Search results for ""author jean""

The street riots that swept through France in the fall of 2005 focused worldwide attention on the plight of the country’s immigrants and their living conditions in the suburbs many of them call home. These high-density neighborhoods were constructed according to the principles of functionalist urbanism that were ascendant in the 1960s. Then, as now, the disparities between the planners’ utopian visions and the experiences of the inhabitants raised concerns, generating a number of sociological studies of the “new towns.” One of the most sophisticated and significant of these critiques is Jean-François Augoyard’s Step by Step, which was originally published in France in 1979 and famously influenced Michel de Certeau’s analysis of everyday life. Its examination of social life in the rationally planned suburb remains as cogent and timely as ever. Step by Step is based on in-depth interviews Augoyard conducted with the inhabitants of l’Arlequin, a new town on the outskirts of Grenoble. A resident of l’Arlequin himself, Augoyard sought to understand how his neighbors used its passages, streets, and parks. He begins with a detailed investigation of the inhabitants’ daily walks before going on to consider how the built environment is personalized through place-names and shared memories, the ways in which sensory impressions define the atmosphere of a place and how, through individual and collective imagination, residents transformed l’Arlequin from a concept into a lived space. In closely scrutinizing everyday life in l’Arlequin, Step by Step draws a fascinating portrait of the richness of social life in the new towns and sheds light on the current living conditions of France’s immigrants. Jean-François Augoyard is professor of philosophy and musicology and doctor of urban studies at the Center for Research on Sonorous Space and the Urban Environment at the School of Architecture of Grenoble. David Ames Curtis is a translator, editor, writer, and citizen activist. Françoise Choay is professor emeritus in the history and theory of architecture at the University of Paris VIII and Cornell University and the author of numerous books and essays.

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The global financial crisis has renewed concern about whether capitalist markets are the best way of organizing economic life. Would it not be better if we were to treat the economy as something made and remade by people themselves, rather than as an impersonal machine? The object of a human economy is the reproduction of human beings and of whatever sustains life in general. Such an economy would express human variety in its local particulars as well as the interests of all humanity. The editors have assembled here a citizen’s guide to building a human economy. This project is not a dream but is part of a collective effort that began a decade ago at the first World Social Forum in Porto Alegre, Brazil, and has gathered pace ever since. Over thirty original essays address topics that range from globalization, community participation and microcredit to corporate social responsibility and alternative energy. Each offers a critical guide to further reading. The Human Economy builds on decades of engaged research to bring a new economic vision to general readers and a comprehensive guide for all students of the contemporary world.

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How philosophical differences between Eurozone nations led to the Euro crisis—and where to go from hereWhy is Europe’s great monetary endeavor, the Euro, in trouble? A string of economic difficulties in Eurozone nations has left observers wondering whether the currency union can survive. In this book, Markus Brunnermeier, Harold James, and Jean-Pierre Landau argue that the core problem with the Euro lies in the philosophical differences between the founding countries of the Eurozone, particularly Germany and France. But the authors also show how these seemingly incompatible differences can be reconciled to ensure Europe’s survival. Weaving together economic analysis and historical reflection, The Euro and the Battle of Ideas provides a forensic investigation and a road map for Europe’s future.

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The synchronized flashing of fireflies at night. The spiraling patterns of an aggregating slime mold. The anastomosing network of army-ant trails. The coordinated movements of a school of fish. Researchers are finding in such patterns--phenomena that have fascinated naturalists for centuries--a fertile new approach to understanding biological systems: the study of self-organization. This book, a primer on self-organization in biological systems for students and other enthusiasts, introduces readers to the basic concepts and tools for studying self-organization and then examines numerous examples of self-organization in the natural world. Self-organization refers to diverse pattern formation processes in the physical and biological world, from sand grains assembling into rippled dunes to cells combining to create highly structured tissues to individual insects working to create sophisticated societies. What these diverse systems hold in common is the proximate means by which they acquire order and structure. In self-organizing systems, pattern at the global level emerges solely from interactions among lower-level components. Remarkably, even very complex structures result from the iteration of surprisingly simple behaviors performed by individuals relying on only local information. This striking conclusion suggests important lines of inquiry: To what degree is environmental rather than individual complexity responsible for group complexity? To what extent have widely differing organisms adopted similar, convergent strategies of pattern formation? How, specifically, has natural selection determined the rules governing interactions within biological systems? Broad in scope, thorough yet accessible, this book is a self-contained introduction to self-organization and complexity in biology--a field of study at the forefront of life sciences research.

