Introducing Marx: A Graphic Guide

Writers & Readers Documentary Comic Book #2

by Rius

Compact INTRODUCING guide to the influential philosopher, sociologist and economist. INTRODUCING MARX - A GRAPHIC GUIDE explores the life of the most famous Socialist figure, from his early years to meeting Engels in1842. It provides a readable, understandable biography of Karl Marx as well as a fundamental account of his original philosophy, its roots in 19th century European ideology, his radical economic and social criticism of capitalism that inspired vast 20th century revolutions.

Genres: Philosophy, Politics, Nonfiction, History, Economics, Biography, Graphic Novels

326 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1976

About the author

Rius was the pseudonym of Eduardo del Río García, the internationally acclaimed Mexican caricaturist and editorial cartoonist whose innovative work established a new field in comic strips: the political and documentary cartoon-book.

Reviews

[Daniel · Rating 5 out of 5]

A lot of people probably think they know what Marxism is all about, but in reality only a precious few have any intimate acquaintance with the man's writings and ideas. Only the hardiest of souls can pour through the voluminous pages that constitute Marx's significant body of work, writings that are as dense and complex as just about anything you would ever hope to find. No single book can communicate the depth and breadth of Marxism, but a single book, namely Marx For Beginners by Rius, can and does offer readers an interesting, comprehensible introduction to the basic principles and themes of one of the world's greatest thinkers. I might point out the fact that I personally detest Marx with a passion; the man indirectly caused more trouble than any other individual in history. It is important to know one's enemies well, though, and that is why I have studied Marx to a limited extent.

This book was actually one of several required readings in a college course I took on the history of socialism. I had to laugh when I first saw the actual book as it looks like a book of cartoons. Don't let the seeming simplicity of the book fool you, though. Rius uses cartoons and tiny bits of comedy in order to make one's introduction to the subject as interesting as possible, and he covers the basics quite well indeed: Marx's philosophy, his economic doctrine, and his concept of historical materialism. This is an increasingly complex triumvirate of concepts. Actual quotations from Marx himself often drop in front of you like a ton of bricks, but Rius uses this building material to construct a humble edifice of understanding and instruction. He especially excels at placing Marx's ideas in their original historical context, summarizing the evolution of society over the years and pointing to the sources from which Marx drew most heavily: German philosophy, English political economy, and French socialism. You may just be skimming the deep waters of Marxism, but before you know it you've actually learned something about what Marx thought and why he thought it. To further help you along, Rius provides a pretty impressive little glossary of terms at the end and offers a few suggestions on the subject of further reading for those who would like to pursue the subject further. Whether you hate him or love him, Marx is important, and Marx for Beginners is the most accessible gateway to his philosophy and economic theories that I know of.

[Ivonne Rovira · Rating 5 out of 5]

Although a legendary figure in his native Mexico, Rius, the pen name for the writer, political cartoonist and communist intellectual Eduardo del Río García, is not well known in the United States (or probably Europe, either).

Despite the title, at least a little political savvy is necessary to fully understand Marx for Beginners. However, Rius provides a beautifully enjoyable (and quite funny) journey detailing the beginnings of the many threads of political theory that eventually influenced Karl Marx and/or his sidekick Frederich Engels. But the best part of the slender book has to be Rius’ cartoons and vintage illustrations. So highly recommended!

Marx for Beginners is the first of Rius’ book that I’ve read, but it won’t be the last. I’ve bought Diccionario de la estupidez humana (The Dictionary of Human Stupidity), Hitler Para Masoquistas (no translation needed) and Los Agachados (The Submissive), all of them in Spanish. So I’ll be entertained and improve my Spanish! A win-win!

