glossary of terms and background information, in an FAQ format. 2. Karl Marx: A Brief Biographical Sketch with an Exposition of Marxism - V.I. Lenin Webpage [https://en.prolewiki.org/wiki/Library:Vladimir_Lenin/Karl_Marx:_a_brief_biographical_sketch_with_an_exposition_of_Marxism] | Audiobook [https://tankie.tube/w/e1i4GTHHNCShNCBvi7rA1F] [~1 hr / 1hr 28 min] Lenin, as a part of his rigorous studies of Marx and his writings for application in the conditions particular to his contemporary conditions, came to know and understand Marx and his ideology at a deeper level. 3. The Three Sources and Three Component Parts of Marxism - V.I. Lenin Webpage [https://en.prolewiki.org/wiki/Library:Vladimir_Lenin/The_three_sources_and_three_component_parts_of_Marxism] | Audiobook [https://tankie.tube/w/8yUvkgJ4m5ZHPdESAyjg8k] [~5 min / 18 min] Outlaying the 3 major components of Marxism, and a short history of how they came to be. ::: *** ::: spoiler 3. Philosophy [~2.5 hr] [https://lemmy.ml/pictrs/image/9399af9f-1fe4-4551-9f9f-a4e4e3a1716b.webp] In order to better understand the later sections, we must understand Marx’s materialist outlook and dialectical method. 1. Dialectical and Historical Materialism - J.V. Stalin Webpage/.epub [https://c.encryptionin.space/epubs/dialectical-historical-materialism/] | Audiobook [https://inv.nadeko.net/watch?v=k0tcZw37CS0] [~1hr / 1hr 42 min] A clear summarization of the fundamental components describing the materialist outlook, the dialectical method, and applying both to analyze the arc of history. 2. On Practice - Mao Zedong Webpage [https://redsails.org/on-practice/] | Audiobook [https://inv.nadeko.net/watch?v=86RIzuWVsYA] [~30 min / 1 hr 9 min] One of the best primers on the Marxist-Leninist theory of the unity of theory and practice to inform correct understanding. 3. On Contradiction - Mao Zedong Webpage [https://redsails.org/on-contradiction/] | Audiobook [https://inv.nadeko.net/watch?v=D2R2KMPx_sI] [~1 hr / 1 hr 57 min] Mao explores and elaborates on one of the most fundamental concepts in dialectical materialism, the contradiction. 4. Western Marxism Loves Purity and Martyrdom, but not Real Revolution - J. Manoel Webpage [https://redsails.org/western-marxism-and-christianity/] | Audiobook [https://inv.nadeko.net/watch?v=3g3kOUL69v4] [~15 min / 22 min] Western Marxism is held back by cultural ties to purity and sacrifice, preferring the perfect socialism in our heads to real, existing and thus imperfect socialism. ::: *** ::: spoiler 4. Political Economy [~1.5 hr] [https://lemmy.ml/pictrs/image/32e314fb-f331-47fb-a012-d2d7b34c7f75.jpeg] Using your newfound tool of dialectical materialism, let’s explore capitalism, it’s contradictions, and the class struggle between laborers and exploiters. 1. Wage Labor and Capital - K. Marx Webpage [https://redsails.org/wage-labour-and-capital/] | Audiobook [https://tankie.tube/w/usbsMw2QhnCvZmAsqvewVg] [~1hr / 1 hr 37 min] Delivered as a speech to workers, Marx explains the fundamental struggle between labor and capital under capitalism. 2. An Extremely Condensed Summary of Capital - N. Frome Webpage [https://redsails.org/capital-v1-summary/] [~15 min] Nia Frome, taking inspiration from Marx’s Inferno, summarizes the key points of Capital Volume 1. ::: *** ::: spoiler 5. Scientific Socialism [~4.5 hr] [https://lemmy.ml/pictrs/image/616d07d1-7363-4b8c-8d29-daab2a51f2bb.png] We must now move on to socialism, not as it exists purely in our heads, but as it comes into being as a consequence of human development and progression via contradictions in capitalism and the class struggle. 1. Socialism: Utopian and Scientific - F. Engels Webpage/.epub [https://c.encryptionin.space/epubs/socialism-utopian-and-scientific/] | Audiobook [https://tankie.tube/w/e4z76sxWeBMnZKAQYBhSow] [~1.5 hr / 1 hr 48 min] Engels shows how the creation of dialectical materialism, and its application to social development, turned socialism from a practice of “utopia building” into a rigorous science. 