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In Europe today, staunchly nationalist parties such as France’s National Front and the Austrian Freedom Party are identified as far-right movements, though supporters seldom embrace that label. More often, “far right” is pejorative, used by liberals to tar these groups with the taint of Fascism, Nazism, and other discredited ideologies. Jean-Yves Camus and Nicolas Lebourg’s critical look at the far right throughout Europe—from the United Kingdom to France, Germany, Poland, Italy, and elsewhere—reveals a prehistory and politics more complex than the stereotypes suggest and warns of the challenges these movements pose to the EU’s liberal-democratic order.The European far right represents a confluence of many ideologies: nationalism, socialism, anti-Semitism, authoritarianism. In the first half of the twentieth century, the radical far right achieved its apotheosis in the regimes of Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany. But these movements have evolved significantly since 1945, as Far-Right Politics in Europe makes clear. The 1980s marked a turning point in political fortunes, as national-populist parties began winning seats in European parliaments. Since the terrorist attacks of 9/11 in the United States, a new wave has unfurled, one that is explicitly anti-immigrant and Islamophobic in outlook.Though Europe’s far-right parties differ in important respects, they are motivated by a common sense of mission: to save their homelands from what they view as the corrosive effects of multiculturalism and globalization by creating a closed-off, ethnically homogeneous society. Members of these movements are increasingly determined to gain power through legitimate electoral means. In democracies across Europe, they are succeeding.

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Many great thinkers have wrestled with the topic of evil. St. Thomas Aquinas's disputed question On Evil merges as the longest and most comprehensive study on the subject of evil available. This long-awaited translation is based on the critical edition of the Latin text published by the Leonine Commission in 1982. The disputed question De malo (On Evil) was first presented as a series of oral debates at the University of Paris (1263-1272) and subsequently recorded in the form in which it now appears. The length of the work and the thoroughness of the treatment is eloquent testimony of the importance St. Thomas attached to this topic.

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In the economics of everyday life, even ethnicity has become a potential resource to be tapped, generating new sources of profit and power, new ways of being social, and new visions of the future. Throughout Africa, ethnic corporations have been repurposed to do business in mining or tourism; in the USA, Native American groupings have expanded their involvement in gaming, design, and other industries; and all over the world, the commodification of culture has sown itself deeply into the domains of everything from medicine to fashion. Ethnic groups increasingly seek empowerment by formally incorporating themselves, by deploying their sovereign status for material ends, and by copyrighting their cultural practices as intellectual property. Building on ethnographic case studies from Kenya, Nepal, Peru, Russia, and many other countries, this collection poses the question: Does the turn to the incorporation and commodification of ethnicity really herald a new historical moment in the global politics of identity?

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Inspired new translations of the work of one of the world's greatest fabulistsTold in an elegant style, Jean de la Fontaine's (1621-95) charming animal fables depict sly foxes and scheming cats, vain birds and greedy wolves, all of which subtly express his penetrating insights into French society and the beasts found in all of us. Norman R. Shapiro has been translating La Fontaine's fables for over twenty years, capturing the original work's lively mix of plain and archaic language. This newly complete translation is destined to set the English standard for this work. Awarded the Lewis Galantière Prize by the American Translators Association, 2008.

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Two leading neuroscientists introduce the concepts of "cerebral plasticity" and the "regenerating brain," describing what we know now about the processes through which the brain constantly reconstructs itself and the potential benefits this knowledge could have in addressing concerns for neurological, cognitive, and emotional health. The authors begin with a survey of the fundamental scientific developments that led to our current understanding of the regenerative mind, elucidating the breakthrough neurobiological studies that paved the way for our present understanding of the brain's plasticity and regenerative capabilities. They then discuss the application of these findings to such issues as depression, dyslexia, schizophrenia, and cognitive therapy, incorporating the latest technologies in neuroimaging, optogenetics, and nanotechnology. Their work shows the brain is anything but a static organ, ceasing to grow as human beings become adults. Rather, the brain is dynamic, evolving organically in relation to physical, cultural, historical, and affective stimuli, a plasticity that provides early hope to survivors of trauma and degenerative disorders.