[نورة عبدالله · Rating 5 out of 5]

الماركسية الإشتراكية الشيوعية
تقسّم العالم إلي معسكرين :أولئك الذين يكرهونها ثم أولئك الذين يضعون كل آمالهم فيها، ومجموعة الثالثة -التى تمثلنى- ولا تعرف عنها أي شئ
:::::::::::::::::::::
(1) الماركسية (فلسفة ماركس- النظرية الإقتصادية -المادية التاريخية)

كارل ماركس توفي 1883 بدأ العمل بإعتقاداته 1917

فلنبدأ معه رحلة تنقله من بلجيكا إلي فرنسا إلي لندن إلي ألمانيا

-البداية كانت عند واحد من أهم فلاسفة القرن الثامن عشرة هيجل ،وكان هيجل يري أن البشرية لا تتقدم إلا بسب الصراعات والحروب والثورات أي من خلال الصراع بين المقهورين والقاهرين
-وجذب ماركس لهيجل بسبب فلسفته التاريخية
-وعند وفاته أدت تناقضات هيجل إلي إنقسام أتباعه إلي اليمين اليهجلي واليسار الهيجلي ، ومن هنا نشأ مصطلح اليمين واليسار وانضم ماركس لليسار
-حصل ماركس علي وظيفة في مجلة استخدمها لنقد الحكومة السيئة
....
-أعطي الكاتب نبذة جميلة عن تاريخ الفلسفة بدءاً من :
طاليس أب الفلسفة
فيثاغورث أب الرياضيات
هيراقليطس أب الجدل
امبادقليس صاحب الإعتقاد بأن كل شئ يتآلف من التراب والنار والماء والهواء
انكساجوراس قال أن الأرض كتلة ملتهبة من الحجر وليس إلهاً كما أعتقد الأثينيون
سقراط : الشك أصل الحقيقة
أفلاطون :



ديمقريطس الذي كان أول من تحدث عن الذرات
أرسطو:الرؤية هي الإعتقاد



-ومع بدأ عصر محاكم التفتيش ونار الإعدام و الحكم علي كل من يخالف الكنسية بالهرطقة اختفي كل أثر للفلسفة

-وخلال هذه العصور المظلمة ، تطورت الفلسفة في العالم الإسلامى علي يد ابن سينا و ابن رشد

-وكان الفليسوف ماكيافللي أول من وقف ضد الكنسية ودعا للتمرد ضد الكهنة

-بدأ عصر النهضة وبرهنت علي إنتصار العقل ضد قوي الظلام
ظهر فيه الفيلسوف فيكو وكان أول من تحدث عن تطور المجتمع نحو الديمقراطية
ديكارت : أنا أفكر إذا أنا موجود
اسبنوزا : للإنسان حرية التفكير والإعتقاد علي نحو ما يجهله عقله
-ثم ظهور فلاسفة آخرين : ديدور .. لوك .. باركلي .. هيوم (فيلسوف لا أدري) .. فولتير ..روسو .. كانط .. حتي نصل لماركس
-تأثر ماركس ب سان سيمون و فوريبه و بلانكو و برودون وبلانك

. وأصدر ماركس نظريته المادية التاريخية : وهي تظهر أن التاريخ من صنع الإنسان دون حاجة لمساعدة روحية ، ف كل جيل يفكر ليخلق وبالتدريج سوف تظهر أدوات كاملة عن طريق العمل فيما يسمى القوى المحركة للمجتمع

..

"لا أعتقد أن أحد كتب عن المال وجيوبه فارغة إلي هذا الحد - ماركس "

كان هيغل يرى أنه ليس أمام الفقراء سوى النظام الرأسمالي ، أما ماركس فكان مقتنعاً العكس

فالنظام الرأسمالي لم يكون له سوى هدف واحد الربح من خلال الملكية الخاصة التي يحصل عليها عن طريق الإستغلال لطبقة البروليتاريا

"تكونت الطبقات وصارت جموع السكان البشرية أولاً عبيداً ثم خدم للنظام الإقطاعي ، ثم عبيداً بالأجر لا يمتلكون شئ في النظام الرأسمالي. -ماركس"

