The central thesis of Gauchet's book is that the grow of the state, which was permitted especially by Christianity, has led to the inevitable and irreversable decline of religion, because it has fostered a new power in human social life that can organize group life, define the meaning of reality, and determine human identity. The manner in which he lays out the path things have taken to the here and now is dazzling and well worth the effort to read.

However, I cannot help but suggest that he is overstating his case somewhat. It may be - and in fact it is - a matter of historical fact that the State, in both ancient and modern times, served as a creator of meaning, but this is not necessarily irreligious, even if it is not religiously desirable. The Greek polis, for example, completely integrated the worship of the Olympians with political life; hence they saw Socrates the "atheist" as a threat to the state because he denied the gods of the polis. That is not a secular attitude. Likewise, in modern times, we have seen the rise of the totalitarian state that competes with religion for the spiritual allegience of the citizenry - but that is not necessarily an outgrowth of state power unless you assume that the state necessarily has religious or spiritual functions, which is to beg the central question under discussion. To put it another way, the rise of a competing power structure is clearly a possible threat to the priestly monopoly on spiritual activities, but there is apprently no necessary reason for it to become an actuality. Things can develop that way, but there isn't any clear cause as to why they must.

This notwithstanding, Gauchet's book is a valuable study and comes highly recommended to anyone interested in the battle between secularism and faith, and it's historical antecedents.

This book was published already in 1985 in France and has had an significant influence in intellectual circles. The main argument of Gauchet is that secularisation of society (the word "désenchantement" directly refers to Max Weber's Entzauberaung) is both rooted in christianity and a process against christianity. The christian religion, by laying down the ground for it, made it possible for modern societies (say, after 1789 in France and continental Europe) to abandon heteronomia (government of the society and of the self by an external authority, beit God, tradition, etc...) and to swich to autonomia (in the kantian sense, this is the self government of the individual and of society). Gauchet recently (1998) published a short book on the same theme, La religion dans la démocratie (Ed. Gallimard).

Although I quote the theme of the book under "secularisation", Gauchet rejects this concept, precisely because it is too much influenced by the religious "Weltanschauung". He rather speaks of "la sortie de la religion" (the exit of religion). I would say that this book is the book of an anthropologist of Wertern societies rather than of an historian or a philosopher.

If you enjoy wonderful,classical, imaginative works of art, rife with humor and whimsy, drawn in part from the classics and from his own marvelous imagination, you will find this volume as delightful as I have.

If you enjoy wonderful, imaginative works of art, rife with humor and whimsy, drawn in part from the classics and from his own marvelous imagination, you will find this volume as delightful as I have.

I owned this book for a little while. Then I was so surprised when I met someone who knew what it was about that I gave it to her. It was not unusual for me to lend her books, but in the case of this book, she remembered that I said I was giving it to her. It doesn't matter how much I want it back~she still has it. The funny thing is that one of the pictures in this book is called "In the Beginning, There Were Mistakes." Some things are genuinely foolish, and this book certainly played that to the hilt.

Here's a handy rule: always be wary of any person or institution who claims to have produced a list of "essential" items in any field. A case in point: "Sacred Fire: The QBR 100 Essential Black Books," by Max Rodriguez, Angeli R. Rasbury, and Carol Taylor. The book is a list of 100 books from the African Diaspora, each with a brief descriptive commentary. The book features a foreword by Charles Johnson. While informative to a degree, this list is, in my opinion, seriously flawed.

In his foreword, Johnson mocks other recent attempts to create "essential" lists. He complains, for example, of the "nervous tokenism" of the "100 Best English-Language Novels" list from the Modern Library. Ironically, such criticisms could also be applied to this book! How did they come up with the list? Rodriguez is fuzzy on that point in his intro. He notes that the list stems from a request, addressed to individuals, to name 10 Black books that had the greatest impact on them. Rodriguez claims, "We asked everyone," then immediately admits that such an absurd statement is false. But he does note that he asked his sister!

Most of the books chosen are indeed essential classics. But I found the list as a whole too "safe," unimaginative, and narrow of vision. Johnson acknowledges the omission of such writers as Samuel Delany and Rita Dove in his foreword. Books with an experimental, cutting edge quality seem to be absent. I was also dismayed by the failure to include many historic literary milestones by African-American women. Books by Black gay men that deal directly with the black gay experience are also largely absent. Black lesbians are represented by a token appearance by Audre Lorde (with her book "Sister Outsider"). A number of groundbreaking anthologies also fail to appear. And where are the Afro-Hispanic writers? Even the remarkable science fiction author Octavia Butler is solely represented by "Kindred" -- an excellent book, but probably the "safest" and most conventional choice from her incredible personal canon.