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Paris Buenos Aires. Two cities, two stories. Seen through the eyes of photographer Eric Mistler. On every double page, the book shows two photographs, one of each city and their people, telling stories of similarities or contrasts, and stimulating the reader's imagination and curiosity. Paris Buenos Aires is a personal story of a double identity between two cultures, as Eric Mistler was born in Buenos Aires and soon after relocated to Paris, only to return to his native city in 2018, more than fifty years after leaving it. Paris Buenos Aires is a love letter to the two cities that made him. Text in English, French and Spanish.

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Epilogue by Christine Buci-GlucksmannKarel Appel. A Gesture of Colour is the first of a series of six volumes, bringing together the most important writings of Jean-François Lyotard (1924 - 1998) on contemporary art and artists. The book he devoted to the art of Karel Appel (1921 - 2006) is doubtlessly one of the most complete and inspired texts of all the writings included in the series. Neither the original French manuscript nor the English translation have ever been published, and their presentation face to face should constitute a considerable plus.In this book, Lyotard presents Karel Appel's "matterism" as an offer of presence, presence deferred - it is the visual where every predicate is suspended, the visual touched, "gesture" of colour more than property of colour, appearance at the edge of the abyss. Christine Buci-Glucksmann's epilogue indicates the position of Karel Appel. A Gesture of Colour within the whole of Lyotard's writings on art, considering equally the philosopher's subsequent work.Winner of the Plantin Moretus Prize 2010 for the best designed book in the category textbooks and academic publications Photo Credits: Van Looveren & Princen

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This substantially revised new edition of Rousseau: The Basic Political Writings features a brilliant new Introduction by David Wootton, a revision by Donald A. Cress of his own 1987 translation of Rousseau's most important political writings, and the addition of Cress' new translation of Rousseau's State of ?War. New footnotes, headnotes, and a chronology by David Wootton provide expert guidance to first-time readers of the texts.

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The food of Thailand is renowned the world over for its distinctive blend of hot, sour, sweet, and salty flavors, and Thailand: The Cookbook is the definitive guide to this much-loved cuisine.Containing 500 recipes ranging from simple snacks and drinks to curries, stir-fries, and elaborate desserts, Thailand: The Cookbook shares the familiar—Massaman Curry, Phat Thai—as well as the less familiar—Pandan Pudding, Dragon Fruit Frappe—dishes of this vibrant and diverse country.A series of introductory essays explore the fascinating history of Thai cuisine, as well as the remarkable regional differences. Helpful guidance on unusual ingredients and essential cooking techniques, meanwhile, guarantee that anyone can cook their favorite Thai dishes the authentic way.Three years in the making, and involving exhaustive research and travel, Thailand: the cookbook is the work of author and celebrated photographer Jean-Pierre Gabriel. His breathtaking images of the Thai landscape, people, and food offer an unprecedented insight into Thai food culture.Comprehensive and beautiful, Thailand: The Cookbook is for cooks of all abilities and anyone who wants to experience the real Thailand.

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Authored by a rising star in the field and one of its pioneers, this textbook is ideal for interdisciplinary courses - bridging chemistry, materials science, physics and biology. Adopting a completely new and visionary approach, this is a unique learning tool, focusing on just six concepts crucial for understanding nanochemistry: surface, size, shape, self-assembly, defects and the interface of biology and nanochemistry. These concepts are elucidated through the analysis of six materials representing the real life application of the nanochemistry concepts. The teaching questions included provide real "food for thought", thus training students to think as a researcher does and so develop problemsolving skills.

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Each piece is fully annotated. Backgrounds includes a sketch of Rousseau’s life, selections from his Confessions, and comments on Rousseau’s work and character from such illustrious contemporaries and early critics as Voltaire, Hume, Boswell and Johnson, Paine, Kant, and Proudhon. Commentaries includes assessments of Rousseau’s political thought by a wide variety of scholars and critics including Judith Shklar, Robert Nisbet, Simone Weil, and Benjamin R. Barber.