فقسم الأنظمة أو أساليب الإنتاج إلي:
-مجتمع بدائى
-مرحلة العبيد
-مرحلة الإقطاع (وهي قطع الأرض التي قسمها الملك علي النبلاء في سبيل دعمهم له)
-النظام الرأسمالي

وكانت الطبقات في النظام الإقطاعي (النبلاء -رجال الدين -التجار -الحرفيون -الأقنان )
ومع مرور الزمن نما التجار وأصحاب الحرف من حيث القوة والعدد ،وقاموا بثورة ضد الملوك مما أدي إلي ظهور أسلوب إنتاج جديد وهو الرأسمالية

وتلي تلك الثورة، الثورة الصناعية وظهور الآلة
وظهرت معهما طبقتين جديدتين :
-طبقة ملاك الآلة (طبقة تملك وتحكم ولا تعم)
-طبقة العمال (طبقة لا تملك ولا تحكم ولكن تعمل)

وهكذا تحول العامل من عبد لنظام الإقطاعي لعبد للنظام الرأسمالي

وحدثت الفجوة الكبيرة بين الطبقتين مما أدى إلي: تخفيض الأجور - إنحرافات في سوء إستخدام السلطة والقيادة
فالعمل أصبح سلعة يشترى من البرجوازيين(أصحاب الآلة)
:::::::::::::::
(2)الإشتراكية

"يا عمال العالم إتحدوا "
ويدافع الموقف عن تحرير الطبقة العاملة ، وإقامة إتحاد وحزب للعمال‏

إذا كان الحل في تزويد البروليتاريا بالوعي ،و عاجلاً أو آجلاً ستحدث المواجهة ،وتقوم الثورة العامة و بالتالي الاستيلاء على وسائل الإنتاج

لذا يدعو لإزالة الطبقية وبالتالي إنعدام الدولة البرجوازية والملكية الفردية

:::::::::::::
(3) الحلم بعد الثورة هو الشوعية
وتقوم علي الملكية الجماعية مساواة بين كل أفراد المجتمع

وأصدر ماركس مع صديقه أنجلز البيان الشيوعي و يشمل ما يريد تحقيقه


و حاول لينين تطبيقه في روسيا 1917
وفي طريقي لهذا الجزء إن شاء الله ...

[Jan · Rating 1 out of 5]

Obsolete, curious mix of dogmatic, unreflective and slightly boring ... but then again it is from 1976 and perhaps most relevant as an indicative of a contempoary point of view. Definitely not relevant for a post collapse of Communism reappraisal of Marx and Marxism

[Libby Nusz · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was moderately entertaining and very easy-to-read, however I noticed that Rius has a tendency to oversimplify things ... be especially wary of the middle part of the book-a very sloppy, spontaneous, unnecessary lesson about the history of western philosophy leading up to Marx, which was also (unsurprisingly) filled with more oversimplifications.

Otherwise, I found that when Rius wrote exclusively about Marx and Engels, he was able to explain a lot of their ideas very quickly. The illustrations also make it easier to remember all of the information this book provides. 4/5, worth the time.

[Zahraa · Rating 3 out of 5]

سلسلة ممتعة وخفيفة جدًا!
هذا الكتاب يتكلم عن ماركس والنظرية الماركسية وكيف نشأت بطريقة مبسطة جدًا جدًا، رغم ان الموضوع عميق لكنه طلع بشيء مختصر ومميز، طبعًا مايكفي عشان تفهم الماركسية لكنه على الأقل يشرح كل شيء ببساطة وبشكل ممتع..


السلسلة كلها محاولة لاختصار مواضيع معينة بطريقة تخلي اي شخص يقراها يفهمها، ومليانة صور وحركات، حبيت.

[Tracy Towley · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's written in comic book form and while I hate comic books it's incredibly reader friendly and does a great job of making Marx very accessible. It's my #1 most recommended book to people who are interested in Marx. Plus, it's cute.

