Karl Marx's devastating critique of capitalism, and his proposal of communism as the answer to the failings of the capitalist system, bore their greatest fruits in the twentieth century with the formation of the communist state in the Soviet Union. This great venture has now all but completely failed. Yet the force of the communist belief offered the prospect of "justice on this earth" to countless numbers. And Marx's critique has influenced generations of thinkers who call themselves Marxists.
In Marx in 90 Minutes, Paul Strathern offers a concise, expert account of Marx's life and ideas and explains their influence on man's struggle to understand his existence in the world. The book also includes selections from Marx's work, a brief list of suggested readings for those who wish to delve deeper, and chronologies that place Marx within his own age and in the broader scheme of philosophy.
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"This is a good book towards understanding Marx as a person and his philosophies. It is interesting to realize that at one point a third of the world was following Marx's ideals and the number of sold 'The Communist Manifesto' was second only to ‘The Holy Bible’. "
— Bala (4 out of 5 stars)
“Well-written, clear, and informed, [Strathern’s primers] have a breezy wit about them. I find them hard to stop reading.”
— New York Times“Witty, illuminating, and blessedly concise.”
— Wall Street Journal“I cannot think of a better way to introduce oneself and one’s friends to Western civilization.”
— Boston Globe“A new-millenium version of Cliffs Notes…Breezy, chatty, and to the point. Perfect for those hungry for literature.”
— ForeWord" One gains an outstanding and detailed overview of this derivative monster's work in its historical context. One also glimpses insights into his character. "
— Jonathan, 8/28/2013" Meh. Author is pretty snarky and dismissive. Don't feel like the ideas were really fully explained. The bio of Marx is decent, but overall the bias and lack of explanations of the theory justify giving this a pass. "
— Dan, 8/27/2013" it really took 90 minutes to read "
— Sky, 6/19/2013" short. sweet i.e. informative. worth the time for sure. esp. today as everything in business/political life that folks don't like gets labeled "socialism" ... clearer definitions are needed. start here. "
— Maggie, 11/23/2012" Not a bad book but certainly meant for somebody who knows nothing about Marx. If you don't know anything and want to learn a very basic amount about him this is your book. "
— Northman, 7/4/2012" This ended up being a biography. Not what I was looking for. "
— Craig, 1/29/2012" 'Marx in 90 Minutes' provided a lot of insight into Karl Marx's life and really has helped on the research paper I am writing. The only reason it got a low rating is because I had to read it for school!:) "
— Noelle, 11/6/2011" One gains an outstanding and detailed overview of this derivative monster's work in its historical context. One also glimpses insights into his character. "
— Jonathan, 1/2/2010" it really took 90 minutes to read "
— Sky, 10/28/2007Paul Strathern earned a degree in philosophy at Trinity College, Dublin, and has lectured in philosophy and mathematics. The author of many nonfiction books and of articles for numerous publications, he has also written several novels and has won the Somerset Maugham Prize. He lives and writes in London.
Simon Vance (a.k.a. Robert Whitfield) is an award-winning actor and narrator. He has earned more than fifty Earphones Awards and won the prestigious Audie Award for best narration thirteen times. He was named Booklist’s very first Voice of Choice in 2008 and has been named an AudioFile Golden Voice as well as an AudioFile Best Voice of 2009. He has narrated more than eight hundred audiobooks over almost thirty years, beginning when he was a radio newsreader for the BBC in London. He is also an actor who has appeared on both stage and television.