Theories of Surplus-Value by Karl Marx

By Gene Ogorodov

Nothing shows the hard work and impressive genius of Karl Marx as well as Theories of Surplus-Value. Every academic worthy of being called an academic is intimately familiar with the work and major hypotheses of their contemporaries and most influential predecessors, and economics is a field of study no less professional than any other academic field, but few economists have gone through the Sisyphean task of describing and deconstructing every idea in the field. That is what Marx does in Theories of Surplus-Value. Only Marx, Schumpeter, and Wolff and Resnick have presented what may be truly called detailed comparisons of economic theories and theorists. However, Theories of Surplus-Value also gives an excellently detailed picture of the underlying logic behind Marxian Economics. Alongside Capital and the Grundrisse, Theories of Surplus-Value ranks as one of the most essential economic works of Karl Marx and the Marxian Tradition.

Pine Flag Books has published this seminal work in ebook format for Kindle and Nook. This edition is based on the edition published by Progress Publishers in the 1970's and edited by Gene Ogorodov.

The Crayon Papers by Washington Irving

 By W.H. Pinsill

Washington Irving ranks as one of early shining stars of American literature that has remained exceptionally popular throughout American history. It goes without saying that his name is a household word in every corner of the world where American culture and made its presence felt. "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" and "Rip Van Winkle" have been read by every generation of school children since they frist appeared in The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon. The Crayon Papers, like the more famous The Sketch Book, is a collection of shorts ostensibly written by one, Geoffrey Crayon, acting as both narrator and commentator. If one might accuse The Crayon Papers of having a common theme, which is dubious at best, it would be this--American abroad. The PLI edition of The Crayon Papers has been formated for Nook. It can be found at Barnes and Noble here.

Phenomenology of the Spirit by G.W.F. Hegel

By Gene Ogorodov

Hegel's Phenomenology of the Spirit ranks as one of the most influential philosophical works. His mark upon the evolution of human thought was the rise and prominence of Historicism. From Aristotle to Kant philosophy depended primarily (if not at times exclusively) upon a priori conclusions, Hegel gave a posteriori arguments an equal footing in philosophical debate. The mind ceased to be an all encompassing perfectly independent organ examining itself as it was for Descartes and Kant but an evolving creature maturing with human history, and thus human history became applicable in philosophical debate.

Yet, ironically Hegel's legacy was not in an expansion of the Geist but a withering away. The Young Hegelians, viz Feuerbach and Marx, took Hegel's train of thought to its rational conclusion and united Body and Spirit as one indivisible entity in a strict Materialist world. Thus Hegel is to late 19th Century philosophy what Kant is to Hegel.

A Great Love by Alexandra Kollontai

By Gene Ogorodov

Alexandra Kollontai is an interesting figure that emerged out of Russian Revolutionary politics. A child of a Finish peasant and a Russian General, reared in luxury, she was an early member of the Russian Social Democratic Party that opposed both Martov and Lenin in the Bolshevik/Menshevik split who, like Trotsky, joined Lenin's Bolshevik's in the eleventh hour rising to prominence in the early Soviet Union. She shattered the glass ceiling as a Peoples' Commissar (Soviet equivalent of a Cabinet Secretary) in 1917 and Ambassador in 1923 half a century before Margaret Thatcher, Indira Gandhi, or Golda Meir became Prime Ministers in there respective countries.

Outspoken and fearless Kollontai relentlessly pursued social and economic equality for women in the Soviet Union, going toe-to-toe with anyone including Lenin when ever she felt the need. She vehemently opposed prostitution and marital infidelity as exploitative for women. (In fact A Great Love was itself written as little more than a thinly veiled attack on Lenin's extra-marital affair with Inessa Armand). Nevertheless, Kollontai was one of the first proponents of "free love." Marriage was, she believed, a relic of the patriarchal domination of women and would vanish along with the state in a perfectly free and communal society.

Lun Yu or Analects of Confucius Translated by James Legge

By Gene Ogorodov

Serious Orientalism began in the middle of the 19th Century with the efforts of Scholar-Missonaries like James Legge. Not just Sinotology, but the study of Sanskrit, Arabic Studies, Egyptology, Assyriology, Babylonology, Persian Studies, to name but a few all began within a few decades. These men and women functioned as cultural ambassadors between the East and the West, carefully documenting and analyzing the culture and tradition of the society in which they had been transplanted for study in the West. The early missionaries also functioned as buffer and translators of European culture for non-Europeans in world where Industrial Imperialism was beginning to make Europeans the dominant force in parts of the world that had never before had European influence. In opposition to the devastation caused by 19th Century Capitalism the Scholar-Missionaries were the human face of an Imperialism that hindered their chosen work. It was there efforts that established schools, hospitals, and courts. They were the voices in the wilderness calling for justice, equanimity, and cultural sharing against a sea of interests demanding spoil and pillage. James Legge's translation of the Analects of Confucius is good but dated; however, if it weren't for the life-long devotion of James Legge to the study of Chinese the great plethora of Mandarin works translated into English would hardly exist.

The PLI edition of Lun Yu or the Analects of Confucius has been formated for convenient reading and navigation on Nook. It is available from Barnes and Noble here.

Don Juan by Lord Byron

By Gene Ogorodov

Don Juan (pronounced /ˈdʒuːən/ JU-en to rhyme with "true one") along with Manfred, and Childe Harlod's Pilgrimage compose the triumvirate of Lord Byron's greatest masterpieces. If anyone is under the misimpression that poetry is sissified one needs look no further than the Satanic School--an epitaph given to Byron, Shelley, and their cohorts by Poet Laureate Robert Southey. Lord Byron's poetry is wild and vivid, stylistically perfect, and esoteric in a way that only Classical scholar could be. His Byronic Heroes are notorious (especially in High School English classes), but they do live up to all expectations on the written page, and he personally lived a life to match anyone of them. Rigorous study of Byron isn't for the faint of heart nor are the 16,000 lines of Don Juan. The PLI edition of Don Juan can be found for Nook at Barnes and Noble.

(On a side note, the spurious claims that students tend to make about Don Juan is gay are completely erroneous--if sleeping with hundreds of women isn't proof of at least bisexuality, then there is no such thing as proof a posteriori.)

E.V. Ogorodov