2. The State and Revolution - V.I. Lenin Webpage [https://en.prolewiki.org/wiki/Library:Vladimir_Lenin/The_state_and_revolution] | Audiobook [https://tankie.tube/w/6M8bL2HGs5rGXmvThU1JG5] [~3 hr / 4 hr] Lenin concretely explains the Marxist theory of the state, revolution, and how the state is to wither away. ::: *** ::: spoiler 6. Imperialism [~3.5 hr] [https://lemmy.ml/pictrs/image/48419e4f-4ec7-47a7-9e16-2b977d4c592c.jpeg] Marxism lives on beyond Marx, but conditions have changed. Marxists have been carrying forward his work to use dialectical materialism in a new context, as capitalism transforms into its imperialist stage. 1. Imperialism, the Current Highest Stage of Capitalism - V.I. Lenin Webpage [https://en.prolewiki.org/wiki/Library:Vladimir_Lenin/Imperialism,_the_highest_stage_of_capitalism] | Audiobook [https://tankie.tube/w/8STrUAEfwiFGRFcRsSNqtv] [~3 hr / 4 hr 20 min] The clearest explanation of imperialism, its origins, and its behavior today. As the principle contradiction the world over, understanding imperialism, how it works, and how we can end it forever is at the core of organizing work today. 2. Five Characteristics of Neoimperialism - Cheng Enfu Webpage [https://en.prolewiki.org/wiki/Library:Five_Characteristics_of_Neoimperialism] [~30 min] Lenin did not live to see the consolidation of imperialism into a single international dictatorship of the bourgeoisie, helmed by the US Empire. Cheng Enfu carries Lenin’s analysis forward, to the modern era of moribund neoimperialism. ::: *** ::: spoiler 7. Leninism [~4.5 hr] [https://lemmy.ml/pictrs/image/81174468-7606-4051-a908-0c1d7e36395c.jpeg] Leninism is where Lenin carried forward Marx’s analysis to the age of imperialism, as well as the strategies and tactics of the Marxist-Leninist party and organization. 1. Understanding Lenin - R. Day Webpage [https://redsails.org/understanding-lenin/] [5 min] Putting Lenin in his proper context, and not simply trying to find ready-made solutions in Lenin’s works, is how to properly apply his method to our present conditions. 2. Foundations of Leninism - J.V. Stalin Webpage [https://en.prolewiki.org/wiki/Library:The_foundations_of_Leninism] | Audiobook [https://inv.nadeko.net/watch?v=DkXFGW8XmPI] [~3.5 hr / 4 hr 53 min] Leninism, it’s historical origins, and its strategy and tactics, stance on nationalism vs internationalism, the role of the peasantry, and more. 3. What is to be Done? (Abridged) - V.I. Lenin Webpage [https://redsails.org/witbd-rs-abridged/] | Audiobook [https://tankie.tube/w/seGAATanGtfufEkQoLH1X3] [~1hr / 11 hr 17 min] (Note: Audiobook is the full original) The abridged version was chosen for its clarity, and for bringing its most relevant bits to the modern day. The full original is much longer, and requires much more historical context, but is linked in audiobook form. Lenin outlines the most pressing stances for the communists to take, and contrasts them with incorrect positions such as “economism” and “adventurism.” Useful for avoiding pitfalls in organizing work to this day. ::: *** ::: spoiler 8. Social Liberation [~1.5 hr] [https://lemmy.ml/pictrs/image/62c645ec-3e59-48e6-96cd-8a6b6345c8b8.jpeg] This is a grand struggle, for the liberation of all oppressed people. 1. The Women’s Liberation and Gay Liberation Movements - H.P. Newton Webpage [https://redsails.org/womens-liberation-and-gay-liberation/] [~5 min] As one of the founding members of the Black Panther Party, Huey P. Newton understood very well the importance of recognizing progressive social stuggle as deeply connected to the class struggle. 2. The Social Basis of the Woman Question - A. Kollontai Webpage [https://redsails.org/the-social-basis-of-the-woman-question/] | Audiobook [https://inv.nadeko.net/watch?v=zP0hh3cYtoM] [~30 min / 42 min] As one of the leading Bolsheviks, Kollontai had a deep understanding of Marxism-Leninism as she applied it to the struggle for women’s liberation. 