When studying Marx and Marxist authors in isolation, there seems to be so many ideological struggles that one may take independently without critique from others. So, if socialism/communism is not completely inevitable, how do I form appropriate arguments for the use of Marxism to advance the cause of the proletariat against that of the ruling bourgeosie without falling to arguments about inevitability, “the greater good”, the capitalists being “evil”, et cetera? Are there any more advanced comrades here with experience showing the ideologically backwards, or even intermediate, the way of proper Marxist analysis?
I think the first step is learning what exactly dialectical materialism is and then how to apply it to any topic. Some classics are Stalin’s ‘Dialectical and Historical Materialism’ and Mao’s ‘On Contradiction’, both of which I do recommend. However, you might find also these essays helpful:
Lenin’s notes ‘On the Question of Dialectics’
‘What is Dialectics?’ by Roderic Day
Sean Sayer’s critique of mechanical materialism and analytical methods
Or, if you’re more biologically inclined, you might enjoy the book ‘The Dialectical Biologist’ by Levins and Lewontin, especially the last chapter ‘Conclusion: Dialectics’ where they lay out the dialectical system and go through various examples and comparisons. If you’re interested in a more purely philosophical approach, Lenin’s ‘Materialism and Empirio-criticism’ is an amazing book!
All of these are some of the best resources I’ve found and used when learning about dialectical materialism in general, but when studying any Marxist author you can find dialectical materialism being applied and discern the method, and find general principles in their particular examples. Recognizing these aspects does take some practice, but getting familiar and comfortable with dialectical materialism in general will help a lot.