[Kamil Bryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bardzo przystępne wprowadzenie do głównych założeń marksizmu w kontekście historii filozofii i ekonomii. Pisane przez dużego fana Marxa, więc może odrzucić sceptyków. Niektóre rzeczy źle się zestarzały (stawianie Lenina, Castro i Mao jako wielkich apostołów marksizmu), ale książka była napisana w latach 70, można więc na to przymknąć oko. Rozbawiło mnie też streszczenie całej filozofii średniowiecza do jednego prześmiewczego akapitu xd.

[Aidan Garemani · Rating 4 out of 5]

debated leaving a review for this in case the government ever went through my online presence but i already have the angela davis book so it’s whatever. lovely descriptions and cartoons, very well explained without getting too heavy or boring. still unsure of the specifics but greatly helped me get the gist of marxism

[Robert · Rating 2 out of 5]

Here is a pretty good primer for Marx theology.

accuracies

I am not sure if the "modern" idea of the "world spirit" struck a chord with the "masses" of the west as Rius postulates in page 59 at the time of Spinoza. The "world Spirit" Theology is certainly necessary for Marx-Engels philosophy.

* Marx desperately needed Rousseau's presentation of the "noble" savage in western culture, to create the idea that the only source of value is human labor power(page 104). The idea that man is basically and animal completely excludes intellect and effectively creates the illusion that man is a part of the machine of the universe.

problems

1.page 71 says "Religion ([Roman:] Catholicism especially) opposed dialectics because it didn't permit argument. Things were just as the bible said - and no discussion..."


a.Rius lumps The Roman Catholic Church with "mainstream" Biblical Christianity. He clams that the RCC bases its doctrine on the bible, with no discussion.

b.In reality The Roman Catholic church believes whatever the pope(clergy) says is true; as opposed to the bible, which the clergy did not allow the "masses" to read anyway.

c.Rius also leaves out The fact that the RCC has consistently left the teaching of the bible; as opposed to the Western Church which has consistently allowed people to read the bible; as soon as certain priests(martin Luther) started actually reading it themselves. Once these priests began reading the bible they found it necessary and biblical to translate the holy scripture for the "masses". Thus began the reformation and a Renaissance of learning.

d.Rius counts Christianity as "religious" (page 129) indirectly by implying that the church of Christ = The Roman Catholic Church; various heresies clearly demonstrate the doctrine "Eastern Christianity's" separation from the bible.

"Religious" in the modern sense of the word means believing things based on your own mind not on any evidence of any kind.

Christianity is not Religious in this sense of the word.

Textbook Marxism (blackout of reality)

2.Rius mentions that "the rich become even richer while the poor certainly don't get any fatter on their wages (which hardly keep pace...)" and " a rise in productivity is nothing other than a way to augment the boss's capital - and the poverty of all workers...!!!"

Rius of course leaves out the thought of the possibility of rising living standards for the worker himself due to productivity and scientific achievements.



3.In page 105 Marx complains that capitalists "exclude" their wives from society. This runs in direct contradiction to his belief in the world spirit, and Engels' proposition of idea of the abolition of property (page 112) which, under the ideas of Marx-Engels socialism would in the 1960's render females in most hippie cultures as prostitutes to the commune. And yet Engels still implies in his credos that prostitution is wrong; at least for capitalists. This could be because Engels and Marx had slightly different ideas about women but I kind of doubt it.

4.I kind of doubt that the french revolution wished to liberate private property and free enterprise from the power of the monarch and the clergy. (page 131)

5.It is unlikely that John Locke "was another Materialist-atheist" (page 61) seeing as he wrote (1695) The Reasonableness of Christianity, as Delivered in the Scriptures.

[Luna · Rating 5 out of 5]

brilliant

extremely accessible and such a nice way to introduce what exactly marxism means and all the not so easy terminology that comes with it

also a super easy way to repeat and clarify some things about his philosophy

[Chris · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book sabotaged the very start of my life....
It took me down a path of resentment and unquenshed anger that did nothing for me. Now, after many years I have rid myself of this cup of poison and hypocracy (Marx was a parasite feeding off his friend) like the capaitlists he attempts to attack.