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Originally published in French in 1805, The Last Man is a powerful story of the demise of the human race. Drawing on the traditional account in Revelations, The Last Man was the first end-of-the-world story in future fiction. As the first secular apocalypse story, The Last Man served as the departure point for many other speculative fictions of this type throughout the 19th century, including works by Shelley, Flammarion and Wells. Grainville's masterful imagination is evident in the vast scale of the action as Omegarus, the Last Adam, and Syderia, the Last Eve, are led toward the moment when "the light of the sun and the stars is extinguished." This is essential reading for anyone interested in the roots of apocalyptic science fiction.

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Founded in 1968, the Metropolitan Museum Journal is a blind, peer-reviewed scholarly journal published annually that features original research on the history, interpretation, conservation, and scientific examination of works of art in the Museum’s collection. Its scope encompasses the diversity of artistic practice from antiquity to the present day. The Journal encourages contributions offering critical and innovative approaches that will further our understanding of works of art.

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Designed for the practitioner, this handbook provides an easy-to-read overview of how to evaluate and treat patients with a history of fainting. The 2nd Edition has been fully revised to contain all the latest information concerning diagnosis and treatment. It is based on the 2004 update of the ESC Guidelines on the Management of Syncope and offers up-to-date direction based on comprehensive analysis. All chapters share a consistent structure and are concise - only essential references are included. However, each chapter comes with suggestions for further reading and a comprehensive literature source is provided separately at the end of the book and divided into major interest areas. The ESC Education Series This book is part of the ESC Education Series. The series is designed to provide medical professionals with the latest information about the understanding, diagnosis and treatment of cardiovascular diseases. Where available, management recommendations are based on the established European Guidelines, which encompass the best techniques to use with each cardiac disease. Throughout the series, the leading international opinion leaders have been chosen to edit and contribute to the books. The information is presented in a succinct and accessible format with a clinical focus.

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Presents current trends and potential future developments by leading researchers in immersive media production, delivery, rendering and interaction The underlying audio and video processing technology that is discussed in the book relates to areas such as 3D object extraction, audio event detection; 3D sound rendering and face detection, gesture analysis and tracking using video and depth information. The book will give an insight into current trends and developments of future media production, delivery and reproduction. Consideration of the complete production, processing and distribution chain will allow for a full picture to be presented to the reader. Production developments covered will include integrated workflows developed by researchers and industry practitioners as well as capture of ultra-high resolution panoramic video and 3D object based audio across a range of programme genres. Distribution developments will include script based format agnostic network delivery to a full range of devices from large scale public panoramic displays with wavefield synthesis and ambisonic audio reproduction to ’small screen’ mobile devices. Key developments at the consumer end of the chain apply to both passive and interactive viewing modes and will incorporate user interfaces such as gesture recognition and ‘second screen’ devices to allow manipulation of the audio visual content. Presents current trends and potential future developments by leading researchers in immersive media production, delivery, rendering and interaction. Considers the complete production, processing and distribution chain illustrating the dependencies and the relationship between different components. Proposes that a format-agnostic approach to the production and delivery of broadcast programmes will overcome the problems faced with the steadily growing number of production and delivery formats. Explains the fundamentals of media production in addition to the complete production chain, beyond current-state-of-the-art through to presenting novel approaches and technologies for future media production. Focuses on the technologies that will allow for the realization of an E2E media platform that supports flexible content representations and interactivity for users. An essential read for Researchers and developers of audio-visual technology in industry and academia, such as engineers in broadcast technology companies and students working toward a career in the rapidly changing area of broadcast both from a production and an engineering perspective.

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This is the moving story of the development of modern dance as told by the visionary artists who created it. The powerful words of Isadora Duncan, Martha Graham, Doris Humphrey, Ruth St. Denis, and twenty nine other modern dance artists come to life in these original essays.

