16. Karl Marx Disdained Last Words
German philosopher Karl Marx (1818 – 1883) is well known for writing The Communist Manifesto and Das Kapital, which formed the bases of Marxism, and revolutionized the world for better and for worse. Born in Prussia, he experimented with sociopolitical theories in university, and by the 1840s had become a radical journalist. His writings were viewed as dangerous by the authorities, and in the span of a few years he was expelled from Germany, France, Belgium, then Germany again, before finding refuge in London.
One thing Marx was not was a sentimentalist. He was not a fan of gestures that he judged to be romantic bourgeoisie affectations, and he carried that with him to his dying breath. Literally. On his deathbed in 1883, as he lay expiring from pleurisy, he was solicited for final words. His reply, before breathing his last, was to wheeze out: “Go on! Get Out! Last words are for fools who haven’t said enough!”
