There are two things that beginning students of socialism should guard themselves against. One is the idea that there are short cuts to understanding socialism. There are no short cuts to an understanding of the fundamental principles of socialism. This is not to say that serious students cannot be guided and shown how to use their time fruitfully and economically. They can be, and it is our purpose here to provide some guidance and direction to the beginner.
Socialism is a science.
But it is not like botany, or electronics, or chemistry. Students who really want to understand Marxism won't sell themselves short by going to secondary sources. They will go to original sources. They will go to the works of Karl Marx and Frederick Engels, the founders of scientific socialism, to Daniel De Leon and to the works of other recognized exponents of Marxism. Socialism is a science of considerable dimensions.