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Edmund Wilson's TO THE FINLAND STATION: A Study in the Writing and Acting of History Mass Market Paperback – January 1, 1940
- Print length502 pages
- LanguageEnglish
- PublisherAnchor
- Publication dateJanuary 1, 1940
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Product details
- ASIN : B000MUDKDM
- Publisher : Anchor; Writing in Book edition (January 1, 1940)
- Language : English
- Mass Market Paperback : 502 pages
- Item Weight : 10.4 ounces
- Best Sellers Rank: #4,050,540 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #67,016 in European History (Books)
- #106,386 in World History (Books)
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![Edmund Wilson](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/01Kv-W2ysOL._SY600_.png)
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The book can be read as another kind of history as well, not only regarding the early Communist theorists as such but also about the writers who were their cheerleaders during the 1920's and 30's. Wilson and other true believers were so wrapped up with the utopian goal that they were slow to come to terms with the dark side of the actuality as it was practiced in Stalinist Russia. So, read Wilson not only as an historic journey of ideas, but also as a record of the sometimes foolish love story between liberal intellectuals and revolutionaries.
For those interested in writing, Wilson's style is unique. There are dense, half-page, complex sentences but nevertheless he manages to convey subtle meanings with elegance.
4-1-2010. To the Finland Station by Edmund Wilson (1895-1972) [NY Review of Books, NYC, 2003, originally published 1940] is sub-titled "A study in the writing and acting of history". This great book is much more than that. It is more than the erudite succinct summary of European and later American history, more than an accurately cross-referenced interleaved review of the historiography of Western Civilization from Feudalism to the Fuhrer, IL Duce, and the Boss. The thread that runs through the book, in a sense, is the involvement of the `force or will' of Hegel and the `dialectic' of Hegel and Marx. The book definitively demonstrates several threads of the slow inexorable demise and dismemberment of Feudalism leading unexpectedly to the Leninist state. Central are the many philosophers, economists, and sociologists reviewed during the course of the centuries dealt with, certainly the flow of Western Civilization. "To the Finland Station" is an exciting narrative and discussion with surprise twists and turns that bring together the complex issues, priniciples, evolution, devolution, and revolutions that occurred over the centuries. It is one of Western civilization's great works in addition to our Constitution and our Declaration of Independence.
---Paul Shapshak, PhD
The best description I can give of the nature of the work is that it is very much a literary overview of socialism rather than a political-historical one. Wilson concentrates in all mini-biographies of early socialists as well as the pieces on Lenin, Marx & Engels on the particulars of their life. Larded with many details and amusing anecdotes revealing the personality of the main socialist leaders, this book is very much at its best when describing the human interactions between various socialists and the world around them, and in portraying how their ideas were formed by their life experiences.
The big downside to this book is, however, Wilson's complete lack of understanding of any theory whatever. He clearly has neither knowledge of nor interest in any of the real tenets of socialism, Marxist, Lassallean or otherwise, and has not taken any trouble to look it up either. The result is that the passages which mean to give quick overviews of the Marxist or Leninist positions on certain issues are almost invariably simplistic, confused and wrong. The worst example of this (as a prior reviewer also mentioned) is the chapter on the dialectic, which immediately reveals to the reader that Wilson didn't have the slightest idea what dialectics is, and the childish simplicity of his view on it makes one think he probably got his information from a dictionary or something equally useless.
For these reasons, it is hard to say whether the overall result is positive or negative. If you are looking for a good insight on the development of the theoretical aspects of socialism or the political issues of those times, absolutely do not rely on this book. If you are however interested in the personalities and life histories of the main socialists until WWII, then Wilson's book will be a high-quality, pleasant and sympathetic guide. If there were a 3.5 star rating, I would give it that; but I will err on the side of a positive review here since I suppose most people reading popular literature about socialism are not going to be interested in the the technical details of the theory, unless they are socialists themselves - in which case they should read Marx & Engels directly anyway.
One final word of warning: the introduction by Louis Menand is terrible, and is best skipped altogether.
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Ademas muy bien escrito !
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The book is divided into three parts. The first part deals with the early socialists continuing in the renaissance tradition and deriving their inspiration from the French revolution. The second section and the crux of the book is the life and times of Karl Marx. The final section deals with the Russian revolution spearheaded by Lenin.
The section on the early revolutionaries is good and is an eye opener about the early socialists and shows how the idea existed long before Marx came along and made it his own so to say. The chapters on the great French historian Michellette and the irrepressible agitator Babeuf are especially good and exemplify French revolutionary thought. Their selflessness and passion for their ideas even as they fight the repressive regimes they find themselves under is truly inspirational.
The hero of the book really is Karl Marx and the middle portion and the biggest of the book is entirely dedicated to him. The picture that you get is neither the divinity ordained by his followers nor the ogre despised by his detractors. Instead you get a man of flesh and blood born at the end of a depleted rabbinical line who loses his religion to embark on a career of radical writing enduring poverty and displacement, all the time fighting for the cause of social justice, democracy and human freedom. A man who excoriated those who denied "human rights to human beings" as he endeavored to break the manacles binding humanity in order to release the genius of human creative energy. Wilson explains what made Marx a truly great writer as he combined his immense knowledge of social processes and history with an eye to pick the regnant issues of the day and to render them in witty, muscular and evocative prose.
This does not mean Wilson blindly worships Marx, he criticizes him for his gross simplifications and erroneous predictions regarding the classes and about his overbearing and fractious tendencies which duly got passed onto his followers. However he recognizes the genius in the man who spotted the trend of history like no other and pursued it with unprecedented drive. As Engels seems to ventriloquize beautifully Wilson's thoughts - "Marx was a genius, the rest of us were talented at best". Engels himself gets a sympathetic summary as the man Friday who supported Marx both financially as well as intellectually. In fact the section describing one of their rare and serious fights is touching as it shows Marx the sociopath genius who is suddenly terrified by the knowledge that he can lose his friend.
The last section of the book tells the story of the Russian revolution with Lenin at the center. The opening chapter beautifully describes Lenin's childhood in provincial Russia and provides a background into why he became what he became. Lenin is depicted as the iron willed revolutionary who brooks neither the theoretical hurdles of dogma nor the practical hurdles of personal calamity as he focuses on bringing to fruition the revolution Marx predicted. One feels this to be a far too generous assessment as his dictatorial tendencies and plain cruelty against those who disagreed with him are air brushed by Wilson who directs these aberrations to Trotsky's machinations. Nevertheless Lenin is brought to life in anecdote as well as deed as seen in the final paragraph of the book which has an ecstatic Lenin and his wife who have just arrived in a room in a palace even as the revolution has swept away the Tsar who formerly owned it. Finding no words to express themselves in they simply look at each other to realize that "everything was understood without words".
Edmund Wilson is a great writer and infuses this historical account with the urgency and human drama of a novel. The great historical actors leap out of the pages and fill our mind with their presence and their idea grips you like a vice. This is a rare book which needs to be read and re-read for generations to come.