Between Myth and Politics

Author: Jean-Pierre Vernant
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-03-01
Features: Life·Reading·New Sanlian Bookstore has always attached great importance to introducing foreign academic thought, which has been highly beneficial to the development of China's own intellectual and cultural traditions. Since the mid-1980s, thanks to the strong support of friends in the fields of translation and publishing, our bookstore has successively published several comprehensive libraries and thematic translation series, which have had a positive impact on a broad readership. When the "Frontiers of Knowledge" series was launched, it coincided with the turn of the century. Modern Chinese intellectual and cultural traditions, after a century of trials and twists, were entering a historical period with the potential for creative development. We are willing to continue our efforts, as always, to contribute to the advancement of Chinese academic culture. In this collection of essays, the author guides readers on a journey between myth and politics. He portrays the inner world of a scholar actively engaged in society, and we can view this book as a form of intellectual biography—showing how unrealistic myth and very real politics are connected in a French intellectual. It is precisely the inseparable link between religious ethics, political rationality, and political thought that prompts the author to continuously reflect on major issues faced by humanity in the 20th century, such as resistance movements, communist anti-Semitism, fascism, and more. This book covers multiple themes: ancient Greece and contemporary society's beliefs and rationality, religion as a scientific object; the reality of tragedy; the concept of immortality in the minds of ancient people; the life of the Greek gods; theology; and, of course, a re-examination and reflection on revolutionary theory and reality.