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Marx in Soho
A Play on History
Howard Zinn
Pages: 88ISBN: 0-89608-593-7
Format: paper only
Release Date: 1999-01-01
“Don’t you ever wonder: why is it necessary
to declare me dead again and again?”
The premise of this witty and insightful “play on history” is that Karl Marx has agitated with the authorities of the afterlife for a chance to clear his name. Through a bureaucratic error, though, Marx is sent to Soho in New York, rather than his old stomping ground in London, to make his case.
Zinn introduces us to Marx’s wife, Jenny, his children, the anarchist Mikhail Bakunin, and a host of other characters.
Marx in Soho is a brilliant introduction to Marx’s life, his analysis of society, and his passion for radical change. Zinn also shows how relevant Marx’s ideas are for today's world.
Winner of the 2000 Independent Publisher Award for best visionary fiction
Praise
“What can I say that will in any way convey the love, respect, and admiration
I feel for this unassuming hero who was my teacher and mentor, this radical
historian and people-loving ‘troublemaker,’ this man who stood with
us and suffered with us? Howard Zinn was the best teacher I ever had, and the
funniest.”
—Alice Walker
“An imaginative critique of our society’s hypocrisies and injustices,
and an entertaining, vivid portrait of Karl Marx as a voice of humanitarian
justice — which is perhaps the best way to remember him.”
— Kirkus Reviews
“A cleverly imagined call to reconsider socialist theory… Zinn’s
point is well made; his passion for history melds with his political vigor to
make this a memorable effort and a lucid primer for readers desiring a succinct,
dramatized review of Marxism.”
—Publishers Weekly
“Even in heaven it seems, Karl Marx is a troublemaker. But in the deft
and loving hands of activist/author/historian Howard Zinn, the historical figure...
is also a father, a husband and a futurist possessing a grand sense of humor.”
—ForeWord
“A witty delight that will engage both new and old acquaintances of the
Marxian corpus.... Even conservatives will find Zinn’s [book]... an intelligent
and diverting read. Recommended for academic and public libraries alike.”
— Library Journal
...
Howard Zinn
Click here to view Howard Zinn's full Author PageHoward Zinn is one of the country’s most beloved and respected historians, the author of numerous books and plays, and a passionate activist for radical change. Zinn has placed himself at the center of the most important historical moments of the last thirty years, during which he has been admired as a writer and an important political and moral voice.
At the age of 18, Zinn was a shipyard worker; at 21 an Air Force bombardier. Both experiences helped shape a radical impulse, an opposition to war, and a passion for history. After getting his Ph.D. from Columbia University in history, he taught at Spelman College, where he worked with young Civil Rights activists including Alice Walker and Marian Wright Edelman. Zinn led anti-war protests, went to Vietnam with Daniel Berrigan and testified in his friend, Daniel Ellsberg’s Pentagon Papers trial. Zinn's politically engaged life brought him into many arenas—imprisonment for civil disobedience, fights for open debate in universities, and activist work from the Vietnam era to the present.
The stories of the people and events that inspire his faith in the possibility of historic change are woven through his talks as he discusses the need for a critical understanding of our history and the daily events which shape all of our lives.
Zinn is the author of numerous books and plays including the classic, A People’s History of the United States and the newly-released companion volume Voices of a People's History. Other Zinn titles include Terrorism and War, Declarations of Independence, Artists in Times of War, You Can’t Be Neutral on a Moving Train: A Personal History of Our Times, The Zinn Reader, Emma and Marx in Soho. Zinn is also the subject of the documentary film—"You Can’t Be Neutral on a Moving Train"—that has garnered critical and public acclaim.
“What can I say that will in any way convey the love, respect, and admiration I feel for this unassuming hero who was my teacher and mentor; this radical historian and people-loving ‘troublemaker,’ this man who stood with us and suffered with us? Howard Zinn was the best teacher I ever had, and the funniest.”—Alice Walker