Hop in, comrades, we are reading Capital Volumes I-III this year, and we will every year until Communism is achieved. (Volume IV, often published under the title Theories of Surplus Value, will not be included, but comrades are welcome to set up other bookclubs.) This works out to about 6½ pages a day for a year, 46 pages a week.
I'll post the readings at the start of each week and @mention anybody interested. Let me know if you want to be added or removed.
Week 1, Jan 1-7, we are reading Volume 1, Chapter 1 'The Commodity'
Discuss the week's reading in the comments.
Use any translation/edition you like. Marxists.org has the Moore and Aveling translation in various file formats including epub and PDF: https://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1867-c1/
Ben Fowkes translation, PDF: https://libgen.is/book/index.php?md5=AA342398FDEC44DFA0E732357783FD48
(Unsure about the quality of the Reitter translation, I'd love to see some input on it as it's the newest one)
AernaLingus says: I noticed that the linked copy of the Fowkes translation doesn't have bookmarks, so I took the liberty of adding them myself. You can either download my version with the bookmarks added or if you're a bit paranoid (can't blame ya) and don't mind some light command line work you can use the same simple script that I did with my formatted plaintext bookmarks to take the PDF from libgen and add the bookmarks yourself. Also, please let me know if you spot any errors with the bookmarks so I can fix them!
Resources
(These are not expected reading, these are here to help you if you so choose)
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Harvey's guide to reading it: https://www.davidharvey.org/media/Intro_A_Companion_to_Marxs_Capital.pdf
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A University of Warwick guide to reading it: https://warwick.ac.uk/fac/arts/english/currentstudents/postgraduate/masters/modules/worldlitworldsystems/hotr.marxs_capital.untilp72.pdf
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Reading Capital with Comrades: A Liberation School podcast series - https://www.liberationschool.org/reading-capital-with-comrades-podcast/
2024 Archived Discussions
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2025 Archived Discussions
Just joining us? You can use the archives below to help you reading up to where the group is. There is another reading group on a different schedule at https://lemmygrad.ml/c/genzhou (federated at [email protected] ) (Note: Seems to be on hiatus for now) which may fit your schedule better. The idea is for the bookclub to repeat annually, so there's always next year.
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Glad to be reading this finally! Please let me know if you would like to be added to the notifications list, or removed. I look forward to reading this with everyone!
As a side note, I will be reading the Fowkes version, but I'd love to know if anyone else has read the Reitter version, as that is the latest English translation. I am curious how it stands up to the other 2 translations.
Please add me to the notifications list (I'll be trying the Reitter version).
Will do!
I'd love to be added considering I've literally just started reading, although I'm already on chapter 4
Will do! Feel free to reread or leave your thoughts on each chapter as they come, or slow down and let us catch up to you!
I would like to be added. I will likely end up reading this in a different pace, but the discussion last year was so valuable in helping my understanding that I'd like to at least follow it weekly.
I'll be reading a Finnish translation that is based on the work of O.V. Louhivuori and was made official in Petroskoi in 1957. It has been revised in 1974 and in the print version they state it would need a new translation.
My plan is to read this side by side with one of the online English translations so I can discuss it better, but have to see how taxing that makes this.
Bonus picture from the book, a letter to Engels from Marx in 1867 and the man himself.
Edit. Just got the notification that you added me already, thanks so much. Let's go!
A bit nerdy to admit this, but that is one of the books I have read in order to practice my Finnish, since I know the first three-ish chapters in English very well.
Is this what you’re doing?
I am Finnish so it't kind of the other way around for me.
And kudos for the effort. The Finnish in this is definitely on the trickier side and many words aren't necessarily in everyday use. Lots of words are sort of "made up" for this book to describe what Marx is saying.
Ah got it! Have you picked an English translation yet? I have always read the Aveling & Moore translation in English, the one on marxists.org. Most people recommend the Fowkes translation due to supposed clarity, but in my opinion it loses precision for more common phrasing. I would rather read an uncommon word that is extremely precise in meaning, instead of a more “modern” word with ambiguous meaning. That said, Fowkes is probably easier for English practice.
I've read the same one you are reading in the past and reading it now too. It's fairly easy to understand imo, but having one in my own language on the side definitely helps. I'm almost done with chapter 1.
Added! And that's a super cool copy, would love to see if you can share any input as we move along with respect to the Finnish version, that sounds very interesting to me.
Can you add me for the pings so I can read the discussions?
Gotcha!
Appreciate it. I'm in no position to pick up Capital right now since I'm already reading 3 books and falling down on the job with regards to even that lol. I think the discussions will be a fun way to re-solidify the concepts since it's been a minute for me.
Yea, no worries! Just hope we can get enough people joining so that it isn't just me talking into the void in 2 months for the rest of the year, haha.
I’m ringing the bell and smashing that like button
Hell yea
can you add me to the ping list, please? i participated last year too, but i'm ready and eager to report back to posting duty. it's also cool that we now have a complete archive of discussions to look back on.
oh and thank you for leading this year's book club!
Will do, thanks for joining again! It's my first time through so that's helpful. And no problem comrade
thank you for leading this - please add me to the list!
I am reading the Reitter version - I can't make a serious comparison to the other 2 translations, but I would say so far that his translation notes/footnotes are a nice add. There are so many notes that it can be slow going, but I like the added context.
just noticed I am already on the list :-)
I didn't forget about you
Added! And please, feel free to add any input regarding Reitter's translation that may contrast with Fowkes or shed new light, that would be very productive!
I'd love to be added to the notification list!
Will do!
Can you add me to the pings please. I got a penguin classics version for Christmas.
Will do!
Ping Me Up!
Ping'd
Add me please!
Gotcha!
Can you add me to the notification list please? I'm going to read the Paul Reitter version (Anna's Archive Link), mostly because I just listened to the episode of Guerrilla History with him and Paul North. I originally read this edition published by Dyalpha(?), because it was available to download from my local public library and I could remove the DRM 😈. But I'm not sure which edition or translation it's based on 🤷.
Will do! And please, let me know how the Reitter version goes!
Add me please! I fell behind the reading group last time, but I'd like to jump back in
Welcome back comrade! We'll get through it!
Would like to be added as well! Been >10 years since I read it and that was for college course/wasn't the full thing.
Nice to have a reread!
Please add me!
Will do!
add me add me add me
Added!