Interesting Times

21. 4. 2007

INTERESTING TIMES BY Eric Hobsbawm

Hobsbawm will be 90 in 2007. Interesting Times is his autobiography completed in 2002. He is very famous as a historian all over the world. Though he is a professed Marxist and member of the Communist Party of Great Britain, he is referred and quoted by all historians and others. While reading the book I went back to my younger days remembered reading his serious writings in the Marxist journals Past & Present, Labour Monthly, Marxism Today, Modern Quarterly. The names of several contributors came to mind and many were mentioned in this autobiography. He was very lucid in explaining the historical, importance of happenings in a materialist manner.

I remember the incident while taking Saras to a bookstall in DN Road, spotted a book by Hobsbawm (title eludes me) on history that people should read. But the price of the book was beyond our grasp and did not pursue it further. It was a thick bound book published in UK.

Reading his autobiography, I felt a lot of affinity with his experience of encountering communism at his school days in Vienna, Austria. The period was full of revolutionary ideas and atmosphere in all post First World War Europe. For the people the future seemed bleak. They hoped for a revolution in model of Russian revolution of October 1917. In fact, there were some revolutionary actions in several countries. Hobsbawm chronicles all such efforts, and explain the influence instilled. His education was not in one place but at several places and countries culminating in Cambridge in UK.

One important fact as in the case of India, a generation of educated tended to be inclined to left in their political action if not ideology. However, Hobsbawm was not an agitator but an educator. In his profession, he faced severe hardships on political discrimination from those in power before and after the Second World War. The cold war years affected his professional standing. Although he was one of the topmost in historical writings, based on Marxist teachings, he was not published in the then Soviet Union, while many translations of his works in other languages were published.

Hobsbawm continues to be a Marxist and communist in his expectations on future. However, he is not orthodox. He has narrated the doubts about the developments in Stalin era and also there after, he believes in a future when the world will change for better to the deprived. He recognises the present conditions in the developed capitalist nations that are much better to those envisaged by the old time revolutionaries. There is more equality, prosperity, freedom and liberty in those countries while the lot of poor a minority is still not better. This condition could be remedied with the current attainments of science technology only if the politics of change is pursued in those countries.

He is the historian of twentieth century in his earlier volume of history titled “Age of Extremes” history of short twentieth century. I will be reading this book next. Both these books were brought by Saras from her university library.

25. 4. 2007

AGE OF EXTREMES. By Eric Hobsbawm.

This is a volume of more than 600 pages. The author says it is a history of short twentieth century. Why it is called short? Might be compared to earlier ones the achievements are short or there were no defining developments here. There are few things in this century, that could have been remembered as path breaking except the extra ordinary progress of science and its inventions. However, those developments did not change the society to the level of universal happiness. The First World War was continuation of last century’s unsettled issues projected in armed conflict. The October Revolution in Russia did instil a kind of hope in public specifically the European and later on in the colonials. Political situations in most of the countries were no stable. Coupled with the unprecedented economic depression in the thirties people almost lost any hope for recovery to pre war status of living. All these caused the rise of Nazism, Fascism, and Racist ideology. All the circumstances pointed to another world war. But several nations were not just prepared but complacent allowing the forces of war to grab initiative. The result was the Second World War, more devastating than any other war in history. The Second World War also brought the Soviet Union as a prominent and world power, though completely devastated by war and Stalin’s dictatorship and popular repression. The capitalist nations specially US economically and politically more powerful since, it suffered least from the war except for some labor.

The cold war was the making of the situation given after the war. Nobody could benefit from the conduct of cold war except the manufacturers of armaments. The hopeful side of the war efforts were the new science and technology that were instrumental in bringing unprecedented wellbeing to the people in between. The dogma and ignorant attitudes of the leadership of the Soviet group of countries resulted in stagnation in economy, non-availability of consumer goods, lack of freedom to choose professions and ever-expanding corruption in the administration. The admission of the fact of the Stalin years caused the no confidence in the preaching and practice of the ruling communist parties in the Eastern block. The fourth quarter of the century saw the decline and fall of communist ruled countries and communism as a political force.

There were corresponding developments in area of culture, literature, arts, music, theatre and other super structures. Hobsbaum has done a running view of the situation in all these, giving names and examples. There are dates cluttered around the text but the main developments were narrated chronologically going back and forward in order to evaluate them in the historical context. Not all superstructures derived from the economic base as the Marxist dogma insists. Eric all ways maintained that the method of dialectical and historical materialism are basically compatible with the requirements of democracy, freedom, equality etc. But we have no precedent as of now. The Chinese and Cuban versions are far from democracy and freedom. Yes, I also feel that a time will arrive when people discern the real and concocted socialism. May be it might be too late for us the older generation.

28. 4. 2007.

SMALL WORLD. By David Lodge. Fiction

This is a novel about today’s academic world mainly, the west. The novel seems to be satirical and funny. Although one main theme of this book in Persse and his instant love object Angelica. It starts from outlandish place in England during a conference on literature; the object vanishes soon to unknown locations pursued by the lover Persses in all conferences being held all over and around the world.

During the search to locate Angelica, the hero comes to that she is not just an academic but also a sex object in porno world of Soho. But at no time he is able to meet her anywhere. He did not know that the name Lily was not an assumed one by Angelica doing the porno scenes but Lily a twin of Angelica.

Persse was determined to keep himself virgin to his object of love also assumed virgin. He denies himself all the opportunities at hand to loss his innocence of sex. The porno views of her in Soho and elsewhere though very explicit, he refuses to accept it as true. His ardent desire prompts him to find the girl, and rescue her from her sordid surroundings if necessary. He comes to know thru conference hopping academics that Angelica lands in almost all conferences on literature. He was told that she is here; she was there but not able to spot or confront her.

Meanwhile the story goes out of the way to narrate the several couplings, infidelities, jalousies and ego based claims of competing academician in the circuit. There is the couple Phillip Swallow & Hilary, Morris Swap & Desire. During an exchange programme for about a year, both exchange their spouses. It was a known situation to both. While the Phillip couple struggle with their marriage, the Morris couple separate. The affairs proliferate as well among a number of academics that were introduced into the story. The author also feels free to tell in explicit words the sexual congresses in the narrative.

Persse finds that Angelica is an adopted daughter of an airline top official but also he finds that she has a twin sister name Lily who is said to have disappeared. At this moment, our hero comes to terms that Angelica should be a virgin still though Lily is sex object. As he catches up with Angelica in Lily and gets his virginity confiscated in the last conference held in New York. Then she disabuses him of his obsession and reveals herself as Lily. His object of love Angelica confesses that she is in love with another. Here is the climax. Both girls came to know their real parents i.e. father and mother respectable academicians of yore. After a clandestine affair during a conference, Sybil Maiden got pregnant from Arthur Kingfisher and gave birth to twins girls. She deposited the girls in a bath in an airplane but she claimed them as having found there. The twins were adopted by the top officer of the airline and brought up with all care and facilities. After the girls drifted on different ways, Persse sees them together and disillusioned in his love object goes back to another girl whom he fancies to be in love. When he lands at airport and make inquiries. The girl was dismissed from service for some misdemeanour and not to found.

The author has laboured a lot to depict the atmosphere given in the academic circles in the west but the same is not so inviting to upright people. The conferences and seminars are only formalities for the participants to chat and gossip, find ways to cut each other from getting attention. There are some pretenders who while away their time womanising, going to bed with available chicks or even elderly ones. What is surprising is that after all the draw backs the scientific community goes forward with their mission to improve living conditions in the planet.

At the end, the book is depressing though tickling one’s senses with sexual encounters.