Eric Hobsbawm: Left-wing historian and author of ‘How To Change The World’ dies

Aged 95, Hobsbawm still participated in the debate about the alternative to capitalism

The internationally well-known historian Eric Hobsbawm passed away on 1 October. His reputation as a historian who based himself on Marxist ideas rests on books like, ‘The Age of Extremes’ (part of his four-volume ‘Age of…’ series, in which Hobsbawn discussed the history of capitalism from 1789 to 1991). A long-standing member of the British Communist Party, Hobsbawm appeared to recant his former support for Stalinism but he did not fully break with its baleful ideological heritage.

Peter Taaffe, General Secretary of the Socialist Party (CWI England & Wales), reviewed Hobsbawm’s last published book, ‘How To Change The World’. Does Eric Hobsbawm provide a revolutionary perspective for the new layers of radicalised youth and workers resisting austerity and looking for an alternative to capitalism? To read the full review, see www.socialistworld.net/doc/4979

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