3. Transgender Liberation: A Marxist View - L. Feinberg Webpage [https://redsails.org/transgender-liberation/] [~ 1 hr] Leslie Feinberg struggled for queer rights as a Marxist for decades, elaborating in this work on the importance of extending social recognition and support to gender-queer struggles. ::: *** ::: spoiler Conclusion Congratulations on completing the course! For further reading, see the advanced course [https://lemmy.ml/post/22417306]. With the fundamentals and core under your belt, you can skip around the advanced course and use it more modularly, or you can go through the full advanced course from the beginning to advance to a higher level of understanding. Make sure to get organized, as well. It is not enough to merely read theory, you must put it to practice. Serve the people! Build up your community! Educate, agitate, and organize! You’re more than ready to do so at this point, so try to develop yourself and apply your unique skills and talents to the broader class struggle. We will win! ::: *** ::: spoiler FAQ ### Q: When should I read? A: I recommend reading at the same time daily, consistently, making it a part of your routine. It works even better if you can gather some like-minded comrades and form a study-circle, so that you can speak your thoughts and criticisms aloud. This isn’t strictly necessary, though, and reading on your own when your mind is fresh will get you great results. The audiobooks in particular are great for commutes or working out, though do remember to take notes when you can. ### Q: Where should I read? A: In a comfortable, well-lit area. Try to make it free from distractions. Ideally, with reference books and other learning tools. In a pinch, earbuds or headphones and instrumental music can help drown out noise, if you prefer reading on a commute or on break. ::: *** ::: spoiler Resources a. Theory ProleWiki [https://prolewiki.org/] - A robust library and wiki for Marxism-Leninism. Red Sails [https://redsails.org/site/] - “Woke ML-MZT Criterion Collection with home videos thrown in” Comrade’s Library [https://comlib.encryptionin.space/] - Excellent source for .epubs Qiao Collective [https://www.qiaocollective.com/] - Connecting western diaspora with Chinese political commentary b. Podcasts Blowback [https://blowback.show/] - Anti-imperialist podcast about the crimes of the US Empire. Rev Left Radio [https://revolutionaryleftradio.libsyn.com/] - Marxist-Leninist podcast centering theory, history, and current events The Deprogram [https://inv.nadeko.net/@thedeprogram9999] - Marxist-Leninist variety podcast c. News Liberation News [https://liberationnews.org/] - PSL’s newsletter Fight Back! News [https://fightbacknews.org/] - FRSO’s newsletter Dessalines’ Audiobooks [https://dessalines.github.io/essays/audiobooks.html] - More leftist audiobooks Naked Capitalism [https://www.nakedcapitalism.com/] - Economic newsletter centering capitalism’s decay :::
This is again part of the problem. You can understand the fundamentals of ML in like an hour or less. A quick start guide being like 12 hours long is insane.
I don’t think that’s accurate, though. How do you explain dialectical materialism, historical materialism, imperialism, why capitalism is fundamentally unsustainable, revolutionary strategy, and more in under an hour?
How so? How can you simplify them to take less than an hour?
Elaborate, how do you explain all of them in under an hour, even without fluff?
I’m asking how you can fit the sheer quantity of raw information, effectively, into an hour. I’m entirely unconvinced that you could do so.
Well okay thats not something I could describe for without actually doing it, and I’m not finna make an hour long course for you bri
Pick any of the core parts then, and try to accurately break it down into a small enough chunk. Explain dialectical materialism (not even historical materialism) in 5 minutes.
Cool, my latest effort to do so takes around 5-10 minutes to read, but I feel that I’m missing a lot of important factors.