To cap it all the cartoon style of this book (which drew me in as a naive teenager) is disgusting. Now in my late 30s it has taken me years to rid myself of the effects of this poison.
Now its so sad to see the Millenial generation have fallen for this hook,line and sinker in the form of SJW propaganda....

Evil Incarnate

[Marcelo Silva · Rating 4 out of 5]

Am I a radical now

[tea · Rating 4 out of 5]

e baš za početnike/ce! čak mi se čini i previše pojednostavljeno.. ali je vizuelno super! a pošto je ideja zapravo da privuče ljude da čitaju marksa u originalu (njegove reči) možda u tome i uspe (mada nisam toliko sigurna). zato ipak neke 3,5 ⭐ a možda je i to mnogo.. ali bar zbog vizuelnog doživljaja

[Savanna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting but what does any of it mean…

[Menna Samir · Rating 5 out of 5]

كتاب رائع يستطيع ان يضع الركائز القوية لفهم كثير من المفاهيم الاقتصادية الكبري كالراسمالية والماركسية والاقطاعية والشيوعية الي جانب بعض المفاهيم
الفلسفية الشائعة والعامة كالوجودية والالجادية وفلسفة ديفيد هيوم والسببية والاخلاقية وسلب السلب ..... الخ
اسلوب الكتاب سهل ... ممتع . كتاب شامل رغم صغر حجمه

[Nancy · Rating 4 out of 5]

The English language version of this book was published in 1976 so some of the statements seem a bit dated. For example, Rius states that 1/3 of the world's population "practices communism" which is not the case now.

This book was just enough of an introduction to get me interested in how the world progressed toward capitalism and what practical system would be better. Though the author obviously thought highly of Marx and socialist government structures, he wasn't really able to give me a convincing argument that Marx's ideas were the catalyst for communism. Rius includes good short summaries of a number of other 19th century philosophers whose writing and ideas often seem more accessible. I was left wondering how Marx got to be seen as the founder of communism when so many other people were involved. It almost seems as if followers must have built him up to be more than he really was. They needed a saint who wrote in a way open to interpretation. Were the various forms of communism like religious sects finding some part of the Bible to base a different interpretation of Christianity on? Did he become revered as the founder of communism because he was the hard to understand author with many works? Was his glory created because he drew the most PhD candidates wanting to find something new in his works or enjoying proving that another person was all wrong is his analysis?

In any case, this is a small accessible book about Marx and some of the history leading up to the development of communism. Well worth reading.

[Leonardo · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rius se curó en salud al señalar abiertamente, en la introducción del libro, que no había entendido el marxismo y que, inclusive recurriendo al estudiosos del tema, había llegado a la conclusión de que explicar a Marx era un atrevimiento, cuando no una locura. Así que quien se acerque a este libro con la esperanza de obtener una maestría instantánea en marxismo se irá decepcionado. La explicacíon de la doctrina de Marx y Engels ocupa una parte pequeña (aunque no por eso menos imortante y razonablemente clara). La mayor parte del libro es un estudio del desarrollo de la fiolosfía materialista, desde los griegos, hasta la época de Marx. Por supuesto, Rius es materialista, así que los filósofos idealistas reciben una soberana arrastrada en su libro. En ese sentido, este libro deber tomando como un punto de partida y no una texto dogmático.

[Jan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this documentary comic strip introduction to Marx by Mexican cartoonist Rius. Since I was pretty much ignorant of Marx's work to start with, I can't comment on the accuracy or comprehensiveness of Rius's intro. It held my attention, though, which is rare for nonfiction in general. I came away feeling that I understood certain currents in philosophy better, particularly political philosophy. Even more impressively, it showed a new (to me) interpretation of the functions of the state and our political system. I'd recommend this, and I wish I'd read it when it was written, in the seventies, when I was a teenager.

