16 January 2014

How to be a Good Communist

Basics, Part 1a


How to be a Good Communist

In today’s document (attached) Liu-Shaoqui discusses how members of a Communist Party should “cultivate and temper themselves” and “why communists must undertake self cultivation.”

Liu says “…the proletariat must conscientiously go through long periods of social revolutionary struggles and in such struggles change society and change itself.”

The linked document is the first chapter. The remainder of the book can be found on the Marxists Internet Archive.

This text is quite in demand, possibly because of its title, and because of the simple didactic certainties that it offers. Let it speak for itself.

But we should in any case note that Liu Shaoqi’s political career ended with his arrest in 1969 during the “cultural revolution”. He was expelled from the Party in 1968, accused of being a “capitalist-roader”. His death followed in 1969.

So in life, being a good communist, or being recognised as such, turned out to be problematic for Liu Shaoqui. Click the link below the graphic, above, to read more about Liu Shaoqui.


·        The above is to introduce the original reading-text: Liu Shaoqi, How to be a good Communist, 1939.

·        A PDF file of the reading text is attached

·        To download any of the CU courses in PDF files please click here.

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