Dialectical Materalism: How to Think Like a Marxist - Lemmy
Often times, Marxists use the term “material conditions,” and “dialectics.” What does this mean? Why do Marxists care so much about material conditions? The answer is that Marxists seek materialist explanations for observed processes as opposed to idealist, and do so dialectically, as opposed to metaphysically. In other words, Marxists apply dialectical analysis to find materialist explanations for phenomena. Dialectical materialism is the world outlook of the proletariat as a class, and serves as the most vital ideological tool for overthrowing capitalism. In order to understand dialectical materialism, we need to understand its component parts, materialism and dialectics, and their historical predecessors, idealism and metaphysics. [https://lemmy.ml/pictrs/image/eb4a0933-3129-468e-869d-2ba598c044a7.jpeg] Idealism is, in short, to put ideas prior to matter. Idealism has been used by feudal lords to justify their position above the serfs, forming the ideological basis for feudalism. The 3 major assertions of idealism are as follows: 1. Idealism asserts that the material world is dependent on the spiritual 2. Idealism asserts that spirit, or mind, or idea, can and does exist in separation from matter. (The most extreme form of this assertion is subjective idealism, which asserts that matter does not exist at all but is pure illusion.) 3. Idealism asserts that there exists a realm of the mysterious and unknowable, “above,” or “beyond,” or “behind” what can be ascertained and known by perception, experience, and science. [https://lemmy.ml/pictrs/image/082eaf8e-4208-4986-8807-13ce5b58f002.jpeg] Common idealist arguments are appealing to a supernatural “human nature,” or “good vs. evil” explanations for processes. Materialism arose over time, as people grew to understand the world more deeply, and especially as a tool to overthrow the feudal aristocracy that justified its existence via the church. In other words, materialism rose to help the bourgeoisie. The 3 basic teachings of materialism as counterposed to idealism are: 1. Materialism teaches that the world is by its very nature material, that everything which exists comes into being on the basis of material causes, arises and develops in accordance with the laws of motion of matter. 2. Materialism teaches that matter is objective reality existing outside and independent of the mind; and that far from the mental existing in separation from the material, everything mental or spiritual is a product of material processes. 3. Materialism teaches that the world and its laws are fully knowable, and that while much may not be known there is nothing which is by nature unknowable. The type of materialism that overthrew the feudal lords was still underdeveloped, and metaphysical. The bourgeoisie needed an explanation for why the feudal lords were illegitimate, but still needed to support their own static, permanent rule. This was called mechanistic materialism, for the bourgeois scientists saw the world as a grand machine repeating simple motions forever. Mechanistic materialism, therefore, makes certain dogmatic assumptions: 1. That the world consists of permanent and stable things or particles, with definite, fixed properties; 2. That the particles of matter are by nature inert and no change ever happens except by the action of some external cause; 3. That all motion, all change can be reduced to the mechanical interaction of the separate particles of matter; 4. That each particle has its own fixed nature independent of everything else, and that the relationships between separate things are merely external relationships. This, of course, has proven false. Mechanistic materialism relies on metaphysics, seeing everything as a static abstraction, devoid of its context. It has no explanation for how new qualities emerge, and ultimately fell to idealism to explain the “first mover,” ie “God.” Dialectical materialism holds instead: 1. The world is not a complex of things but of processes; 2. That matter is inseperable from motion; 3. That the motion of matter comprehends an infinite diversity of forms which arise one from another and pass into one another; 4. That things exist not as separate individual units but in essential relation and interconnection. This became remarkable for the proletariat, as it sees nothing as