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HUMAN RIGHTS

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Polygamy, Bigamy and Human Rights Law

By Samuel Chapman

“Polygamy, Bigamy and Human Rights Law” focusses mainly on UK law, but has been cited in international research on polygamy, and referred to in the British Columbia Supreme Court in the 2010-11 Polygamy Reference Case in Canada, where the book was entered into evidence as an exhibit and relied upon both by those arguing for decriminalisation of polygamy, and those seeking to maintain polygamy as a criminal offence. The book considers the rights of growing ethnic, faith and religious minorities in a multi-cultural society as the law incorporates the European Convention of Human Rights into UK law. This is of international interest due to the important position of English Law in contributing to the development of the law in its former colonies and in Commonwealth countries. While the book focuses primarily on English Law, it is of particular relevance to the United States, Canada and other jurisdictions where leading decisions have been based in part on references to English Law.

Samuel Chapman. Xlibris.2011. 111p.

Ottoman Empire and Islamic Tradition

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By Norman ItzkowItz

FROM THE PREFACE: “This book provides the student with an introduction to the historical development of the Ottoman Empire and an appreciation of its institutions, social structure, and. intellectual foundations. The narrative carries the Ottomans from their beginning on theByzantine frontier as an Islamic warrior principality, through the development of their empire, down to the late cighteenth century when they found it necessary to embark upon the process of modernization. I have delineated the fundamental institutions of the Ottoman state, the major dividing lines within the society, and the basic ideas on goverment and social structure that helped the Ottomans found their empire, fostered its growth, and then sustained it through periods of inter- nal dissension and external threat.

Chic ago and London. The University of Chicago Press. 1972. 131p.

Modern Greece: A Short History

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By C. M. Woodhouse

FROM THE INTRODUCTION: “What is the subject of the history of Greece: a race, a country, a language, a religion, a culture, an idea? Something of each of them must go into the answer, but none of them is adequate by itself, and their inadequacy varies.

As a complete answer, some of them can be ruled out at once. A country, for instance: the boundaries of what might be called, Greece have long fluctuated over a very wide area, and have not ceased to change, though by smaller variations, even in the present century. Or a religion: for the Orthodox Church, which, has been the religion of most Greeks for sixteen centuries, is also the religion of millions of non-Greeks, particularly among the Slavs. Or a race: ever since the work of Jakob Fallmerayer in the nineteenth century, it has been unreasonable to think of the inhabitants of Greece (however defined) as racially homogeneous and lineally descended from the ancient Hellenes. It would be equally unreasonable, however, to assert dogmatically. that no Greek living today could possibly have had a direct ancestor living in Greece 2,500 years ago….”

London. Faber and Faber. 1998. 374p.

A Little History of the World

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By E. H. Gombrich. Translated By Caroline Mustill

"A masterpiece of nonfiction writing for children. It is a wry and charming book, perfectly suited to the capacities of a 10-year-old, but also remarkably free of condescension. An adult can read it with pleasure. And, indeed, with instruction -Scott McLemee, Newsday

New Haven And London. Yale University Press. 2008. 308p.

Joan Of Arc

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By Mary Gordon

FROM THE INTRODUCTION: “…March 14, 1999. The city of Rouen, the province of Normandy, the country of France, the continent of Europe. It is 5 p.M. on an unseasonably warm spring day. People have flung their jackets over their shoulders. They are sitting outside in cafés, reckless from the sunlight, which seems miraculous, unearned, suggestive of improvidence. We are in the marketplace, the place where Joan of Arc was burned at the stake. An attempt has been made to make this a viable city center; there is an open space for a market and, next to it, a cathedral. It is one of those good ideas that didn't work; it might have worked had there been a genius to design it, but it was not designed by a genius. The church is in the shape of an overturned boat, and the motif is meant to be nautical: Rouen is a seafaring city. But the idea fails; it provides us only with the always dispiriting spectacle of over- strained originality. The church has the sad, earnest quality of mediocre modern architecture, and we are left with a sense of betrayal, because we think that plainmaterials and an abundance of light ought to equal beauty, and when they don't, not only art, but nature as well, has let us down…”

London. Orion Books. Phoenix. 2000. 187p.

The Civilization Of The Renaissance In Italy

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By Jacob Burckhardt. Translated by S. G. C. Middlemore With a new Introduction by Peter Burke and Notes by Peter Murray

FROM THE INTRODUCTION : “….Burckhardt's conception of history was a very different one from that of many of his contemporaries. He rejected both the positivism andthe Hegelianism which fascinated so many of his contemporaries all over Europe. As a student at the university of Berlin, he wrote regretfully that the philosophy of history was taught by followers of Hegel, 'whom I cannot understand'. As a professor at the university of Basel, he told his students that his lectures on the study of history would offer 'no philosophy of history. According to Burckhardt, there was no such thing; the idea of the philosophy of history was a contradiction in terms, 'for history co-ordinates, and hence is unphilosophical, while philosophy subordinates, and hence is unhistorical. In other words, history is unsystematic and systems are unhistorical.

