Modern Politics

Democracy, free thought and expression, religious tolerance, individual liberty, political self-determination of peoples, sexual and racial equality - these values have firmly entered the mainstream in the decades since they were enshrined in the 1948 U.N. Declaration of Human Rights. But if these ideals no longer seem radical today, their origin was very radical indeed - far more so than most historians have been willing to recognize.

The Napoleonic Wars radically altered the old, established European power dynamics, and in 1795, the British, now emerging as the globe’s naval superpower, assumed control of the Cape as part of the spoils of war. In doing so, they recognized the enormous strategic value of the Cape as global shipping routes were developing and expanding. Possession passed back and forth once or twice, but more or less from that point onward, the British established their presence at the Cape, which they held until the unification of South Africa in 1910.

The modern understanding of what it means to be stoical is never showing any form of outward emotion regardless of all circumstances, good or bad, and indeed not having any emotions whatsoever. The entire species of the Vulcans in the popular science fiction franchise Star Trek exemplifies the popular definition. But it's easy to recognize an absence of outward emotion as not necessarily being a good thing.

What are the secrets to a contented life? One of Rome's greatest and most influential poets, Horace (65-8 BCE) has been cherished for more than 2,000 years not only for his wit, style, and reflections on Roman society, but also for his wisdom about how to live a good life - above all else, a life of contentment in a world of materialistic excess and personal pressures. In How to Be Content, Stephen Harrison provides fresh, contemporary translations of poems from across Horace's works that continue to offer important lessons about the good life, friendship, love, and death.

Every major decision governing our diverse, majority-female, and increasingly liberal country bears the stamp of the US Senate, yet the Senate allows an almost exclusively White, predominantly male, and radically conservative minority of the American electorate to impose its will on the rest of us. How did we get to this point? In Kill Switch, Adam Jentleson argues that shifting demographics alone cannot explain how Mitch McConnell harnessed the Senate and turned it into a powerful weapon of minority rule.

Two thousand years ago, 967 Jewish men, women, and children reportedly took their own lives rather than surrender to the Roman army. This dramatic event, which took place on top of Masada, a barren and windswept mountain overlooking the Dead Sea, spawned a powerful story of Jewish resistance that came to symbolize the embattled modern State of Israel. Jodi Magness, an archaeologist who has excavated at Masada, explains what happened there, how we know it, and how recent developments might change understandings of the story.

In Bomb Power, Garry Wills reveals how the atomic bomb transformed our nation down to its deepest constitutional roots - by dramatically increasing the power of the modern presidency and redefining the government as a national security state---in ways still felt today. A masterful reckoning from one of America's preeminent historians, Bomb Power draws a direct line from the Manhattan Project to the usurpations of George W. Bush.

The philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche's autobiography, Ecce Homo, was the last prose work that he wrote before his illness in 1889. Coming at the end of an extraordinarily productive year in which he had produced The Twilight of the Idols and The Antichrist, Nietzsche shuns any pretense at modesty with chapter titles include “Why I am so Wise”, “Why I am so Clever” and “Why I Write Such Excellent Books”. His translator Anthony M. Ludovici states, Ecce Homo “is not only a coping-stone worthy of the wonderful creations of that year, but also a fitting conclusion to his whole life.

Why are there restaurants? Why would anybody consider eating alongside perfect strangers in a loud and crowded room to be an enjoyable pastime? To find the answer, Rebecca Spang takes us back to France in the eighteenth century, when a restaurant was not a place to eat but a quasi-medicinal bouillon not unlike the bone broths of today.

Russia has been locked into a winter of authoritarian rule at home and military adventures abroad under Vladimir Putin. In Kremlin Winter, Robert Service, one of our finest historians of Russia, plots the seasonal shifts in events since 2012 and those that may be expected in the immediate future. When Mikhail Gorbachëv introduced perestroika in the mid-1980s, the USSR went through a springtime of growth and release.

Studies have shown that 60% of male managers feel uncomfortable working one-on-one with their female colleagues. That's where The Man's Guide to Corporate Culture comes in. Heather Zumarraga, a business journalist who has spent much of her career in testosterone-filled work environments, wants to make sure that any male leader who wants to be part of the solution knows how to do it the right way. Heather provides you with logical solutions to complex gender issues and gives important, practical lessons for men and women alike.

Lawrence M. Friedman is Professor of Law at Stanford University and author of 23 books about law and legal history. Hailed as American law's greatest living historian, Friedman traces the evolution of America's legal system from the colonial period to the present. A Modern Library Chronicle, this book is concise, insightful, and graced with wit.

Ayn Rand and her philosophical school, Objectivism, have had a considerable influence upon American popular culture, yet the true story of her life and work has yet to be told. In this book, Jeff Walker debunks the cult-like following that developed around the author of the classics Atlas Shrugged and The Fountainhead - a cult that persists even today.

Henry David Thoreau : auteur incontournable pour qui se pose la question de la vie juste. Poète et philosophe américain, partisan de l'abolition de l'esclavage, défenseur de la désobéissance civile face à un gouvernement corrompu, Thoreau est aussi précurseur du mouvement de la simplicité volontaire. "Walden ou la vie dans les bois" fut écrit dans une cabane qu'il avait lui-même construite au fond de la forêt, et où il redécouvrit la vie en communion avec la nature.

Das 19. Jahrhundert revolutioniert die Philosophie! Während aus der Industrialisierung die bürgerliche Gesellschaft hervorgeht, verlieren die Philosophen den Boden unter den Füßen. Vor allem die Naturwissenschaften fordern die Philosophie heraus und beanspruchen die alleinige Deutungshoheit über Wahrheit und Sinn. Denker wie Comte, Mill, Spencer, Mach und Peirce versuchen die Philosophie methodisch auf das Niveau der Physik und der Biologie zu bringen. Doch genau dagegen rührt sich Protest.

The New Atlantis (1627) is a utopian novel by Sir Francis Bacon in which he describes a vision of the future of human discovery, expressing his aspirations and ideals for humanity. The novel portrays a utopian world where "generosity and enlightenment, dignity and splendour, piety and public spirit" are the dominant qualities of the inhabitants.

"À essayer de voir une intention du destin dans les choses, on ne fait qu'user, au contraire, de ce miroir conique qui introduit la combinaison et l'ordre dans ce qui semblait comme jeté au hasard." Arthur Schopenhauer interroge ici la notion de providence et propose une réflexion sur la maîtrise de notre destinée.

A deeply divisive figure, Friedrich Nietzsche (1844–1900) remains an enigma to this day. Infamous for his startling assertion that "God is dead", he is often misrepresented. In this illuminating account of Nietzsche's life and work, Robert Wicks skilfully navigates the controversy that continues to surround one of today’s most famous but least understood thinkers. Exploring the impact of Nietzsche's Christian upbringing and his childhood on his beliefs, Wicks demonstrates that, far from being a nihilist, Nietzsche offers a positive and understanding of human nature.

Peter Sloterdijk porträtiert philosophische Temperamente von der Antike bis in das 20. Jahrhundert...

Arthur Schopenhauer's The Art of Literature is a lively, illuminating and brutally honest collection of essays on literary style and values, writers and critics, and the nature of genius. Schopenhauer advises seclusion and independent thought, criticizes Pliny's reading habits, and explains the pitfalls of certain schools of thought and even virtues like modesty. His thought-provoking arguments, caustic wit, and accessible style make this a must for any aspiring writer.