Human Sciences All books
Alain Boureau
Satan, the Heretic History of demonology in Medieval Europe, 1260-1350
Alain Boureau is one of the most original French medievalists. In his earlier, best-selling book on the droit du seigneur, he showed that such a custom had never actually existed. The present work is not about Satan and Satanism, but about the birth of demonology, i.e. about the demons that inhabit Satan's Court - a fascinating topic for a medievalist. Before the end of the thirteenth century, theology had shown little interest in demons, according to Boureau. But Saint Thomas Aquinas' Treatise on Evil, written in 1272, changed all this. Boureau tries to find an explanation. He is not concerned with why people believe in demons - he has not written a social history of demonology. Instead, he sets out to understand why theologians became interested in the subject - for this is a history of theological ideas about demons. The author summarises his explanation as follows: I propose that the date of the invention of demonology be moved forward by more than a century, not because a new doctrine was established and enforced then, as was the case in the fifteenth century, but because of the considerable procedural changes that assimilated witchcraft and invocations of the devil with the crime of heresy, which in turn led to new legal developments and more revelations. In addition, the injection of doctrinal content into the ancient theme of the devil's pact explained demoniac activity in the world. The issue that lies at the heart of these discussions about a pact with the devil, evil and evidence is obviously the emergence of our legal system. Alain Boureau is a director of studies at the Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales.
Philippe Moati
The Future of Large-Scale Distribution
Few phenomena have changed our urban centres as much as the birth of large-scale distribution: our towns ans cities have been transformed, as have our methods of purchasing, and even our places of social interaction have moved. This is perhaps only the beginning. In this book, Philippe Moati reviews the development of large-scale distribution during the three decades of prosperity that followed World War II and the economic crisis that succeeded them. He analyses the problems encountered by large-scale distribution today and examines the development strategies that are currently being put into practice and the revolutions which are perhaps to come. Philippe Moati teaches economics at the University of Paris-VII and is a director of research at CREDOC.
Maurice Bloch
The Anthropology and the Cognitive Challenge
An introduction to cognitive anthropology by one of the world’s most distinguished anthropologists
Mario Bettati
The International Struggle Against Terrorism
Terrorism and the anti-terrorist struggle appraised by an eminent European expert
Daniel Sibony
From Identity to Existence The Jewish People’s Contribution
How the uniqueness of the Jewish people can help us all —Jews and non-Jews
Michel Offerlé
A History of France’s MEDEF Employers’ Association
Organisation, power structure, lobbies, secrets: a history of the Movement of French Enterprises (MEDEF)
Gisèle Gelbert
Speaking, Reading, Writing In Other Words
A completely original approach to aphasic language disorders...
Jean-Pierre Changeux
The Life of Forms and the Forms of Life
Under the editorship of Jean-Pierre Changeux, a brilliant group of scientists and academics tackle the question of form
Dominique Wolton
Forms of Indiscipline
A brilliant, authoritative synthesis of Dominique Wolton’s thought and work
Howard Gardner
Truth, Beauty, and Goodness Reframed Educating for the Virtues in the Twenty-First Century
Truth, Beauty, and Goodness Reframed is an approachable primer on the foundations of ethics in the modern age.
Jacques Lesourne, Denis Randet
The Research and Innovation in France FutuRIS 2013
The latest on research and innovation in France, described in the 2013 edition of FutuRIS’s annual opus
Pascal Picq
And at the Beginning there was Man...
In forty years, the genealogical tree of human evolution has grown so extensively that it now spans six million years. But fossils, the tree of evolution and the story they tell openly challenge all prevailing ideas about evolution; and though they have been shaken, these ideas have barely begun to change. In this book, Pascal Picq examines concrete, existing proof of our origins and then goes on to offer a new view of the human position in the evolutionary process. Pascal Picq is a senior lecturer in paleo-anthropology and prehistory at the Collège de France.
Mario Bettati
The Right of Interference Transformation of International Order
Inventor of the "right of interference", Mario Bettati, a professor of International Law, explains in this book the precise political circumstances and the legal context under which the right of humanitarian interference came about. This book is divided into four parts which follow both a chronological and a logical order. Beginning with interference as verbal denunciation, following with interference as medical assistance, he speaks of forced interference (Yugoslavia, Somalia and Rwanda) and finishes by dissuasive interference (courts for crimes against humanity and conflicts observatories). A thorough presentation of an important subject.