Just a few books I would add to an expanded edition: Adrienne Kennedy's "In One Act," an anthology of plays by this award-winning, boldly experimental pioneer of drama; Phillis Wheatley's "Poems on Various Subjects," an 18th century landmark in poetry; Harriet Jacobs' "Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl," perhaps the most important autobiography by a 19th-century Black woman; "Nine Plays by Black Women," a stunning anthology edited by Margaret Wilkerson; and Ann Allen Shockley's "Loving Her," a novel which broke new ground for the portrayal of sexuality in the Black novel.

Also try Audre Lorde's poetic, moving "Zami"; Alexis De Veaux's "Don't Explain: A Song of Billie Holiday," an amazing biography told in poetic form; "Brother to Brother: New Writings by Black Gay Men," the anthology edited by Essex Hemphill; "A Puerto Rican in New York and Other Sketches," by Jesus Colon, who proudly claimed a Black Latino identity decades before it was politically correct; Anna Julia Cooper's "A Voice from the South," a pioneering collection of essays; "Home Girls: A Black Feminist Anthology," edited by Barbara Smith; Pat Parker's "Movement in Black," the rich poetic testament of an outspoken Black lesbian; and Samuel Delany's "Dhalgren," an enigmatic epic which extends the boundaries of both science fiction and the African-American novel. I could go on, but I'll quit here.

This book should be a part of the library of those who study black culture and history. It is an excellent guide to literature past and present. About ten years ago the Oakland Public Library published a list of the one hundred books that were classics. Supposedly by having read these books you would be considered well read. There were many I had read but people of color was sorely missing from this list. I am grateful that Max Rodrigues, who also puts out an excellent review of books by and about black people- QBR: The Black Book Review, published this great resource. Of course one can think of more books to be added to the list and in the publication last year readers were invited to add their own list of favorities. This book is a great referral tool and a timeless keepsake.

If your knowledge of black lit doesn't go beyond the latest Oprah pick, this book is essential. Although some of the picks can be argued, the short, opinonated summaries are fun to read and the list itself is a great guide to a year's worth of good reading.

This is a short and powerful book. The frequent references to Taylor's "Sources of the Self" may indicate that it is a mere introduction to the longer work, but I feel that it stands well alone.

Taylor, a Canadian, observes the conservative-liberal debate in America from an outsider's position. He is able to distance himself from the rhetoric, vocabulary, and narrow categories of this debate. I found his insights well worth consideration.

In essence, Taylor attempts to redefine the debate. His concerns are threefold. First, radical individualism has disavowed most moral absolutes, eroded the meaningfulness of life, and resulted in a centripetal self-orientation that denigrates relational connectiveness. Secondly, Taylor is concerned that modern thought has become dominated by a reason that finds the highest good in the economic maximizing of ends. This "instrumental reason" demeans others as mere means to an end, disregards important perspectives that are not integral to the cost/benefit equation, and creates a technological supremacy that may cost us our humanity. Thirdly, Taylor is concerned that institutions have embraced instrumental reason as supreme and creating a power-base that may stand in the way of reform.

Most of this book deals exclusively with Taylor's thoughts on the first of these concerns. Conservatives will be upset that Taylor does not call for a return to older values and older worldviews. Instead, he accepts the modern emphasis on individualism and the corollaries of self-fulfillment and self-actualization. He parts with these liberal ideals by arguing that the centripetal self-focus can only find meaning outside of the self. Discovery of my originality and uniqueness is a dialogical process (with others, values, or deity) that demands an objective "horizon."

Hence, my definition of Taylor's authenticity is the dialogical discovery of my "being." Others are not used to complete my project, but are collaborators and partners. Together we work to throw off the shackles of psychological, institutional, and familial pressures to conform. Freedom from these shackles is not license to abuse, but becomes ground to assume responsibility for self without excuse. Radical individualism escapes meaninglessness only in dialogic connectedness and assumption of personal responsibility.

In my view, the ethics of authenticity are much needed. I hope this book finds many receptive readers.

As a guy who is very conservative, I'm always interested to hear about NEW approaches that aren't just the same old liberal bilge.