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Brings together functional and structural informationrelevant to the design of drugs targeting zinc enzymes The second most abundant transition element in living organisms, zinc spans all areas of metabolism, with zinc-containing proteins offering both established and potential drug targets. Drug Design of Zinc-Enzyme Inhibitors brings together functional and structural information relevant to these zinc-containing targets. With up-to-date overviews of the latest developments field, this unique and comprehensive text enables readers to understand zinc enzymes and evaluate them in a drug design context. With contributions from the leaders of today's research, Drug Design of Zinc-Enzyme Inhibitors covers such key topics as: Major drug targets like carbonic anhydrases, matrix metalloproteinases, bacterial proteases, angiotensin-converting enzyme, histone deacetylase, and APOBEC3G Roles of recently discovered zinc-containing isozymes in cancer, obesity, epilepsy, pain management, malaria, and other conditions Cross reactivity of zinc-enzyme inhibitors and activators The extensive use of X-ray crystallography and QSAR studies for understanding zinc-containing proteins Clinical applications An essential resource for the discovery and development of new drug molecules, Drug Design of Zinc-Enzyme Inhibitors gives researchers, professionals, students, and academics the foundation to understand and work with zinc enzyme inhibitors and activators.

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This open access book provides selected teaching approaches, supporting methods, concrete examples of curricula as well as extracurricular teaching formats, which are predominantly tailored to both African and German requirements. These approaches were developed by the YEEES Training and Research Centers, an international interdisciplinary network of university teachers and researchers from Germany and southern Africa, and combine the fields of management, entrepreneurship, information and communication technologies (ICT), and sustainability. The book shows how current scientific results can be integrated into teaching, how students can contribute to research while learning, and how research can contribute to the development and evaluation of new formats. It is thus relevant for university teachers, researchers, students as well as practitioners who want to educate and act as future change agents.

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Complex, haunting, imaginative and profoundly literary, Didactic Poetries is Beck’s response to Schiller’s statement: “We are still waiting for a didactic poem where thought itself would be and would remain poetic,” and Hegel’s claim that, “strictly speaking, didactic poetry isn’t poetry.”For the acclaimed French poet, Philippe Beck, Schiller’s task of attempting a didactic poetry remains as vital today as it was for Schiller’s time. Is there a way to construct a poetry built and chiseled, hammered and stitched, from out of past narratives and poetries, condensed in such a manner as to make new poetic verses sing new truths? Forging a singular attempt to echo the poets and tales of a bygone age, Beck’s didactic poetries perhaps carve out the path for renewing a poetic thought as a quasi-musical atmosphere where the reader can glimpse “A small country “sculpted” as spiritual, supposed to be so
at home in the Bygone Country. Alluvial layers so light, that weather disappeared, weary of variety a priori.” Beck’s deftly textured poems interweave contemporary commentary with cultural, historical, literary, and philosophical allusions, drawing the reader into a world of lived poetic experience.

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Knowledge Management (KM) encompasses a wide range of tools and methods that are at the heart of the information and communication society and provide solutions that rely as much on organization as on technology. This title brings together contributions from authors from a range of countries who are recognized as leading figures in this field, both in an academic and a practical sense. It describes the strategic aspects of KM and defines the underlying principles in terms of management, life cycle, process, methods and tools involved in this discipline. Several approaches to the running of KM within organizations are then discussed. The influence of KM on the performance of a company is analyzed and guidelines are given on various KM approaches that can be used to achieve specific goals. Finally, several case studies of companies that have put KM at the heart of their organizational strategy are given to demonstrate how this approach has been put into practice. Given the practical approach taken by this book and the considerable advantages that a good handling of KM can bring to an organization, this title will be of great interest to those involved in this field.

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As the western world’s most wanted terrorist, Osama bin Laden has fought to keep his personal life a mystery – loyalty and fear keeping those who know him from speaking out – until now. For the first time, two of Osama’s closest family members, his first wife Najwa and their fourth son Omar, go behind the headlines to reveal the truth about the character and life of a man feared and revered around the globe. In gripping detail, they recount the drama, tensions, and everyday activities of the man they knew as a husband and father. Married at fifteen, Najwa describes the transformation of the quiet, serious young man she fell in love with into an authoritarian husband and stern father, an entrepreneur, and – finally – the leader of a complex international terrorist network. Uprooted from a life of extraordinary luxury and privilege in Saudi Arabia, they suddenly found themselves living life on the run, fleeing from country to country under assumed names and fake passports. Omar describes how he and his siblings were brought up in remote ranches and fortified Afghani mountain camps, handling Kalashnikovs and learning desert survival skills. Their eventual escape from Afghanistan would come just days before the terrible events of 9/11 changed the world forever. With unprecedented access and exclusive family photographs, Jean Sasson, author of the bestselling Princess, presents the story that we were never meant to hear.