static, and therefore marks the eventual downfall of the bourgeoisie. Putting it all together, we get the following: 1. Dialectical materialism understands the world, not as a complex of ready-made things, but as a complex of processes, in which all things go through an uninterrupted change of coming into being and passing away. In other words, when analyzing events and contextualizing them, we must always viee them as a struggle between the rising and the falling, the old and the new, for example the concentration of capital in markets and the rise in socialize labor. [https://lemmy.ml/pictrs/image/2b66a4af-3afe-4f75-b3bf-0f90a9c60eda.jpeg] 2. Dialectical materialism considers that matter is always in motion, that motion is the mode of existence of matter, so that there can no more be matter without motion than motion without matter. Motion does not have to be impressed upon matter by some outside force, but above all it is necessary to look for the inner impulses of development, the self-motion, inherent in all processes. In other words, all movement is a result of contradiction. Your foot presses on the Earth, and the Earth presses back on you. [https://lemmy.ml/pictrs/image/3656ac40-ca7f-4972-bdcd-6bfc3ed5d967.jpeg] 3. Dialectical materialism understands the motion of matter as comprehending all changes and processes in the universe, from mere changes of place right to thinking. It recognizes, therefore, the infinite diversity of the forms of motion of matter from the simple to the complex, from the lower to the higher. In other words, dialectical materialism recognizes that development exists as a change of quantity into quality. Addition or subtraction gives way to qualitative change. A balloon is filled with air, until at a given point it pops due to pressure buildup. Water goes from liquid to gas at its boiling point, and back into liquid when cooling down to said point. [https://lemmy.ml/pictrs/image/d16de8cd-d1a4-41f8-9354-3bc72a4a1da6.jpeg] 4. Dialectical materialism considers that, in the manifold processes taking place in the universe, things come into being, change and pass out of being, not as separate individual units, but in essential relation and interconnection, so that they cannot be understood each separately and by itself but only in their relation and interconnection. In other words, everything is connected, and must be analyzed in context to truly understand it. A worker isn’t just an individual, but instead part of a social class of many workers. Wages are not something invented brand new every time, but instead are set by societal standards, controlled by the ruling capitalist class. [https://lemmy.ml/pictrs/image/7f34b316-53d0-40fa-8720-0ec0786be269.webp] Karl Marx created dialectical materialism by turning Hegel’s idealist dialectic into a materialist one. Then, he applied it to the progression of society, creating historical matetialism. By analyzing social structures and progress as a dialectical process based in materialism, we can learn from history and analyze where it’s going. This is scientific socialism in progress. If you keep these in mind, you can do your own dialectical materialist analysis. Always seek explanations based on the material, not the ideal, and always do so by contextualizing the processes, analyzing their contradictions, the unity and struggle of opposing tendencies. Quantitative changes lead to qualitative development, and progresses as a result of the conflict or struggle of opposite tendencies. There’s much more to dialectical materialism, but this should help serve as a simple overview!
They’re not even pretending to be genuine at this point.
Yep, sadly.
I’m not finna make an hour long course for you bro
Cringe
Lenin's Dumbbell Lol, okay fed
Guys this is very likely a fed account. Do not listen to this crap. You need to understand what you’re doing before you do it. No successful revolution was built on vibes.
This person is trying to discourage any organization
You can definitely explain most of those in a way a 5 year old could understand in under 20 minutes.
Not dialectical materialism though. I’ve read about it and had it explained to me more time than I can count, and my brain refuses to hold on to what it means.
I wrote a basic guide on dialectical materialism. It’s missing a ton, but should be enough to hopefully make it make sense to start off with.
