Karl Marx
Karl Marx, an activist more than a philosopher, a revolutionary,
journalist, historian, and sociologist, was born in Trier on May 5,
1818. Till the age of 12, he was educated by Heinrich Marx, his
father, who was a lawyer by profession. Marx studied law in Bonn
and Berlin, but was also introduced to the ideas of Hegel.
In 1841, he received a doctorate in philosophy from the University
of Jena his thesis being The Difference Between the
Democritean and Epicurean Philosophy of Nature. In 1843, after
a short period as editor of a liberal newspaper in Cologne, Marx and
his wife moved to Paris, a centre of radical thought. There he
became a revolutionary communist and befriended his life long
colleague Friedrich Engels. When he was expelled from France, he
spent two years in Brussels, where his partnership with Engels
intensified. They co-authored the pamphlet ‘The Communist
Manifesto’ which was published in 1848 and asserted that all
human history had been based on class struggles, but that these
would ultimately disappear with the victory of the proletariat.
In 1849, Marx moved to London, where he was to spend the
remainder of his life. For a number of years, his family lived in
poverty but the wealthier Engels was able to support them to an
increasing extent. Gradually, Marx emerged from his political and
spiritual isolation and produced his most important body of work,
‘Das Kapital’. The first volume of this ‘bible of the working class’
was published in his lifetime, while the remaining volumes were
edited by Engels after his friend’s death.
Completely saddened by the death of his wife and his elder
daughter, Marx died in London. He died on 14 March 1883 and was
buried at Highgate Cemetery in London.
Romila Thapar
Romila Thapar is one of India’s most eminent historians, best
known for her extensive work on ancient Indian history. Thapar was
born in 1931 and is from a Punjabi family, and spent her early years
in various parts of India. She is Emeritus Professor of History at the
Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, and has been General
President of the Indian History Congress. She holds an Honorary
DLitt each from the University of Calcutta, the University of Oxford
and the University of Chicago. She is a Fellow of the British
Academy and an Honorary Fellow of Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford,
and SOAS, London.
Her scholarly approach is marked by a strong emphasis on the use
of historical sources, such as inscriptions, literature, and
archaeological data, to interpret India’s past. She is renowned for
challenging traditional, often religiously-influenced narratives of
Indian history, and instead advocates for a more critical, secular,
and analytical method of studying the past. She says "History is an
understanding of the past. It is not even what was the truth or what
was correct, we don't know the past can be revived. We never know
what the absolute truth was about the past. The maximum we can
do is to use various methods of analysis to try and arrive at the
understanding of the problem i.e. the reconstruction of the past."
In 2008, Thapar was awarded the prestigious Kluge Prize of the US
Library of Congress, which honours lifetime achievement in
studies such as history that are not covered by the Nobel Prize. Her
publications include Ancient Indian Social History, History and
Beyond, Somanatha: The Many Voices of a History, Sakuntala,
Cultural Pasts, The Past as Present, Talking History, Indian Cultures
as Heritage, Gazing Eastwards: Of Buddhist Monks and
Revolutionaries in China, The Historian and Her Craft (four
volumes), Voices of Dissent: An Essay as well as a children's book,
Indian Tales. Thapar has made significant contributions to the
understanding of early Indian society, culture, and politics,
particularly through her work on the Maurya and Gupta empires.
Some of her most influential works include A History of India:
Volume One, Ashoka and the Decline of the Mauryas, and The Past
Before Us: Historical Traditions of Early North India. Thapar has
also been a vocal advocate for academic freedom and secularism
in India, often engaging in public discourse on the politicization of
history. On the question of bias she says "We are all biased, it's the
question of are we aware of our bias and do we explain when we
are writing history that there is a bias that will come."
Despite facing criticism from some ideological groups, Romila
Thapar remains a respected and influential voice in Indian
historiography. Her commitment to rigorous scholarship and
historical truth continues to inspire students, researchers, and
readers around the world.