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A renowned physicist and the head of MI5 battle threats to the Empire and solve extraordinary mysteries across the globe. The 29th adventure of Blake & Mortimer, the most distinguished duo of gentlemen-adventurers! Ages 10+. 1963. As Professor Mortimer is invited to the USSR by an old archaeologist friend to join in the search for the lost city of Arkaim in the Urals, Captain Blake goes to Switzerland for an important conference between the intelligence services of the Western Powers, in order to prepare for the top-secret Operation Prince in Berlin. Berlin where a West German agent was just shot trying to cross the Wall back from East Germany, uttering a single word before dying: doppelganger...

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The integration and use of information and communication technologies (ICT) in African countries is increasingly observable in various sectors of activity (banking, education, trade, etc.) despite a digital divide still relevant. ICT has become a major sector of the recent growth of a new informal economy in African cities (Chéneau-Loquay, 2008). This question has been at the heart of various international meetings. An overall positive and even utopian momentum is generally heard about the contribution of digital technologies to the development of African states. The adoption or appropriation of digital technologies by Africans is presented in many speeches by politicians or institutions involved in the field of cooperation and international development as an important issue for the development of this continent. These different considerations give rise to reflections on the following themes. - Social Media and Public Space in Africa - Challenges of the digital economy in Africa - ICT and modernization of higher education in Africa

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Over the years, the performance measurement and management control conference has grown in number of participants, quality of presentations and reputation, and has attracted leading researchers in the field from North and South America, Europe, Asia, Australia, and Africa. The 2011 theme was directed at global issues, and included the significant challenges of managing and measuring performance within and across different organizational and geographical boundaries, using theoretical, empirical, analytical, experimental, and case-based research to address these topics. In addition to the three plenary sessions, this volume contains some of the exemplary papers that were presented at the 2011 conference; representing a collection of leading research in management control and performance measurement and providing a significant contribution to the growing literature in the area. The editors hope this book will continue the search for additional understanding and development in performance measurement and management control, and provide guidance for both academic researchers and managers as they work toward improving organizations.

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The edited volume on "The Role of Institutional Investors in a Globalized Environment" will publish original papers that examine various issues concerning the strategies of institutional investors, the role of institutional investors in corporate governance, their impact on local and international capital markets, as well as the emergence of sovereign and other asset management funds and their interactions with micro and macro economic and market environments including the impacts on international economic and market stability.

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The genetic dissection of human primary immunodeficiency is expanding at full speed, in at least two directions. Some investigators pursue the dissection of well-known clinical phenotypes, for which the count of genetic etiologies seems to be endless, whereas others begin the search for inborn errors underlying new phenotypes, infectious and otherwise. The field of primary immunodeficiency is also expanding in other ways, with new therapeutic approaches, and with the care of patients in regions of the world where these diseases were unheard of less than a decade ago. The volume provides an overview of the field of medical genetics and its progress in 2011. This volume focuses on new developments in “primary immunodeficiencies" (PIDs), insights into PID pathophysiology, and PIDs in India and the Middle East.Volume I opens with a dialog between the volume editors on the definition of PIDs; additional papers in this volume focus on PIDs in Latin America, Eastern and Central Europe, North Africa, Turkey, Asia, Iran, and the South Pacific. NOTE: Annals volumes are available for sale as individual books or as a journal. For information on institutional journal subscriptions, please visit http://ordering.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/subs.asp?ref=1749-6632&doi=10.1111/(ISSN)1749-6632. ACADEMY MEMBERS: Please contact the New York Academy of Sciences directly to place your order (www.nyas.org). Members of the New York Academy of Science receive full-text access to Annals online and discounts on print volumes. Please visit http://www.nyas.org/MemberCenter/Join.aspx for more information about becoming a member.

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In a series of conversations, Jean-Luc Marion reconstructs a career’s path in the history of philosophy, theology, and phenomenology. Discussing such concepts as the event, the gift, and the saturated phenomenon, Marion elaborates the rigor displayed by the things themselves. He discusses the major stages of his work and offers his views on the forces that have driven his thought. The conversation ranges from Marion’s engagement with Descartes, to phenomenology and theology, to Marion’s intellectual and biographical backgrounds, concluding with illuminating insights on the state of the Catholic Church today and on Judeo-Christian dialogue. Marion also reflects on the relationship of philosophy to history, theology, aesthetics, and literature. At the same time, the book provides an account of French intellectual life in the late twentieth century. In these interviews, Marion’s language is more conversational than in his formal writing, but it remains serious and substantive. The book serves as an excellent and comprehensive introduction to Marion’s thought and work.

