{"product_id":"the-disenchantment-of-the-world-a-political-history-of-religion-paperback","title":"The Disenchantment of the World: A Political History of Religion - Paperback","description":"\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cp style=\"text-align: right;\"\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/reportcopyrightinfringement.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eReport copyright infringement\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003eMarcel Gauchet\u003c\/b\u003e (Author), \u003cb\u003eOscar Burge\u003c\/b\u003e (Translator), \u003cb\u003eCharles Taylor\u003c\/b\u003e (Foreword by)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eMarcel Gauchet has launched one of the most ambitious and controversial works of speculative history recently to appear, based on the contention that Christianity is \"the religion of the end of religion.\" In \u003ci\u003eThe Disenchantment of the World, \u003c\/i\u003e Gauchet reinterprets the development of the modern west, with all its political and psychological complexities, in terms of mankind's changing relation to religion. He views Western history as a movement away from religious society, beginning with prophetic Judaism, gaining tremendous momentum in Christianity, and eventually leading to the rise of the political state. Gauchet's view that monotheistic religion itself was a form of social revolution is rich with implications for readers in fields across the humanities and social sciences. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eLife in religious society, Gauchet reminds us, involves a very different way of being than we know in our secular age: we must imagine prehistoric times where ever-present gods controlled every aspect of daily reality, and where ancestor worship grounded life's meaning in a far-off past. As prophecy-oriented religions shaped the concept of a single omnipotent God, one removed from the world and yet potentially knowable through prayer and reflection, human beings became increasingly free. Gauchet's paradoxical argument is that the development of human political and psychological autonomy must be understood against the backdrop of this double movement in religious consciousness--the growth of divine power and its increasing distance from human activity. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eIn a fitting tribute to this passionate and brilliantly argued book, Charles Taylor offers an equally provocative foreword. Offering interpretations of key concepts proposed by Gauchet, Taylor also explores an important question: Does religion have a place in the future of Western society? The book does not close the door on religion but rather invites us to explore its socially constructive powers, which continue to shape Western politics and conceptions of the state.\u003ch3\u003eBack Jacket\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"The scope, freedom of thought, and analytical rigor of this book make it essential reading.\"\u003cb\u003e--Jean-Jacques Courtine, University of California, Santa Barbara\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"Marcel Gauchet's \u003ci\u003eThe Disenchantment of the World\u003c\/i\u003e is breathtaking in its ambition, offering nothing short of a new theory of the birth of modernity out of the spirit of Christianity.\"\u003cb\u003e--Brian C. Anderson, \u003ci\u003eFirst Things\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch3\u003eAuthor Biography\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eMarcel Gauchet\u003c\/b\u003e is Professor at the Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales. He is the editor of \u003ci\u003eLe D?bat\u003c\/i\u003e, France's most influential intellectual journal, and the author of numerous books. This current book was published in France as \u003ci\u003eLe D?senchantement du monde\u003c\/i\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 272\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 0.62 x 9.26 x 6.07 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e October 24, 1999\u003c\/div\u003e\n            ","brand":"BooksCloud","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":52935252771123,"sku":"9780691029375","price":97.63,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0300\/5595\/6612\/files\/vJbcsv7CPH9780691029375.webp?v=1767948894","url":"https:\/\/www.vysn.com\/en-ca\/products\/the-disenchantment-of-the-world-a-political-history-of-religion-paperback","provider":"VYSN","version":"1.0","type":"link"}