Books & Ideas is the English-language mirror website of La Vie des Idées, a free online journal which has gained a large readership and established itself in France as a major place for intellectual debate since 2007.
Since the two World Wars, the victim has been raised to the status of a sacred and predominant figure in historical memory. The victim has become the new figure of the hero, thus setting a new and controversial example.
As multilateral cooperation is increasingly under attack, Katerina Linos challenges certain misperceptions about the role of international institutions, particularly the European Union, and emphasizes their capacity for action in times of multiple crises.
Why do we believe that our societies are freer, more prosperous or more democratic thanks to the institution of private property rather than in spite of it?
By shedding light on alternative ways of life that have hitherto been kept in the shadows, Constance Rimlinger shows that ecofeminist utopias are a reality that seeks emancipation from capitalism and patriarchy.
About: Christine Détrez, Crush. Fragments du nouveau discours amoureux, Flammarion
About : Julie Pagis, Le prophète rouge, La Découverte
About: Julie Madon, Faire durer les objets. Pratiques et ressources dans l’art de déconsommer, Les Presses de Sciences Po
A rumour is circulating in some African countries: the French state is organising penis thefts to offset declining fertility. The rumour, spread by Russian propaganda, has become fake news.
The American sociologist Harrison White made a vital contribution to the development of social network analysis. Besides his work in this field, his theoretical synthesis and his understanding of social formations have influenced a variety of fields such as the sociology of art and economic sociology.
Ukraine’s water networks have been mobilized since the start of the war in 2014. Infrastructure workers are some of the last to leave settlements attacked by the Russian army. Water systems and people are resisting but are reaching the limits of their capacity to adapt to violence and disruptions.
The media industry has undergone dramatic changes in its technologies and business models. To help us understand the effects of these changes on democracy, Books and Ideas takes the discussion away from simplistic dichotomies between the Internet and the so-called “traditional” press.
Over the past few months, Books and Ideas has been running a series of interviews with leading contemporary scholars, who took the time to discuss their particular topics of research with us. For the Christmas season, we have put together a selection of seven discussions with intellectuals across the humanities and sciences: sociology, history, comparative literature, neuro-biology, anthropology and political science.
Books & Ideas is slowing down for the summer. In the meantime, here is a selection of essays, reviews and interviews published over the past year, exploring the relationship between music and politics.
Though poorly known in France, the work of the anthropologist Mary Douglas is nonetheless essential for understanding the elementary forms of social organization and daily life. By shedding light on her academic career and personal life, this portrait rehabilitates the thought of a major intellectual.
Kenzaburō Ōe, winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature, is a controversial figure in Japan. And rightly so, for there are a great many contradictions in both his fictional and theoretical work. He is a fierce opponent of nuclear weapons and nuclear energy, and yet continues to celebrate the heroism of the soldier who finds glory through sacrifice.
By asserting that structuralism is a fruitful approach to kinship relations or the difference between the sexes, Françoise Héritier radically renewed anthropological methodology. Her life’s work has also shown us that scientific commitment goes hand-in-hand with societal involvement.
Dans un Chili en transition, le gouvernement de Gabriel Boric qui affiche son intention de lutter contre les inégalités sociales se heurte à une remontée de l’extrême droite. Simple réaction à une politique de gauche, ou retour du spectre de Pinochet ?
Les espaces marins étudiés par l’anthropologue Fabien Clouette montrent comment l’humain et l’animal cohabitent. Ce dernier est alors tantôt renvoyé à sa nature sauvage, tantôt à des caractéristiques anthropomorphisées.
La mésoéconomie s’intéresse à l’articulation de choix individuels en projets collectifs, processus central pour penser le changement et accompagner les transitions sociétales.
À propos de : Par inadvertance. La « cuillère humaine » de Fernand Deligny, L’Arachnéen
À propos de : Patrick Geary, Comment la génétique réécrit l’histoire du Moyen Âge, CNRS éditions
À propos de : Annette Lareau, Enfances inégales. Classe, race et vie de famille, ENS Éditions
