The Communist Manifesto: Understanding Capitalism

Following the Cold War, the US has instilled (very effectively) a sense of fear and misguided understandings of Karl Marx and communism. Rather than having the typical conversation centered on everyone being equal, working the same, and being rewarded the same. Let us look at the alternative…

A society that is guided by quantifying anything and everything…what are the ramifications of defining a country’s worth or our own self worth by means of production? What happens when people are a commodity?

These are the questions that Marx dissects and explores. Before we buy into this capitalistic system, let’s explore it a little more.

The Communist Manifesto: A Whole New World

Being interested in business, I’ve always admired capitalistic principles; Gordon Gekko's "Greed is Good" speech and I, Pencil are analogous to Schumpeter’s creative destruction and Adam Smith’s invisible hand. They are what shape a lot of the world order today and I love them. That is why I am also excited to step into a new world and read about communism, a term that has become so convoluted through many propaganda campaigns despite giving hope to half the world at one point.

Wow. What an intellectual gem. Marx is a genius. Many of the issues outlined in the manifesto are real today. For example,

[The Bourgeoisie] compels all nations, on pain of extinction, to adopt the bourgeois mode of production; it compels them to introduce what it calls civilisation into their midst, i.e., to become bourgeois themselves. In one word, it creates a world after its own image.

He was spot on of with this consequence and many others. My paradigm has certainly shifted and I am curious to learn more.

Animal Farm: Tough Love

I thought the politics behind the book’s publication were interesting.

By the time when it came to be written it was obvious that there would be great difficulty in getting it published…it was refused by four publishers…One publisher actually started by accepting the book, but after making the preliminary arrangements he decided to consult the Ministry of Information, who appear to have warned him, or at any rate strongly advised him, against publishing it.

George Orwell goes on to explain how people worried about publishing something of that controversial nature. A few years later Orwell published 1984. Freedom of the press. I’m glad we have these books to remind us that it’s righteous and humane to speak controversial things especially at the worst (or best?) time.

Animal Farm: Pig vs Man, Pig Over throws Man, Pig Becomes Man

Wooooow so many things….lol first and foremost I just found this book to be hilarious. I love that the author equates the political climate of soviet Russia to animals in a farm setting. Brilliant! From the pigs, to the cows, to the chickens, to the dogs…just too funny and too real.

The entirety of this book brought to mind a quote that I have often times come to appreciate and be humbled by (if that makes sense)…

We become what we hate

From politics to personal life, watch where u point that finger. If the tables are turned, how different will things really be if we are not careful?

Metamorphosis: Accepting the Change

He suddenly became a bug. A well intentioned guy providing for his family became a bug. So what did his family do in this sudden metamorphosis? They rejected him. They let him starve to death. That’s what most of society will do. They reject the different, the foreign, the change. If he is different or new, then he is out and shunned.

What if I was crazy in the head? What if I ate human flesh? I think we should accept all and love all. The Buddha accepted a mass murderer as his disciple. Are you willing to do the same?

The Metamorphosis: Twisted sense of happiness

How depressing!!! This book brought to light how twisted our sense of happiness can become!! In the story, one of the family members turns into a bug and struggles to gain acceptance or attention from anyone. Even his own family is repulsed at the sight of him. Rather than looking at how difficult it must be for their son to be a bug and adjust to the new life style, the family is concerned with how disgusting this new creature is and how to avoid the disgustingness altogether.

Grrrr makes me soo mad that the family got their ‘happy ending’ when the bug (aka their son) died. How twisted! While I did not find this a fun read, I think it definitely makes me assess where my sense of happiness stems from and how I can be more conscious of the context of my happiness so that I am not being ignorant or apathetic to other equally important realities.

Johnathon Livingstone Seagull: Finding purpose beyond the day to day

This was suuuch a great story. It was such a light reading with so much depth behind it. Ironically enough, I went to the beach the next day and couldn’t help but wonder about the all seagulls flocking around at the shore: how many of them were just hunting for food, getting by day by day and how many of them had pursuits beyond the day to day hustle.