Books & ideas

On the lookout for catastrophe

Dimitri Robin — 2026-01-08T08:46:00Z

Primitive societies, Lévy-Bruhl explains, are on the lookout for signs of catastrophes, though they are unpredictable. Since we, too, are in a constant state of alert, this insight should inspire us.

In the time of disaster

Sylvain Dufraisse — 2025-09-23T06:30:00Z

Laurent Coumel has written a wonderful essay on the social history of the late Soviet Union. He shows how Soviet society was subject to the same dynamics as western European society: the rise of individualism, leisure, and the desire for comfort.

A Catastrophic History of the World

Cyril Legrand — 2024-04-09T05:00:00Z

Jean Vioulac is one of a number of authors who have written a historical-philosophical saga of humanity as a way of reflecting on the coming catastrophe. It is not certain, however, that his saga will lead to anything other than a new catastrophic discourse with no prospect of a solution.

Prosopopoeia of the Super-polluters

Giulia Mensitieri — 2023-06-15T07:12:00Z

Ever more numerous, ever more polluting, superyachts are a ‘Capitalo-scene': in a space that is at once vast yet highly circumscribed, they embody the hidden face of contemporary capitalism, in all its planet-killing splendor.

Autonomy: A Return to Earth

Luca Paltrinieri — 2023-05-09T08:39:35Z

Accumulation in a world of finite resources: Such is the vortex into which the moderns are thrown. Current ecological concerns, however, should also be viewed as a metamorphosis of the social question.

The Apocalypse Is Now

Stéphanie Posthumus — 2020-11-23T08:00:00Z

Literature and cinema have long played with the idea of the end of the world. As Jean-Paul Engélibert explains, these narratives, which imagine the forms of life or society that will emerge from the apocalypse, must be seen primarily as a critique of the present.

Faces of the Pandemic

Editorial Team — 2020-04-17T06:00:00Z

We seem to struggle to take the measure of the Covid-19 pandemic. Its onset was sudden, its effects are uncertain and its long term consequences are still unpredictable. Books & Ideas gathers a selection of texts exploring the various facets of epidemics.

Covid-19: Chronicle of an Outbreak Foretold

Philippe Sansonetti — 2020-03-30T07:00:00Z

What are Covid-19 and the coronavirus? What are the parameters, causes and effects of this disease? What are the short and long-term prospects? Infectious disease specialist Philippe Sansonetti explains why the fate of the epidemic is in our hands.

Writing the History of “Natural” Disasters

Lukas Schemper — 2019-12-30T08:00:00Z

Though they are called “natural”, disasters such as earthquakes have a social, political and economic dimension; it is therefore possible to write their history. The 111^th anniversary of the Messina earthquake is an opportunity to reflect on the multi-dimensionality of the event and to outline avenues for historical research on natural disasters.

Disaster Professionals

Romain Lecler — 2019-09-12T07:00:00Z

It has taken only a few decades for so-called “natural” disasters to become a major concern for international professionals. A long, on-the-ground study reveals the concrete ways in which environmental disasters are managed, from UN officials to affected countries.