Author: Cornelius van Der Haven File Type: pdf In their accessible analysis, these preeminent translations of ten canonical Dutch poems discuss each poems historical context, revealing its political or ideological framing, religious elements, or the self-representational interests of the poet. The book focuses on how the use of the speakers I creates distance or proximity to the social context of the time. Close, detailed analysis of rhetorical techniques, such as the use of the apostrophe, illuminates the ways in which poetry reveals tensions in society. **
Author: Ian Shapiro
File Type: pdf
When do governments merit our allegiance, and when should they be denied it? In this investigation of this most enduring of political dilemmas, Ian Shapiro discusses the different answers that have been proposed by the major political theorists in the utilitarian, Marxist, and social contract traditions over the past four centuries. Showing how these political philosophies have all been decisively shaped by the core values of the Enlightenment, he demonstrates that each one contains useful insights that survive their failures as comprehensive doctrines and that should inform our thinking about political legitimacy. Shapiro then turns to the democratic tradition. Exploring the main arguments for and against democracy from Platos time until our own, he argues that democracy offers the best resources for realizing the Enlightenments promise and managing its internal tensions. As such, democracy supplies the most attractive available basis for political legitimacy.ReviewIn The Moral Foundations of Politics, Shapiro reaffirms his place as one of the very clearest and most resolute, and most solidly grounded, practitioners of political theory in this generation. Adolph Reed, New School for Social Research A deeply valuable book at many levels. Shapiro shows an almost unique ability to combine the broad sweep with the telling detail or precise insight - just what a book of this sort needs. Jennifer L. Hochschild, Harvard University From the PublisherAlso available by Ian Shapiro Democratic Justice Pathologies of Rational Choice Theory
Author: Jacob Neusner
File Type: epub
Wherever Jews have settled and whatever languages they spoke, they created a community with a single set of common values. One law, one theology defined the community throughout their many migrations. A single book explains how this came aboutthe Talmud. By re-framing the Torah through sustained argument and analysis, the Talmud encourages the reader to actively apply reason and practice logic. Renowned scholar Jacob Neusner introduces readers to the Talmud, defining it, explaining its historical context, and illustrating why it remains relevant today. Neusners * The Talmud What It Is and What It Says * invites readers to engage with the text, and emphasizes that the Talmud will continue to be an important cultural guidebook for Jewish life through the next millennium.**From Publishers WeeklyNeusner, author or editor of nearly a thousand books (yes, you read that correctly), is a renowned Jewish scholar who has devoted his impressive career to the study of Judaism. His documentary studies of classical texts include valuable translations of both the Jerusalem and the Babylonian Talmuds. Here, he sets out to provide a primer to the Talmud in seven chapters that discuss fundamental questions of history, literature and religion. Although a primer is commonly perceived as a simple, introductory book on a subject, what Neusner has produced here is a complex analysis that requires painstaking attention. As he explains, the Talmud consists of the Mishnah, a systematic codification of the oral law, and the Gemara, rabbinic commentaries, including disputes about the law. Extensive quotations, elaborated by the author, illustrate the Talmudic discussions. A final chapter, How Does the Talmud Present God? confronts the vexed question of theodicywhy does a just God allow evil? Neusner cites a Talmudic answer that envisions resurrection of the dead at the end of days and eternal life. Assiduous readers of all faiths will benefit from this introduction to the Talmud as a cookbook of culture composed of recipes for sustaining civilization. (Aug. 28) Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. Review Although a primer is commonly perceived as a simple, introductory book on a subject, what Neusner has produced here is a complex analysis that requires painstaking attention...Assiduous readers of all faiths will benefit from this introduction to the Talmud as a cookbook of culture composed of recipes for sustaining civilization. (Publishers Weekly)
Author: David Crystal
File Type: pdf
With a language disappearing every two weeks and neologisms springing up almost daily, an understanding of the origins and currency of language has never seemed more relevant. In this charming volume, a narrative history written explicitly for a young audience, expert linguist David Crystal proves why the story of language deserves retelling. From the first words of an infant to the peculiar modern dialect of text messaging, A Little Book of Language ranges widely, revealing languages myriad intricacies and quirks. In animated fashion, Crystal sheds light on the development of unique linguistic styles, the origins of obscure accents, and the search for the first written word. He discusses the plight of endangered languages, as well as successful cases of linguistic revitalization. Much more than a history, Crystals work looks forward to the future of language, exploring the effect of technology on our day-to-day reading, writing, and speech. Through enlightening tables, diagrams, and quizzes, as well as Crystals avuncular and entertaining style, A Little Book of Language will reveal the story of language to be a captivating tale for all ages.
Author: David Nicol
File Type: pdf
Explores whether consciousness-based practices like meditation and prayer can contribute to social change.Can awakened consciousness contribute to social change and, if so, how? David Nicol introduces the concept of subtle activism to describe the use of consciousness-based practices like meditation and prayer to support collective transformation, such as global meditation directed toward peaceful resolution of a conflict. Subtle activism represents a bridge between the consciousness movement and the movements for peace, environmental sustainability, and social justice. It is not a substitute for physical action but rather a potentially crucial component of a more integrated approach to social change. Although ancient lore is rife with tales of shamans and adepts intervening on spiritual levels for the benefit of humanity, this book is the first comprehensive treatment of this topic. Nicol grounds his consideration in the available scientific research and in dialogue with a broad range of thinkers in the fields of consciousness studies, transpersonal theory, and New Paradigm thought.Many good books are published each year but important books are harder to come by. One of the marks of a truly important book is that it challenges our deeply held convictions about what is real and what is possible in the world. It opens new intellectual horizons by showing us previously hidden connections. David Nicols Subtle Activism is an important book, a very important book. from the Foreword by Christopher M. Bache
Author: Richard Powers
File Type: epub
Operation Wandering Soul is a story about imagination and memory. At once a social indictment and an intensely emotional account of intimate need, it asks how we might keep alive a little longer the vanishing narratives of childhood.
Author: Arthur Melnick
File Type: pdf
To be happy is to be satisfied with ones life according to a standard that one can claim as a reasonable being. Being moral and being held morally responsible are shown to be essential to being happy in this sense.
Author: Betty A. Schellenberg
File Type: pdf
Literary Coteries and the Making of Modern Print Culture offers the first study of manuscript-producing coteries as an integral element of eighteenth-century Britains literary culture. As a corrective to literary histories assuming that the dominance of print meant the demise of a vital scribal culture, the book profiles four interrelated and influential coteries, focusing on each groups deployment of traditional scribal practices, on key individuals who served as bridges between networks, and on the aesthetic and cultural work performed by the group. The book also explores points of intersection between coteries and the print trade, whether in the form of individuals who straddled the two cultures publishing events in which the two media regimes collaborated or came into conflict literary conventions adapted from manuscript practice to serve the ends of print or simply poetry hand-copied from magazines. Together, these instances demonstrate how scribal modes shaped modern literary production. This title is also available as Open Access.