I read this book for my political science class last semester, and was interested by Taylor's approach. He believes that a lack of authenticity and extreme individualism are our fundamental ills in society. He diagnoses further and suggests cures, but I will leave that for you to read.

If you've read "Spirit of Community" by Amitai Etzioni, you've already got a good head start onto what you'll find here.

This short book concerns what has been called "authenticity," namely the idea that values are only important to the extent that they are chosen by the individual. Particularly in America, there is a heavy emphasis on self-fulfilment. We are told that you have to be happy, have self-esteem, and be fulfilled as a person. As Taylor writes, "In adopting the ideal, people in the culture of authenticity, as I want to call it, give support to a certain kind of liberalism, which has been espoused by others as well. . . . The good life is what each individual seeks, in his or her own way, and government would be lacking for all citizens, if it took sides on this question." [pp. 17-8.] Taylor diagnoses this tendency from a variety of perspectives, neither dismissing it out of hand nor giving it unconditional praise. This a serious, but easy to read, book.

Those seeking a lengthier discussion of these issues might profitably consult the author's larger, Sources of the Self, which deals with these matters from a historical perspective.

At first sight the book seems so insightful - and it clearly stems from a sincere wish to understand other cultures and others holding different views than one's own within one's own culture. But then comes page 20. Gutmann writes that the task is to rescue us from a world of entrenched battlefields and point the way to "mutually respectful communities of substantial, sometimes even fundamental, INTELLECTUAL disagreement" (my emphasis). What such a viewpoint does is to limit the discussion to rational discourse. One can agree on a base-line of open discussion with those you may be in diasagreement with but only when the 'crazies' have been left outside, those who preach hatred, or even those who choose to opt out. This is all what Richard Rorty called 'wet liberalism'. Terribly disappointing. After Gutmann's intellectualist and ultimately elitist point of view dawns, the other essays fall within the same light.

I found this book to be well written and therefore, very easy to read. Wonderful new material. I have learned several new theories.

One web page which I recently encountered urged the USA to adopt an official policy of multiculturalism, and thereby become the first great nation to make this postmodern leap; ahead of the U.K., and all of the other states which have considered such a move. Yet Canada and Australia have been formally self-designated as multicultural states for decades. What has been the result, and what does multiculturalism offer other pluralist states, such as the United States, in the 21st century? After all, some say that the end of the 'melting pot' would be the end of national unity in America, while others feel it would truly be the begining. In this book, neither the 'potential for utopia', nor the 'armageddon scenario' of multicultural policies will be appeased. Professor Charles Taylor examines the implications of state-enshrined multiculturalism, and then opens the floor to several of the world's leading intellectuals (including Jurgen Habbermas) to debate the topic in this 'heady' little book. The result is rather surprising. Rather than narrowing in on the details of the Canadian or Australian experiences with the policy, the book explores the entire developement of modern liberalism which lead to such policies, and devotes many pages to the argument concerning whether such policies weaken individual rights, while creating collective rights. This is not a manual for extremists, on either side of the debate, but it should aid those who seek to peer deeply beneath the surface of multicultural policies unearthing their philosophical base. The implications of such policies are widely considered, and for a wide range of groups across North America and Europe.

If you are a engineer looking for a book of formula's...this is your book. However it does little to explain things (such as the how's and why's)...you really must have a backround in mechanical or automotive engineering to understand things. By no means is this a beginners book, far to advanced in theory and mathmatics.

I give it 4 stars because I know once I understand the complexity of the subject it will be a useful book...but its not a great teacher.

This is an excellent book - and one of the clasics on the subject of IC Engine Engineering. It's a good anchor for the student new to the subject - as most of the basic theory can't really change. Having said that, it doesn't go far enough with practical simulation methods, which have become much easier to apply as computers have matured. And there is - as always in typical engineering texts - not much to use in terms of practical design. But then - such a book would be much longer. And - because engine control capability has improved so much in the last 15 years, as has knowledge of pollutant formation and control - this book simply does not have much of use (other than as an introuction) to those areas. That's why I gave it 4 stars, not 5. Still a good read for the engineer.

i need some informations about the internal-combustion engine in theory and practice

A first-rate, plausible job on this story. A Soviet sleeper agent rises through the ranks to command an LA-class attack sub. Then he uses it to sink US ballistic missile subs and neutralize American strategic power in the Pacific. Charles D. Taylor did a great job bringing the characters to life. Little by little he builds the tension, showing how the rest of the men under sleeper Wayne Newell's command react when they think they are at war. The stress, the pressure all start to wear at their psyche. Doubt creeps in, eventually the crew begins to question its captain. The strain of the mission pulls you in. Add to it the Naval commanders trying to figure out what's happening in the Pacific. The final, 3-way sub battle is a rush! You can't put the book down until you reach the end.