This view is further from British historical empiricism than it may look. Unlike many practising historians, Burckhardt was not philoso- phically illiterate. Despite his claim to be unfit for speculation and abstract thought, he was well acquainted with the ideas of Hegel and Schopenhauer as well as with those of the young Nietzsche, with whom he used to go for walks discussing ideas. Although he was sceptical of the claims made for grand philosophical systems, his vision ofthe past was not completely free of philosophical presuppositions, as weshall see….”

London. Penguin 1990. 388p.

The Renaissance Medieval or Modern?

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Edited With An Introduction BY Karl H. Dannenfeldt.

FROM THE INTRODUCTION: “In 1860 in the introduction to his work on The Civilization of the Renaissance in Italy, Jacob Burckhardt predicted the present "Problem of the Renaissance” when he wrote "To each eye, perhaps, the out¬lines of a great civilization present a differ¬ent picture. ... In the wide ocean upon which we venture, the possible ways and directions are many; and the same studies which have served for this work might easily, in other hands, not only receive a wholly different treatment and application, but lead to essentially different conclusions.” To the writers of the Italian Renaissance itself, there was no serious problem. Their views of the age in which they were living furnished the basis for a long-held concept, namely, that after a period of about a thousand years of cultural darkness and igno-rance, there arose a new age with a great revival in classical literature, learning, and the arts. The humanists of the Northern Renaissance continued this concept. "Out of the thick Gothic night our eyes are opened to the glorious torch of the sun,” wrote Rabelais. Moreover, there was also now introduced a reforming religious element, further emphasizing the medieval barbarization of religion and culture. Protestant writers joined in this condemnation of the dark medieval period, an attack little circumscribed by the defense of the medieval Church by Catholic apologists…”

Boston. D. C. Heath. Problems In European Civilization. 1959. 129p.

Protestantism And Capitalism: The Weber Thesis and Its Critics

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Edited With An Introduction By Robert W. Green

FROM THE INTRODUCTION: “Did the Protestant Reformation, and especially its Calvinist branch, have a decisive influence upon the development of modern capitalism? For more than half a century this question has been the focal point of a scholarly controversy which had its beginning in 1904-5 with the publication by the famous German sociologist, Max Weber, of two articles entitled “Die protestantische Ethik und der Geist des Kapitalismus” [The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism]. Together with a supplementary article, “Die protestantische Sekten und der Geist des Kapitalismus” [The Protestant Sects and the Spirit of Capitalism], which appeared in 1906, these articles, with some additional footnotes, now constitute the first studies in Max Weber's collected essays on the sociology of religion….Almost immediately following their first appearance, these articles attracted the interest of scholars in several different fields because, in its various aspects, the Weber hypothesis cut across the areas of a number of separate scholarly disciplines. Since Weber was himself a sociollogist, and in this instance he seemed to be attempting to apply a sociological method to an historical problem, both sociologists and historians became concerned. Because capitalism was involved, economic historians were aroused; and the role Weber assigned to Protestantism drew the attention of both Catholic and Protestant theologians. Some of these scholars attacked Weber’s position; some supported it; some seemed willing to accept a modified or cautiously qualified version of it. Beyond that, however, if one may judge by what they have written, the authors who commented upon Weber’s work, whether supporting or attacking it, seem frequently to have misunderstood or misinterpreted either Weber’s method or his conclusions or both…”

Boston. D. C. Heath And Company. Problems In European Civilization. 1959. 132p.

The Outbreak Of The First World War Who Was Responsible?

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Edited With An Introduction By Dwight E. Lee

FROM THTE INTRODUCTION: “The origins of the First World War have become a major historical prob¬lem not merely because the event seemed to be of great significance as a turning point in world history, but also, and perhaps more importantly, because the question of who was responsible, raised during the war and answered in the peace settle¬ment, became a vital and passionately argued issue in both domestic and international politics. By placing the blame for the war on Germany and its allies and thereby justifying reparations, the victorious powers supplied one of the major factors utilized by Hitler in his rise to power in Germany….”

Boston. D. C. Heath And Company. Problems of European Civilization. 1958. 88p.

The Origins Of The English Civil War: Conspiracy, Crusade, or Class Conflict?