Dialectical Materalism: How to Think Like a Marxist - Lemmy
Often times, Marxists use the term “material conditions,” and “dialectics.” What does this mean? Why do Marxists care so much about material conditions? The answer is that Marxists seek materialist explanations for observed processes as opposed to idealist, and do so dialectically, as opposed to metaphysically. In other words, Marxists apply dialectical analysis to find materialist explanations for phenomena. Dialectical materialism is the world outlook of the proletariat as a class, and serves as the most vital ideological tool for overthrowing capitalism. In order to understand dialectical materialism, we need to understand its component parts, materialism and dialectics, and their historical predecessors, idealism and metaphysics. [https://lemmy.ml/pictrs/image/eb4a0933-3129-468e-869d-2ba598c044a7.jpeg] Idealism is, in short, to put ideas prior to matter. Idealism has been used by feudal lords to justify their position above the serfs, forming the ideological basis for feudalism. The 3 major assertions of idealism are as follows: 1. Idealism asserts that the material world is dependent on the spiritual 2. Idealism asserts that spirit, or mind, or idea, can and does exist in separation from matter. (The most extreme form of this assertion is subjective idealism, which asserts that matter does not exist at all but is pure illusion.) 3. Idealism asserts that there exists a realm of the mysterious and unknowable, “above,” or “beyond,” or “behind” what can be ascertained and known by perception, experience, and science. [https://lemmy.ml/pictrs/image/082eaf8e-4208-4986-8807-13ce5b58f002.jpeg] Common idealist arguments are appealing to a supernatural “human nature,” or “good vs. evil” explanations for processes. Materialism arose over time, as people grew to understand the world more deeply, and especially as a tool to overthrow the feudal aristocracy that justified its existence via the church. In other words, materialism rose to help the bourgeoisie. The 3 basic teachings of materialism as counterposed to idealism are: 1. Materialism teaches that the world is by its very nature material, that everything which exists comes into being on the basis of material causes, arises and develops in accordance with the laws of motion of matter. 2. Materialism teaches that matter is objective reality existing outside and independent of the mind; and that far from the mental existing in separation from the material, everything mental or spiritual is a product of material processes. 3. Materialism teaches that the world and its laws are fully knowable, and that while much may not be known there is nothing which is by nature unknowable. The type of materialism that overthrew the feudal lords was still underdeveloped, and metaphysical. The bourgeoisie needed an explanation for why the feudal lords were illegitimate, but still needed to support their own static, permanent rule. This was called mechanistic materialism, for the bourgeois scientists saw the world as a grand machine repeating simple motions forever. Mechanistic materialism, therefore, makes certain dogmatic assumptions: 1. That the world consists of permanent and stable things or particles, with definite, fixed properties; 2. That the particles of matter are by nature inert and no change ever happens except by the action of some external cause; 3. That all motion, all change can be reduced to the mechanical interaction of the separate particles of matter; 4. That each particle has its own fixed nature independent of everything else, and that the relationships between separate things are merely external relationships. This, of course, has proven false. Mechanistic materialism relies on metaphysics, seeing everything as a static abstraction, devoid of its context. It has no explanation for how new qualities emerge, and ultimately fell to idealism to explain the “first mover,” ie “God.” Dialectical materialism holds instead: 1. The world is not a complex of things but of processes; 2. That matter is inseperable from motion; 3. That the motion of matter comprehends an infinite diversity of forms which arise one from another and pass into one another; 4. That things exist not as separate individual units but in essential relation and interconnection. This became remarkable for the proletariat, as it sees nothing as static, and therefore marks the eventual downfall of the bourgeoisie. Putting it all together, we get the following: 1. Dialectical materialism understands the world, not as a complex of ready-made things, but as a complex of processes, in which all things go through an uninterrupted change of coming into being and passing away. In other words, when analyzing events and contextualizing them, we must always viee them as a struggle between the rising and the falling, the old and the new, for example the concentration of capital in markets and the rise in socialize labor. [https://lemmy.ml/pictrs/image/2b66a4af-3afe-4f75-b3bf-0f90a9c60eda.jpeg] 2. Dialectical materialism considers that matter is always in motion, that motion is the mode of existence of matter, so that there can no more be matter without motion than motion without matter. Motion does not have to be impressed upon matter by some outside force, but above all it is necessary to look for the inner impulses of development, the self-motion, inherent in all processes. In other words, all movement is a result of contradiction. Your foot presses on the Earth, and the Earth presses back on