George Derwent Thomson

George Derwent Thomson, also known by his Irish name Seoirse Mac Tomáis, was born in 1903 in Dulwich, London, England, and passed away on February 3, 1987. He was a distinguished British classical scholar, a Marxist philosopher, and a dedicated scholar of the Irish language. Thomson's academic journey began with his study of Classics at King's College, Cambridge, where he achieved First Class Honours in the Classical Tripos. He furthered his studies at Trinity College Dublin, during which time he began visiting the Blasket Islands in the early 1920s. Thomson's early work on *Greek Lyric Metre* was conducted at TCD. He served as a lecturer and later became a Professor of Greek at University College Galway. In 1934, he returned to King's College, Cambridge, to lecture in Greek. By 1936, he had moved to Birmingham University as a professor and joined the Communist Party of Great Britain. Thomson is recognized for his pioneering Marxist interpretations of Greek drama, notably in his influential books *Aeschylus and Athens* (1941) and *Marxism and Poetry* (1945). He posited connections between work songs and poetry, and between pre-industrial songs and ritual. His contemporary, Richard Seaford, described him as 'the greatest Hellenist of his generation'. Thomson also influenced Alfred Sohn-Rethel's theories on the genesis of occidental thought and was acquainted with Ludwig Wittgenstein. His deep connection with the Blasket Islands, beginning in 1923, led to him becoming fluent in the Irish language and studying their culture. He played a role in the publication of Muiris Ó Súilleabháin's memoirs, *Fiche Bliain Ag Fás* (1933). Thomson's political life included his service on the Party's Cultural Committee and his eventual divergence from the British Communist Party over the "dictatorship of the proletariat." He remained committed to working-class education and authored several expositions on Marxism, including *From Marx to Mao Tse-tung* (1971), *Capitalism and After* (1973), and *The Human Essence* (1974). He married Katherine, and they had a daughter, Margaret Alexiou.