The Engels Memorial Lecture for 2025 will be given by Manfred Sohn from the Marx-Engel Foundation. 

‘Engels and Historical Optimism’, a talk delivered by Dr. Manfred Sohn of the Marx-Engels Foundation, offers a concise overview of the development of Marxist thought since the publication of the Communist Manifesto, along with a contemporary analysis of current conditions in both Britain and Germany.

When the Foundation was established in 1970 they set out a goal to ‘investigate the scientific work of Marx and Engels and its historic impact.’ This year, our lecture is a unique opportunity to hear from a specialist in the field of Marxist studies, and apply them to the conditions of the working class today.

The event is online, attendees can see the joining instructions in the online event page.

The Engels Memorial Lecture is delivered in partnership with the Marx Memorial Library, and will be chaired by Professor Mary Davis, a trustee at the Marx Memorial Library.

Speaker Biography:

Dr. Manfred Sohn was born in1955 and has been a member of the German Communist Movement since 1977. He is a longstanding trade union worker, member of a workers council in an insurance company and now retired.

Manfred has worked as member of the party executive of the German Communist Party (DKP) and was Member of the Parliament of Lower Saxony during his years as member of the Party “The Left” (Die Linke). He is now chairman of the “Marx Engels Stiftung e.V.” in Wuppertal and has published several books and articles, most of them in “unsere zeit”.

Book here