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The initial provocation for The Truth of Democracy was the fortieth anniversary of May ’68 and the recent criticism (some by French President Nicolas Sarkozy himself) leveled against the ideals and actors at the center of this important but still misunderstood moment in French history. Nancy here defends what he calls simply “68” without apology or equivocation, calling it an essential stage in the search for the “truth of democracy.” Less a period within time than a critical moment or interruption of time, 68 needs to be understood, Nancy argues, as an “event” that provided a glimpse into the very “spirit of democracy,” a spirit that is linked not to some common vision, idea, or desire (such as the nation, the republic, the people, or humanity) but to an incommensurability (the infinity of man or man’s exceeding of himself ) at the origin of democracy. Written in a direct and accessible, almost manifesto-like style, The Truth of Democracy presents a forceful plea that we rethink democracy not as one political regime or form among others but as that which opens up the very experience of being in common. By rearticulating many of the themes and terms he has developed elsewhere (from community and being in common to the singular plural) in relationship to an original analysis of what was and still is at stake in May ’68, The Truth of Democracy is at once an eloquent summary of much of Nancy’s work and a significant development of it. It is as if, forty years after being first scrawled across university walls and storefronts in France, one of the most famous slogans of May ’68 has received in The Truth of Democracy its most eloquent and poignant theoretical elaboration: “Be realistic, demand the impossible!”

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Jean Franco’s work as a pathbreaking theorist, cultural critic, and scholar has helped to define Latin American studies over the last three decades. In the process, Franco has played a crucial role in developing cultural studies in both the English- and Spanish-speaking worlds. Critical Passions is the first volume to gather a wide-ranging selection of Franco’s influential essays.A key participant in the major debates in Latin American studies—beginning with the “boom” period of the 1960s and continuing through debates on ideology and discourse, Marxism, mass culture, and postmodernism—Franco is recognized for her feminist critique of Latin American writing. While her principal books are all readily available, Franco’s several dozen articles are dispersed in a variety of periodicals in Latin America, Europe, and the United States. Although many of these essays are considered pioneering and classic, they have never before been collected in a single work. In this volume, Mary Louise Pratt and Kathleen Newman have organized the essays into four interrelated sections: feminism and the critique of authoritarianism, mass and popular culture, Latin American literature from the “boom” onward, and the cultural history of Mexico. As a group, these writings demonstrate Franco’s ability to reflect on and judge with equal seriousness all spheres of expression, whether subway graffiti, a fashion manual, or an avant-garde haiku. A bona fide fan of popular and mass media, Franco never allows her critiques to dissolve into the puritanical or reductive; instead, she finds ways to present and debate complex theoretical questions in direct and accessible language. This volume will draw an extensive readership in Latin American, cultural, and women’s studies.

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An extensive investigation of the forms and functions of the comic, this lively and engaging English critical edition will be welcomed by those interested in laughter, comedy, folklore, Russian literature, and specific authors such as Gogol, Pushkin, Chekhov, Rabelais, Moli re, and Shakespeare. The direct, humorous, and provocative style of this work, which tackles the subject of humour with a vast array of vivid examples encountered on every page, will certainly appeal to the contemporary reader. Vladimir Propp takes various forms of laughter in literature and real life and addresses questions such as the comic of similarity, the comic of difference, parody, duping, incongruity, lying, ritual laughter, and carnival laughter. The author of the widely acclaimed Morphology of the Folktale has written an original, comprehensive, and exciting study on how humour works, and on everything you wanted to know about the genre, in a clear, approachable, and insightful manner.

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Jean-Clet Martin offers an insightful reading of Deleuze, from the point of view of a student, a reader and a fellow philosopher with whom Deleuze himself corresponded about his work. By providing a philosophical reading of Deleuze by a major philosophical peer, Martin offers the reader a unique analysis of Deleuze's texts. An opening letter-preface by Deleuze to Martin testifies to the confidence that Deleuze had placed in Martin's interpretation of his work.

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