The ABC of Communism

A popular book written by Bukharin and Preobrazhensky in Russia to promote the new party program adopted by the 8th National Congress of All-Russian Communist Party (Bolsheviks) and to carry out systematic education on the basic theory of communism. The original name of the book is “A Popular Explanation of The Program of the Communist Party of Russia”, which was also translated as “Introduction to Communism”. This book was published in October 1919.

In the first part, according to the principle of Marxist political economy, starting from the commodity economy, the authors introduce the capitalist system and the development of capitalism in an language easy to understand. This book makes a systematic analysis of various contradictions within the capitalist system, introduces the development stage of the capitalist system, and expounds the historical law that the capitalist system must be replaced by the socialist system. In theory, it introduces the characteristics, distribution, management and superiority of the Communist system, and the authors analyze the collapse of the Second International and its causes, and points out the significance and contribution of the Third International.

The second part comprehensively and systematically introduces the theories, programs and specific policies of Russian proletarian dictatorship and socialist construction. Firstly, it points out the position of Russian Revolution in the international communist movement. According to the authors, the task of the Russian working class is to contribute as much as possible to the cause of transition to communism. Then, combining with the specific problems of Russian socialist construction, the book makes a theoretical demonstration and popular explanation of the new Party programme of All-Russian Communist Party (B). The contents include the Soviet power, the problem of nationality, army organization, proletarian justice, communism and education, communism and religion, organization of industry, organization of agriculture, organization of distribution, organization of banks and monetary circulation, finance in the proletarian state, housing problem, labor protection and social welfare work, and public hygiene.

The book plays an active role in publicizing the party programme and the basic principles of communism of All-Russian Communist Party (Bolsheviks). By the early 1930s, the Russian version alone had been printed more than 18 times and translated into 20 foreign languages, which were widely circulated in the world.

It began to be translated into Chinese in the 1920s. As a popular reading material of Marxism which was introduced into China in the early days of the Chinese revolution, it had made great influence on the Chinese communists of the early period and the proletarian revolutionary movement. However, since it was written during the Wartime Communism period, it has certain theoretical flaws and one-sidedness, such as denying the role of commodities, money and exchange in socialism.