this post was submitted on 27 Oct 2026
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[–] Cowbee@lemmy.ml 9 points 7 hours ago (1 children)

Some of the all-time most influential include:

  1. Capital - Karl Marx

The masterwork of Karl Marx, and one of the most widely cited economic books in history. Capital was a direct influence on much of the developments of the 20th and 21st centuries.

  1. Manifesto of the Communist Party - Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels

While not as theoretically deep and important as Capital, the manifesto isn't more broadly known for no reason. As a work of agitation and propaganda, the manifesto was a major force for spreading communist ideas.

  1. What is to be Done? - Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov "Lenin"

This is the work that cemented Lenin as a critical organizer in the Russian labor movement, amidst all of the many socialist thinkers at the time. Lenin gave an analysis of the various movements at the time, such as Economism, and put forth the necessity of an All-Russian newspaper to connect the working masses from local struggles to the entire struggle.

  1. Imperialism, the Current Highest Stage of Capitalism - Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov "Lenin"

This is perhaps Lenin's most relevant work today, and has guided how communists view the evolution of capitalism since the time of Marx and Engels. Lenin didn't merely say "imperialism bad," he analyzed a concrete material process that capitalism necessarily evolves into, a stage in capitalism that has lasted to today.

  1. The State and Revolution - Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov "Lenin"

Also critically important from Lenin, where he took a firm stance against the social democratic line of reformism and instead restored Marxism's revolutionary aspect. Using the works of Marx and Engels, Lenin analyzed the class character of states, and elaborated on the economic basis of the withering of the state.

  1. Marxism and the National Question - Iosif Dzhugashvili "Stalin"

This is the work that put Stalin on the map in the Marxist movement, period. As an ethnic Georgian, Stalin was a national minority in the Russian Empire. This work was so influential that it shifted Lenin's opinion on the national question, and caused Trotsky to suspect that Stalin never wrote it to begin with because of how high quality it was, with Stalin not writing much in the way of new theory since.

  1. Report on an Investigation of the Peasant Movement in Hunan - Mao Zedong

This is where Mao made the case for a peasant revolution in China. Prior to Mao, many communists lacked a belief in the peasantry as a primary engine of revolution, merely believing the peasantry could be supportive of the proletariat but not the primary engine.

Whether you agree with these works or not, what cannot be denied is the sheer influence of these works, and the cascading impact they have had on the struggles of today. They shaped the 20th century and are still shaping the 21st.

[–] nullspace@lemmy.world 8 points 5 hours ago (2 children)

posts commie books

lemmy.ml

heh

[–] captainlezbian@lemmy.world 4 points 4 hours ago* (last edited 4 hours ago)

True, but it's really hard to find a more influential writer of the modern era than Marx. Each of those books had a significant influence on the past hundred years. Even if I do wish Proudhon and Kropotkin had been more influential

[–] Cowbee@lemmy.ml 4 points 4 hours ago

What can I say, I'm a commie 👻