Capital
by Karl Marx, Paul Reitter, Paul North, Wendy Brown, William Clare Roberts · first published 2007
32% recommend63% neutral5% critical
Why HN recommends it
Rigorous analysis of value, surplus value and capitalism's tendency toward crisis, with chapters on machinery and automation that readers find relevant today. Best for those willing to engage with it.
Common criticism: Some find it long, dense and hard to get through unaided
Summarised by Claude from recommending comments
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Mentions per year
What Hacker News says
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There sure is: Capital by Karl Marx. (wonder if down-voters have actually read this, or if it's just a boogie-man to them?)
on “Which book describes all dirty business practises used in past?” ↗Capital by Karl Marx. Understand labor exploitation and avoid being a victim of it.
on “Ask HN: Which book/essay changed your life?” ↗I'd highly recommend adding Capital by Karl Marx to that list.
on “Ask HN: Where do you escape for non-clickbait thoughtful/informational content?” ↗…Marx’s point when he discusses his theory of Surplus Value. I know that that theory has been “debunked” and “proven” to be false, but I’m just reading now about it in its “Grundrisse” (I had read its Capital I some years ago) and it’s frightening about how right he was about subjects reguarding capitalism way back in the 1850s (in this particular case about capitalists’ dependence on their workers’, well,…
on “Why hasn't economic progress lowered work hours more? (2016) [video]” ↗As a funny counter-point, Marx was a journalist and Capital is one of the most insightful books I'm reading at the moment.
on “Rules for Choosing Nonfiction Books” ↗It's really a shame that more people don't actually read 'Capital,' or at least the first three chapters of Capital I. While I ultimately disagree with Marx, I think he does a much, much better job of analyzing the problems we have than most people. Hence Simon's distinction…
on “David Simon: 'There are now two Americas. My country is a horror show'” ↗…case anymore. Every industry needs people with your background -- more than ever! However, if you're hell bent on going into finance and you're going to read one economics book, read Thomas Piketty, "Capital for 21st Century". These are the classic economics tomes that you'd read over a lifetime: Karl Marx, "Capital" Adam Smith, "The Theory of Moral Sentiments" Adam Smith, "The Wealth of Nations" FA Hayek,…
on “Ask HN: What are the must-read books about economics/finance?” ↗…clean and provide public schools. Beyond this, I recommend reading Henry George's Progress and Poverty, as well as Das Kapital by Karl Marx. But what it comes to is that in the great struggle between Capital and Labor, or Property and Energy, capital is by nature very excludable, while Labor (lacking organization into a guild or union) is not very excludable (workers cannot stop the capitalist from working…
on “How the Rich Got Rich” ↗…foundations they use to prop up the philosophy they work backwards from their personal preferences to justify. I'm going to continue for the sake of trying to extract some sense of analysis with respect to Capitalism, but it's slow-going. I'm sorry, but what on earth are you reading? Ayn Rand was a rambling novelist, while Marx' Capital is a brilliant work of economic analysis. Parts of it are completely outdated,…
on “Surprisingly undervalued books” ↗If you're interested in this, are willing to contrast your view on things, and have the time and stamina for it, I'd recommend you to take read Marx's Capital. In the books, Marx accepts the premises of a free market capitalism utopia as laid out by contemporary economists, and logically derives the contradictions and instabilities that arise on a societal…
on “The Jobs Are Never Coming Back” ↗> Where does the 2X come from doesn't that result in debt. I think you should read Marx's Capital. It is devoted to answering that question: the generation of surplus value and its consequences in society. As you suggest, such system is not stable, explaining capitalism's tendency to crisis.
on “A candy man revolutionized the sushi industry” ↗I'd recommend reading Lordon's latest book, "Willing Slaves of Capital: Marx and Spinoza on Desire", which attempts to get to the very heart of this - how come employees enjoy their work, and sometimes even willing to forgo compensation? It uses Spinoza's theories of desire…
…inform you that this argument is not mine; it's Marx's. You're more than welcome to direct your complaints to him, but he may take a while to respond. Be assured though, if you take the time to read Capital, your criticisms are addressed. I'd encourage you to read it. It's a much better way to understand the argument than a HN comment section. Good luck!
on “The Right to Be Lazy” ↗> I can't get this idea of tech destroying jobs out of my head. You may enjoy reading "Capital, vol 1"[1] by Karl Marx, specifically, chapter 15: Machinery and Modern Industry. Sections five and six discuss this in great detail. 1: http://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1867-c1/
on “The Knives of Class Warfare Turn Towards Tech’s Plutocrats” ↗…cared about control then why wouldn't it just be doing what North Korea is doing? Why would it be working so hard to improve things? It's not a strawman it's very pertinent. I think you need to read Capital (Marx), before judging whether they are communist/socialist, either way they call themselves that.
on “A staggering migration – 250M people into Chinese cities in 12-15 years [video]” ↗