[Otoniel Garza · Rating 4 out of 5]

El año pasado leí “La Trukulenta Historia del Kapitalismo” de Rius y quedé fascinado por su singular manera de explicar temas complejos a través de la historieta. En este breve cómic, Rius presenta las bases de la teoría Marxista con bastante precisión y sin escatimar en detalles, manteniendo además su característico sentido del humor en cada garabato. No hay que dejarse engañar por la presentación del libro o por su título, se trata de un texto muy informado, escrito con mucha atención a los detalles. Considero que es un excelente primer paso para comenzar a empaparse los pies con temas como el materialismo dialéctico, la histórica lucha de clases y el socialismo. QEPD Rius.

[Pio · Rating 2 out of 5]

Cũng hên là quyển này chỉ là sách nhập môn nên nội dung đơn giản (mặc dù tác giả đã dành ra nhiều trang để trích dẫn vài đoạn được coi là "dễ nhai" trong sách của Marx và Engels), nhưng mà tui không thích cái phần tóm tắt lịch sử của tác giả cho lắm: nó mang nặng ý kiến cá nhân của chính tác giả hơn là cố gắng trình bày những sự kiện một cách khách quan. Sự thật thì ngoài những tổn hại to lớn mà tôn giáo đã gây ra làm cản trở sự phát triển của khoa học, chúng ta chẳng thể phủ nhận được những lợi ích tinh thần mà niềm tin mang lại cho chúng ta.

[lifeofsadnan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Got through about half of it. After reading the authors take on the history and development of philosophy (and how his explanation of religious thought legit sounds like some edgy le enlightened atheist teenager), i really couldn't be bothered finishing. Got to the part where he starts talking bout marx's main theories, but i dont feel hes doing them justice at all. I get the format the authors going for but it just doesnt work.

Guess ill just watch the anime instead

[Alhassan · Rating 3 out of 5]

لا يسقط من السماء سوي المطر والبرد أما التغيير فلا يحدث من جهة أعلي ، لأن البشر وحدهم يصنعون التاريخ وليس ثمة طريقة أخري.
كل جيل يفكر ليخلق وبالتدريج تظهر الادوات الكاملة عن طريق العمل لا عن طريق الروح القدس.

[Olia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Unfortunately, I did't read the book in its original language, so I couldn't get the full experience of it. However, I enjoyed the interesting approach Rius had to it, funny and easy to read.

[Pongprapas · Rating 3 out of 5]

KEEP CALM AND SEIZE THE MEANS OF PRODUCTION

[carina · Rating 4 out of 5]

marking this as read because if i extend the due date of this book a second time, my school might actually redtag me.

though i've wanted to borrow a book on communism for quite some time, i ended up borrowing this book as i was trying to make my friend laugh. i thought that this book was a pretty interesting introduction to communism, moreso than the communist manifesto, as it was composed primarily of political cartoons and sardonic critiques of marx's opinions.

i was surprised to find that a substantial portion of this book was not about marxism at all, and rather the evolution of philosophical theories leading up to the introduction of marxism. i like how this was included in the book, but i do admit that it became tedious at times. this segment could probably have been executed better, maybe in a more interesting manner.

following the long and boring segment on philosophical history, the author finally delved into the intricacies of marxism, explaining marx and engels' beliefs well enough for a newbie to understand. however, this was immediately dampened by a hearty copy paste of the communist manifesto, word for word, with minimal annotations that added little to no depth.

nevertheless, all facts and jokes seemed to be factually correct. but i wouldn't know if the explanation was erroneous, as i have not studied marxism in depth. perhaps i will read the communist manifesto in the future! once i buy it. because my library unfortunately does not stock it.

i know that communism is often parodied in modern society, but i do wish that more people read about it, because a lot of communism's criticisms are valid. i'm not saying we should become communists, because i think that it strips people of their rights, but i do think that communist notions are food for thought. healthy points of reflection, if you will.