you. [https://lemmy.ml/pictrs/image/3656ac40-ca7f-4972-bdcd-6bfc3ed5d967.jpeg] 3. Dialectical materialism understands the motion of matter as comprehending all changes and processes in the universe, from mere changes of place right to thinking. It recognizes, therefore, the infinite diversity of the forms of motion of matter from the simple to the complex, from the lower to the higher. In other words, dialectical materialism recognizes that development exists as a change of quantity into quality. Addition or subtraction gives way to qualitative change. A balloon is filled with air, until at a given point it pops due to pressure buildup. Water goes from liquid to gas at its boiling point, and back into liquid when cooling down to said point. [https://lemmy.ml/pictrs/image/d16de8cd-d1a4-41f8-9354-3bc72a4a1da6.jpeg] 4. Dialectical materialism considers that, in the manifold processes taking place in the universe, things come into being, change and pass out of being, not as separate individual units, but in essential relation and interconnection, so that they cannot be understood each separately and by itself but only in their relation and interconnection. In other words, everything is connected, and must be analyzed in context to truly understand it. A worker isn’t just an individual, but instead part of a social class of many workers. Wages are not something invented brand new every time, but instead are set by societal standards, controlled by the ruling capitalist class. [https://lemmy.ml/pictrs/image/7f34b316-53d0-40fa-8720-0ec0786be269.webp] Karl Marx created dialectical materialism by turning Hegel’s idealist dialectic into a materialist one. Then, he applied it to the progression of society, creating historical matetialism. By analyzing social structures and progress as a dialectical process based in materialism, we can learn from history and analyze where it’s going. This is scientific socialism in progress. If you keep these in mind, you can do your own dialectical materialist analysis. Always seek explanations based on the material, not the ideal, and always do so by contextualizing the processes, analyzing their contradictions, the unity and struggle of opposing tendencies. Quantitative changes lead to qualitative development, and progresses as a result of the conflict or struggle of opposite tendencies. There’s much more to dialectical materialism, but this should help serve as a simple overview!
Haha, no worries! Really, it’s about materialism in outlook, dialectics in method. The rest follows from there!
I read it. I’ve been reading a lot of complex systems science lately, and it seems to have a lot of overlap, so perhaps it will stick a bit harder this time. Thanks :)
No problem, glad it helped!
From a Marxist-Leninist: there are some Marxist authors contesting the emphasis on the “dialectics” part of dialectical materialism. Paul Cockshott is a good example, you can search for Cockshott’s criticism of dialectical materialism, maybe if the concepts don’t stick to you you could have a more Newtonian materialist view
KimBongUn420I had the same problem up in until I had Stalin explain it to me:
www.marxists.org/reference/archive/…/09.htm
(It’s short, to the point and when one “hence” paragraph after the other comes, you will start to understand)
I’m starting to think you’re a fed. The dedication with which you’re telling people not to study Marxism is very unusual. I’ve never seen any leftist so militantly defend not educating oneself
I appreciate the effort and I will check it out. However imo the original works (ie Marx, Engels, Lenin) are too dense for a begginer, I feel there has to be a softer learning curve, with more digested content. For example I’m reading the Vietnamese textbook and I think it does a very good job at explaining excerpts of the originals in accessible language. Denser doesn’t mean more accurate or better in all cases, just generally harder to read.
The Vietnamese textbook is phenomenal! It doesn’t touch the areas my list goes into though, and just focuses on dialectical materialism, historical materialism, and political economy.
YliasterHey, I’m having the same issue with the denser works — what’s the name of the vietnamese textbook?
∞🏳️⚧️Edie [it/it/its/its/itself, she/her/her/hers/herself, fae/faer/faer/faers/faerself, love/love/loves/loves/loveself, des/pair, null/void, none/use name]Mar 5Presumably “The Worldview and Philosophical Methodology of Marxism-Leninism”
Jackie@andrewrgross peak anti intellectualism.
@andrewrgross fascists don't read books either
I think you’re taking the meme way too literally.
I’m not advocating for an illiterate revolution. Anarchists are famous for reading and writing a lot of manifestos too.
I do believe that there are a lot of overly intellectual Marxist-Leninists who need to go touch grass and actually practice more mutual aid among working class neighbors, though.
But I’m definitely not anti intellectual. (I’m also not actually an an-com. I just shared the meme because I agree with the broad sentiment).
There are some Marxists that don’t put theory to practice, true, but the solution isn’t to not read, but to do both. As a side-note, Marxist practice is less focused on mutual aid and more on organizing the working classes for revolution, though some ML groups like the Black Panther Party use things like free breakfast programs and such.
This is me. Not into all the political theory, just want my fellow human beings to be treated with dignity and for everyone to have a comfortable existence.