Altri libri che potrebbero interessarti

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  The 21 - A Journey into the Land...

  Martin Mosebach

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  Behind a gruesome ISIS beheading video lies the untold story of the men in orange and the faith community that formed these unlikely modern-day saints and heroes.In a carefully choreographed propaganda video released in February 2015, ISIS militants behead twenty-one orange-clad Christian men on a Libyan beach.In the West, daily reports of new atrocities may have displaced the memory of this particularly vile event. But not in the world from which the murdered came. All but one were young Coptic Christian migrant workers from Egypt. Acclaimed literary writer Martin Mosebach traveled to the Egyptian village of El-Aour to meet their families and better understand the faith and culture that shaped such conviction.He finds himself welcomed into simple concrete homes through which swallows dart. Portraits of Jesus and Mary hang on the walls along with roughhewn shrines to now-famous loved ones. Mosebach is amazed time and again as, surrounded by children and goats, the bereaved replay the cruel propaganda video on an iPad. There is never any talk of revenge, but only the pride of having a martyr in the family, a saint in heaven. “The 21” appear on icons crowned like kings, celebrated even as their community grieves. A skeptical Westerner, Mosebach finds himself a stranger in this world in which everything is the reflection or fulfillment of biblical events, and facing persecution with courage is part of daily life.In twenty-one symbolic chapters, each preceded by a picture, Mosebach offers a travelogue of his encounter with a foreign culture and a church that has preserved the faith and liturgy of early Christianity – the “Church of the Martyrs.” As a religious minority in Muslim Egypt, the Copts find themselves caught in a clash of civilizations. This book, then, is also an account of the spiritual life of an Arab country stretched between extremism and pluralism, between a rich biblical past and the shopping centers of New Cairo.

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  Violence - A Very Short...

  Philip Dwyer

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  Violence is part and parcel of human history and of human nature. It is one of our most distinctive traits, the one thing that all cultures and societies, across time, share in common. It has defined not only the ways in which individuals relate to each other, but also how collective entities and states have interacted with each other over the millennia. All societies are violent and all individuals have the capacity for violence. However, not all societies and not all individuals are equally violent, and nor does violence exist with the same intensity across cultures. 
   
   
   
  This Very Short Introduction examines the more visible, physical acts of violence—interpersonal, gendered, collective, religious, sexual, criminal, and political—in the modern world. It explores how violence in the pre-modern world was different from the modern world, and what is significant about those differences. It also discusses what violence is by examining understandings of the ideas, values, and cultural practices embedded in an act of violence, and considering acts of violence as the outcome of a process dependent on the cultural context in which they take place. Along the way Dwyer considers some core questions, asking whether violence is always 'bad', and if there are any limits to human violence? And, are we becoming more or less violent?

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  A Thousand Ways to Die - The...

  Trymaine Lee

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  A deeply personal exploration of the generational impact of guns on the Black experience in AmericaA few years ago, Trymaine Lee, though fit and only 38, nearly died of a heart attack. When his then five-year-old daughter, Nola, asked her daddy why, he realized that to answer her honestly, he had to confront what almost killed him—the weight of being a Black man in America; of bearing witness, as a journalist, to relentless Black death; and of a family history scarred by enslavement, lynching, the Great Migration, the also insidious racism of the North, and gun violence that stole the lives of two great-uncles, a grandfather, a stepbrother, and two cousins.In this powerful narrative, Lee weaves together three strands: the long and bloody history of African Americans and guns; his work as a chronicler of gun violence, tallying the costs and riches generated by both the legal and illegal gun industries; and his own life story. With unflinching honesty he takes readers on a journey, from almost being caught up in gun violence as a young man, to tracing the legacy of the Middle Passage in Ghana through his ancestors’ footsteps, to confronting the challenges of representing his people in an overwhelmingly white and often hostile media world, and most importantly, to celebrating the enduring strength of his family and community.In A Thousand Ways to Die, Lee answers Nola and all who seek a more just America. He shares the hard truths and complexities of the Black experience, but he also celebrates the beauty and resilience that is Nola’s legacy.

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  The Watkins Book of African...

  Helen Nde

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  From creation myths and foundation legends to fascinating stories of human relationships and animal tales, these stories provide a diverse look at the countries and cultures across the African continent. Noted folklorist Helen Nde provides context for history and colonial influences for the stories. 
   
   
   
  Discover the geographical and cultural variety of the continent with stories such as: 
   
   
   
  ● FROM ALGERIA: "The Story of the First Man and Woman", who meet when they struggle over access to a well, but go on to have 100 children and start the human race. 
   
   
   
  ● FROM SUDAN: "Okwa and the River Maiden", a tale about the great-grandson of the first man who seeks the river spirit's approval to marry two river maidens, half women and half crocodiles. 
   
    
   
  ● FROM ZIMBABWE: "The Moon and His Wives", a story about the first man who pleads with the creator to become mortal and go to earth, where the first star becomes his companion. 
   
   
   
  ● FROM GHANA: "How Goat Caused a War" by tricking the Supreme Being and giving his holy message to the wrong prince. 
   
   
   
  ● FROM TANZANIA: "The Singing Kaguru Birds", who offer help and riches to poor folk in exchange for a strict rule or even a trick.

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  Utilitarianism

  John Stuart Mill

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  Utilitarianism is a moral theory that was developed by British philosopher John Stuart Mill in the 19th century. According to Mill, the ethical basis for decision-making should be the greatest happiness or pleasure for the greatest number of people. This principle is also known as the "greatest happiness principle." 
  Mill believed that human happiness was the ultimate goal of morality and that actions should be judged according to their ability to promote happiness. He argued that actions that bring about the greatest amount of happiness for the greatest number of people are morally right, while actions that lead to pain or suffering are morally wrong. 
  Mill believed that happiness should be measured by the amount of pleasure that people experience, and he distinguished between two types of pleasure: higher pleasures and lower pleasures. Higher pleasures are those that are associated with the intellect, such as the pursuit of knowledge or the appreciation of art, while lower pleasures are those that are associated with the body, such as the satisfaction of hunger or the gratification of sexual desire. According to Mill, higher pleasures are more desirable than lower pleasures because they are more intellectual and have a more lasting impact on a person's happiness. 
  Mill's utilitarianism has been influential in many areas of philosophy, including ethics, political philosophy, and social theory. His emphasis on the importance of promoting the happiness of the greatest number of people has been used to justify a wide range of policies and practices, including democracy, public health measures, and the redistribution of wealth. However, Mill's theory has also been criticized for its focus on pleasure and its potential to justify actions that are harmful to minorities or individuals.

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  The Rory's Stories Lockdown...

  Rory O'Conor

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  From dodgy home haircuts and Tiktok dance crazes to banana-bread baking and checkpoint cheek, even in lockdown social media star and comedian Rory O'Connor found plenty of opportunities to keep everyone laughing.
  Filled with Rory's trademark banter and observational gems, this hilarious and infectious (!) lockdown lookback will make you nostalgic for outdoor dining in the rain and loo roll shortages!

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