[Drew Daves · Rating 3 out of 5]

Schoolhouse Rock meets the Manifesto. Comic panels and fine-point pen illustrations are perhaps my favorite mode of distilling cultural history. The subject matter here overlaps with Barzun’s “From Dawn to Decadence” (namely, cultural history of Europe from Enlightenment to present), but Rius writes about the period as one would present the information to a fifth-grader.

It’s effective as a primer (in the same manner that Hamilton primes one to study Con Law).

Three minor nits:
(1) the author mentions Marx’s one-year-old daughter dying due to lack of medical care two (or three?) times, but appears content to chalk it up to evil of the system or commitment to the cause. I understand that this is a “view from 30,000 feet,” but Marx’s willingness to write a manifesto while his partner begged for alms (and his child perished due to lack of care) remains impossible for me to swallow.

(2) Rius claims Pushkin was influenced by Marx, but Marx was only eighteen when Pushkin died. The graphic in question lists Pushkin’s birth and death dates, making it was strange to see this one slip past the editor.

(3) Dangling modifier in the wild:

Quote: “Religion (Catholicism especially) opposed Dialectics because it didn’t permit argument.”

Issue: “It” appears to refer to “Dialectics” rather than “Religion” (as intended). This shift in meaning would render the sentence ridiculous (Dialectics = arguments).

[Ayush · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great introduction to Marxist ideas. It provides great context to how, Marxist ideas came into being. It starts of with a small biography of Marx, followed by, a brief history of the social relations since the advent of humanity, that inturn led us to the point through class struggle, where Marx discovered the laws which govern the society and it's development and at last, the ideas that Marx propagated along with their immediate as well as later effects. A small vocabulary with all the important philosophical terms is present at the end of the book. Right before the end the illustrator has tried to provide a reading list for beginners which according to me is the only weak part of the whole graphic novel as it fails to provide any concrete framework through which to approach the massive arsenal of Marx's explosive writings. Marxist Ideas, especially economic, are explained in a very lucid way with a special focus on making it digestible even for a reader who is an absolute beginner and knows nothing about either philosophy, economics or politics.

[Daniel Morgan · Rating 1 out of 5]

Frankly - this is a bad book.

1) Rius gives a very sloppy history of Western philosophy from about p. 36 to 76 - emphasis on the word "sloppy".

2) Bad history. The author frames most of human history as science v religion quarrel, which is bizarre because this is idealist and and ahistorical nonsense.

The bad philosophy and anti-religious bad history combine to create a rather shoddy narrative.

"Philosophy doesn't quite end here . . . even if it did almost vanish with the appearance of the false, backward Christianity of the Middle Ages . . . Not by accident, this unbelievable epoch is named "The Age of Faith" (and by "Faith" understand the denial of ALL scientific reasoning)." (p. 53).

Which aside from dismissing about 16 centuries of European culture doesn't even make sense on a philosophical level. "Scientific Reasoning" as a process based on empirical observation, data collection, and peer review only has its origins in the 18th century societies of gentlemen-scholars in northern Europe.

Also, just to go back to the supposed denying of science - um, Albert the Great? Peter Peregrinus? Leonardo Fibonacci? Roger Bacon? William of Ockham? Nicole Oresme? Nicholas of Cusa? Hell, ***Pope*** Sylvester II?

Or here is an ancient example:

"At Agrigentum, Empedocles . . . also thought that everything was made of fire, air, earth, and water - a theory that survived right into the Middle Ages and which prepared the way for modern chemistry" (p. 44).

Which, no it didn't. The "four elements" has no physical basis in reality and was a folk belief masquerading as a philosophical conjecture. Modern chemistry wasn't bourn out of Greek philosophy, if anything it was born out of alchemists, herbalists, and miners.

More importantly - you can't have it both ways, Rius. You can't complain about "the medieval Church" (And which one? Between the schisms, heresies, popes and anti-popes, there was never one "medieval church") suppressing scientific reasoning, and also hold up non-empirical, non-materialist ancients as models of "science".