Charles D. Taylor has a fine grasp on naval power, the covert arms such as the SSN's and SEALs, and this scenario is chilling as ever: what if one of our SSN captains is really a sleeper agent, and he's turned one of our best subs to hunt the targets it was supposed to protect: our Ohio-class boomers? I originally thought the scenario was a bit far-fetched, but after reading the book, I think he carried it off quite well.

Abbey offers a fine introduction to Taylor's thought, helpfully summing up his moral, anthropological (ontological), political and epistemological views. Taylor's writings tend to be a bit diffuse- one essay here on politics and one here on epistemology- and so this introduction is very helpful for getting a general understanding of how his various ideas fit together. A worthwhile read for those who want to understand Taylor's thought in its integrity

Finally, what I've been waiting for, a series that accessibly captures the thoughts of the masters in more than "90 Minutes". This book figures prominently next to Milan Rai's _Noam Chomsky_ and other well written secondary sources designed specifically to bring great thinkers to a broader audience. If you're intimidated by unelucidated technical language or insulted by having to buy a book titled "For Morons", then this and its series companions are the books you're looking for. I sincerely hope to see more additions in the future, especially branching into coverage of great thinkers of the past. Thank you Ruth Abbey and thank you series editor John Shand.

It didn't take the world long, in the thirties, to accept that the man in the Christmas Coke ads was Santa and this delightful book displays Haddon Sundblom's paintings over thirty-three years. If you see a tall, thin man dressed in red and carrying a sack of toys the chances are that it was painted before 1933. Sundblom wisely thought a fat jovial looking guy had more credability than a thin one.

Wonderful though this book is I wish the authors had gone the extra mile and made it a comprehensive study of his Santa paintings, his work for the years 1941, 1957 and 1963 are missing. The text refers to alternative paintings created in some years to fit the various media used (billboards, magazines ads and retail unit cutout figures etc) some of these paintings are shown but not all. Most of the paintings are shown without advertising copy, I would like to see how the copy or headlines were used, a small reproduction would have been useful. They could have reproduced the back cover of the The National Geographic which Coke used every December for a Sundblom Santa ad.

A lovely book but I am disappointed that the full potential of the subject was not realised.

I've been searching for years,for a book about Haddon Sundblom's Santa's. The people who really should buy this book are art lovers,who think that Victorian/Edwardian Santa's were the best. I would rate Sundblom's Santa's with the masters of long ago, and personally think he was a genius of OUR time. The text against each large colourful picture is short,and very informative. The only reason I have'nt given it all 5 stars,is because it does'nt have all the Santa's Sundblom painted. I do hope there will be another volume containing all the missing paintings.

Best wishes, Ray. P.S.It's Christmas every day in my house!

Worx have once again come up trumps with this book - although not as biblical in usefullness as there Professional ASP Series this book is a excellent starting point for those new to WAP and an intersting read for those that are familiar with it or internet technologies and wish to get up to speed with this area. The only dissapointment is that there is no cd supplied with the book and many of the toolkits and SDK's that are essential for the succesfull development of WAP applications are quite large downloads. Overall a good buy and usefull for anyone interested in the area.

This is my first book on Plain WAP and I found it very easy to use and to read! - I also bought the XML for Professionals by wrox which gave me a very good WML Background.

The writing style is absolutely excellent and gives clear tips on code optimization and performance. I have read literally dozens of different books on WAP, and none has been so specific. Although this book is not for total beginners, it is, in my opinion, good for anyone who wants to advance their career on the web or become an WML developer. This is definitely a book you will want to read from cover to cover, and use as a reference!

For those who know any web based programming languages, this book is for you. It gives you the scoop on WAP and what makes it tick. It presents the basic syntax of WAP in a fairly easy to understand format (put it this way, if you know HTML you practically know WAP). It also has an awesome section on how to integrate it with what you already know (In particular the Cold Fusion section was awesome! I leave it to those who know ASP, JSP, and XML to judge the other pieces).

In short, don't buy this if you're just starting web development, I would recommend you learn HTML and one server side language (ASP, ColdFusion, etc.). If you do that, then you're ready to learn WAP with this book and build some truly awesome stuff for the ever blooming wireless world!