What looks to be a fascinating biography of the
UK’s most famous historian – Eric
Hobsbawm – a life in history – will shortly be published by another admirable historian, Richard Evans.
Eric Hobsbawm belonged to
the amazing generation of central Europeans who contributed so much to the
intellectual life of the UK – the list is long but includes Arthur Koestler,
Isaiah Berlin, Thomas Balogh, Karl Popper, Ernst
Schumacher and Ghita Ionescu
The clarity and elegance of his writing – as well
as his range of interests (he was the jazz critic of the New Statesman for many
years) – make us grateful that he lived to the ripe old age of 95.
The Evans article encouraged me to google – duly
rewarded with being able to download all 5 core books of his oeuvre – as well
as this 1995
conversation with Eric Hobsbawm.
He was, of course, an unrepentant communist to the
very end – not that this prevented the British establishment from awarding him
in 1998 the Order of Companions of Honour.
His last book was mischiefly entitled How
to Change the World – Reflections on Marx and Marxism; (2011)
UK historians are unique in academia in having real skills in narrative….AJP Taylor
and Richard
Cobb were two of my favourites – and this article indicates that some historians
have quasi-pop status these days…Post
War – a history of Europe since 1945; byTony Judt (2005) remains a model
treatment for me of the second half of the 20th century.
But, given the accessibility of the Hobsbawm
histories (in all senses), I really should now do some speedreading – starting
with “The Age of Revolution”!!
A Hobsbawm resource
Age of Extremes
– the short twentieth century 1914-1991 https://libcom.org/files/Eric%20Hobsbawm%20-%20Age%20Of%20Extremes%20-%201914-1991.pdf
Age of Empire –
1875-1914; http://pratclif.com/ebooks/Eric%20Hobsbawm%20-%20Age%20Of%20Empire%201875%20-%201914.pdf
The Age of
Capital - 1848-1875 https://libcom.org/files/Eric%20Hobsbawm%20-%20Age%20Of%20Capital%20-%201848-1875.pdf
Age of
Revolution – 1789-1848 https://libcom.org/files/Eric%20Hobsbawm%20-%20Age%20Of%20Revolution%201789%20-1848.pdf
Nations and
Nationalism since 1780
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