"The Egyptian argument was quite simple: men were created by Osiris and must obey his will on this earth. They must put up with slavery in the hope that, if they behave well, a better AFTER-life awaits them in the next world - no more slavery, only eternal bliss. However, the world wasn't totally deprived of men (no matter how few) able to resist blind faith, who prefer to come to their own conclusions, relying on science . . . " (p. 41 - 42).

Wow. This isn't even Marxist, this is just elitist nonsense. Ordinary people are not mindless lemmings, but rather are usually able to correctly identify their interests within their own social and material constraints. The peasant masses of ancient Egypt were not just brainwashed rubes toiling away because "Osiris" told them too, that is simply a stupid view of history.

It's also a stupid view of Egypt - notice I said "peasants". Most Egyptian laborers were peasants, and in fact Egyptian slaves *did* stage revolts. In fact, Egyptian peasants *also* staged revolts to overthrow their oppressors - there is a reason why Egypt has dozens of dynasties and multiple intermediate periods and breakaway states, and it isn't because everybody is merrily content with the way things are.

Which leads into my second Marxist critique of this supposed introduction to Marx - the focus on Great Man history. "However, the world wasn't totally deprived of men (no matter how few) able to resist blind faith . . . ". No! It is class conflict that is the engine of history, not the philosopher-aristocrats of the ancient world.

Moving on:

"Democritus instead was persecuted for holding materialst ideas . . . Democritus was talking about ATOMS four centuries before Christ and twenty four centuries before Einstein" (p. 49 - 50).

Sigh. No, those weren't materialist ideas - that was an intellectual thought experiment about how small an object could get. The modern atoms were named "atoms" as a historical Easter Egg, not because they have anything to do with Democritus.

My favorite is the description of Fedualism:

"Feudalism comes form the Latin word, Feudum, the name given to lands which the king divided up among his nobles in exchange for their support. (A feudum = a fee). Those who actually lived on the land had some claim to their bit of earth. But their labour belonged to the feudal over-lord to whom they paid taxes and who used them whenever he went to war. When I say "king", by the way, you can just as well read "Pope", because the Church of Christ was also a feudal system like any other (and probably worse)" (p. 128 - 129).

And that's it!

1) No analysis of land as the basis for economic production.
2) "Pay taxes" - two words and that's it. Not even the slightest explanation of land-lords collecting rents from dependents (something Marx railed about), nothing about rendering service as tribute on the lord's demesne (something Marx railed about), nothing about the use of violence and coercion to force compliance, no view of conflict or history.
3) Another potshot at an all-powerful, centralized medieval church. Feel free to criticize the medieval Church for all the bad things that it actually did, but the Pope isn't handing out land to feudatories. It's the opposite - prince-bishops and territorial abbots received fiefdoms from secular lords. But somehow this is "probably worse" than the actual warlord dynasties running rampant over medieval Europe?

I could go on, but the basic problem is that Rius is so determined to create a narrative of "The Christian Dark Ages wrecked glorious enlightened Greco-Roman philosophy" that he not only gets science, religion, philosophy, and history wrong, but he completely throws out any sense of a Marxist analysis of history so that he can take potshots at a transhistorical religious boogeyman.

[Luís · Rating 5 out of 5]

Provavelmente o melhor livro marxista para iniciantes que já li, muito detalhado, completo, e fácil de compreender.
Está escrito e organizado em "semi-banda desenhada".
Começa com uma breve biografia, sem ir muito a fundo em assuntos desnecessários.
Depois estende-se por assuntos importantes para o marxismo como a filosofia, história, diferença entre o idealismo e o materialismo; o pensamento e obra de Hegel; aborda e transcreve os textos mais importante do Manifesto Comunista; analisa a visão de Marx sobre a exploração dos trabalhadores, o significado de "preço", "mais-valia", "dialética" e "materialismo histórico".
No final temos ainda um breve dicionário marxista e recomendação de textos de Karl Marx.