The Frock-Coated Communist: The Revolutionary Life of Friedrich Engels [Hardcover]

This is a fine, readable biography of Friedrich Engels in a similar vein to Francis Wheens Karl Marx but not such a virtuso performance. It more than competently covers Engels rich and varied life, anchoring it in the context of his times, as he journeys from his birth place in Germany to exile in London with more than a few points in between. The tone of the book is generally sound, and not infrequently quite funny - as is Engels. . . and Marx for that matter. There is an element of finger wagging on Hunts part about some of Engels real or alleged misdemeanours, but I rather think M.A. Krul in his above (or below?) review is being rather too sensitive in regarding this as "hostility" towards Engels on Tristram Hunts part.

The philosophical roots and theory of Marxism are clearly explained for those of us, like myself, who are a little light on the nitty gritty of Marxist theory. Developments in Engels wide intellectual interests are giving room as well as his copious writings on issues as diverse as Communism, Science, Feminism, Family and Warfare. His relationship with Marx recieves ample coverage and it is evident from this, and other books Ive read, that they got on like a house on fire: writing to each another daily and when they were both in London they visited each other daily aswell (and this despite Marxs perpetual cadging!). When Marx died Engels looked after his intellectual, aswell as his biological, offspring.

I was sorry that the book had to end which is always a good sign, and while there are a few quibbling problems with the book (which could have done with being polished up a little) I wouldnt hesitate to reccommend it to anyone whether or not they are ideologically committed, or even sympathetic, to Socialism.

This is a very well written, entertaining and straightforward book about Engels; his domestic life, his relationship with Marx and the philosophical basis of their works.
The author, Hunt, charts the early life of Engels in the Rhineland manufacturing town of Barmen and his privileged beginnings as the son of a wealthy mill owner. Engels rejected his early Romanticism and lost his Christian faith as he took in the conditions around him and studied the revolutionary changes that had taken place in Europe, particularly the French revolution and the progress of the industrial revolution in England. During his time at Berlin University Engels became a committed adherent of the fashionable Hegelian philosophy being taught at the time and this was to profoundly effect the work of Engels and Marx. Hunt makes a good job of explaining the philosophy of Hegel. In a line; Hegel proposed the inevitable development in society of the 'spirit' or self-conscious reason, the only true reality, and that the idea of freedom constituted the final goal of that 'spirit'. Whereas teachers of the time thought that 'final state' had been achieved in Germany, Engels and Marx reasoned that capitalism with its use of employed labour meant that could not be the case. In practical or 'material' terms employed people were not free and further social development must yet take place.
Hunt goes on to describe Engels' move to Manchester as an employee of his father's firm, his observations of the effects of advanced industrialisation and the publication of many articles expressing his political views. It was at this time that Engels wrote his classic, "The Condition of the Working Class in England" when he was just 24 and which was published the following year in 1845 in Leipzig. It was the coincidence of ideas that led to the meeting of Engels and Marx in the summer of 1844 and their lifelong collaboration. Marx and Engels hoped for much in the revolutionary turmoil of 1848 but later settled into the routine of Engels earning money to support the endless research undertaken by Marx in the British Library and the ever increasing demands upon Engels of the Marx family.
Following the death of Marx in 1883 Hunt deals with Engels own work on what has become known as 'dialectical materialism'. This is the weakest section of the book, perhaps because this is a flawed pseudo-science in any case, and some clarity is lost. Finally the author reviews the perennial question as to whether the Soviet Union and the policies of Stalin represent a true interpretation of the philosophy expounded by Marx and translated into practical terms by Engels. An excellent book written generally with great clarity and wit.

Tristram Hunt's biography of the great man nicknamed 'The General', the Communist hero Friedrich Engels, is timely in light of the slow revival of Marxism as a consequence of the failure of neoliberalism and the current financial crisis. That is not to say that this is the first English-language biography; besides the old standard biography by Gustav Mayer (Friedrich Engels) there is the excellent short(er) biography by J.D. Hunley (Friedrich Engels: A Reinterpretation of His Life and Thought), in addition to several others.

Hunt's book is of the more contemporary biographies however the most informative one. His command of sources is excellent, and he uses not just the by now familiar memoirs and the manuscripts from that time, but also makes great use of third party sources that are not directly about Engels but which shed a greater light on certain circumstances he lived in or people he knew. Hunt is also very good on providing a general historical background; in particular his descriptions of the shades of German romanticism and their influence as well as the Manchester environment of Engels as factory manager are very well done. These are not likely to be surpassed in English soon. Overall, Hunt's work is fairly balanced with regard to the different aspects and periods of Engels' life, with the interesting observation that unlike almost all prior biographers, he focuses in particular on Engels' private life and activities as industrialist, rather than on the political activities and theory.

In addition to this, Hunt is very critical of both Marx and Engels, which combined with the above give in a certain way a refreshing look at the man as a historical person with his own flaws and downsides. Indeed it is not easy to make an amiable, open-minded and committed progressive as Engels look bad, but Hunt has done his best. This is also the main downside of the book: perhaps it is because of the author's New Labour background, but although he is fair to Engels with regard to many of the clichéd criticisms (that he had betrayed Marxism by falsely popularizing it, or that he was responsible for Stalin, or that he didn't understand Marx himself), Hunt's recurring bouts of hostility toward his subject are somewhat of a stylistic sore. More annoying is the irrelevant lecturing he undertakes regularly towards Engels, whom he tries very hard to depict as a hypocrite and a failure at Communism for not making his lifestyle and personal predilections up to the standard of what Hunt presumably thinks a Communist should really be like (which seems to be extremely austere, fanatically consistent in every aspect of life, and active in nothing but revolutionary politics - oddly enough a perfect description of Lenin, something that presumably hasn't occurred to Hunt!). This editorial line adds nothing to the content of the book, and subtracts from the enjoyment of the otherwise informative and balanced portrayal of Engels' life. As a minor complaint, one can also add that Hunt occasionally repeats some old myths about Marx and Engels that have long been debunked but are too often still received opinion: for example the idea that Marx and Engels never liked real workers when they met them, or that they were mean to the noble Bakunin. These have been well refuted in the excellent 'intellectual biography' of Marx and Engels' politics by Hal Draper: Karl Marx's Theory of Revolution: State and Bureaucracy Pt. 1 (2 Volumes in 1). Usually Hunt is good at evading these traps though, for example in his correct explanation of how Marx & Engels switched from initially supporting the imperialism of greater powers towards smaller ones (or colonies) as the 'march of history' to opposing them under practically all circumstances.

Recommended to read together with the Draper series and Hunley's biography.