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Edited With An Introduction BY Philip A. M. Taylor

FROM THE INTRODUCTION: “…Most English people who are not professional students have had their view of the origins of the Civil War formed, directly or indirectly, by the first chapter of Macaulay’s History. This is partly because, from the vantage point of modem constitutional history, the Parlia¬mentarians in that conflict are seen to have been on the winning side. But the lasting popularity of Macaulay derives also from his forceful style and the sweeping confi¬dence of his interpretations. He points out that James I and Charles I were far more extreme and outspoken in their claims than Elizabeth had been; yet there was no crisis of national peril to inhibit opposition. The natural enemy of royal claims, he thinks, was Puritanism inside and outside Parlia¬ment. When, in 1640, Charles was forced by financial difficulties to summon Parliament once more, its leaders, "great statesmen" as Macaulay terms them, at once devoted their energies to limiting his power. Increasingly distrustful of the king's intentions. Parliament refused him control of the armed forces needed to suppress rebellion in Ireland. Charles’ retaliation, in attempting to arrest five members of the Commons, made inevitable a war to limit the royal preroga-tive. Macaulay is sure that it would have been better to depose the king, as was done in 1688; but he admits that no one in. 1642 could face such a drastic course.

This ‘Whig interpretation" has prevailed among those interested chiefly in the growth of constitutional liberty. But, from quite a different point of view, Marxists have ascribed great importance to the Civil War which, to them, is a “bourgeois revolu¬tion," the political act by which English capitalism overthrew “feudal" society and insured for itself favorable conditions for development….”

Boston. D. C. Heath And Company. Problems In European Civilization. 1960. 125p.

Machiavelli: Cynic, Patriot, or Political Scientist?

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Edited With An Introduction By De Lamar Jensen

FROM THE INTRODUCTION: “ In more than four hundred years of evaluation and reinterpretation, few names in European history have caused more disagreement and controversy than Machiavelli's. Nearly everyone who has written on modem European history, and particularly on the Renaissance, agrees that Machiavelli was one of the most important figures of the century, but rarely will they concur on the reason for his prominence. Why has this polemic continued so long without sign of abating or losing its vigor? Undoubtedly there can be many answers, and among them certainly is the fact that Machiavelli’s written words deal with subjects of lasting and vital interest to all ages. People of every generation must ask themselves the questions which Machiavelli aroused. What is the relationship between politics and morals? Does the end really justify the means? What is the nature and role of the state? How are liberty and order to be balanced and maintained? To the historian an infinite number of additional problems are suggested by the life and writings of this Renaissance Floren¬tine, from the question of his relationship to the humanist writers of his time to the methods and motives of his public and pri-vate life. For Machiavelli was not restricted to one career, and each of them — diplomat, secretary, statesman, military strategist, political philosopher, historian, man of letters — offers a rich and rewarding field for schol¬arly investigation…”

Boston. D. C. Heath. Problems In European Civilization. 1960. 131p.

Here I Stand: A Life of Martin Luther

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By Roland H. Bainton

FROM THE COVER: “Accused of heresy, threatened with excommunication and death, Martin Luther spoke these fateful words as he took his unyielding position against the abuses of the medieval church. Here is an outstanding modern contribution to religious literature--a vivid portrait of the man who, because of his unshakable faith in his God, helped to bring about the Protestant Reformation.”

NY. Bantam. 1950. 338p.

The Industrial Revolution In Britain: Triumph or Disaster?

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Edited with an Introduction by Philip A. M. Taylor

FROM THE INTRODUCTION: “While the phrase "…Industrial Revolution," or something like it, can be found very early in the nineteenth century, it was given its wide currency by the lectures de¬livered at Oxford by Arnold ToynSefc and published in 1884, after his early death. It was in the eighth of these lectures that Toynbee summed up his views about the period 1750-1850. He pointed out the rapid growth of population; the moderniza¬tion both of the techniques and of the or¬ganization of farming, especially the trans¬forming, by the process of enclosure, of medieval open fields into modern compact farms; the rapidity of invention in industry, above all in textiles; the development of powerful machines and their grouping into factories. To him, these changes seemed emphatically revolutionary. But he thought he saw, in addition to these material changes, a change of outlook, from the medieval desire to regulate economic life to a modem acceptance of free competition. He considered that for the lower classes in town and country the total result was distastrous, "Production on a vast scale,” he said at the end of Lecture VII, "the result of free competition, led to a rapid alienation of classes and to the degradation of a large body of producers.”-

Boston. D. C. Heath Co. Problems In European Civilization.. 1958. 108p.

When Heaven and Earth Changed Places: A Vietnamese Woman's Journey from War to Peace

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By Le Ly Hayslip with Jay Warts

FROM THE COVER: “-Le Ly Hayslip was just twelve years old when U.S. helicopters landed in her tiny village in central Vietnam. As the government and Viet Cong troops ravaged the area, both sides recruited children as spies and saboteurs. Le Ly was one of those chil- dren. Before the age of sixteen, she had suffered near starvation, imprisonment, and the deaths of beloved family members--but miraculously found the strength to keep going, ultimately fleeing to the United States. Almost twenty years after her escape, she returned to the devastated country and loved ones she'd left behind. Scenes of this joyous reunion are interwoven with the brutal war years, creating an extraordinary portrait of the nation, then and now--and of one courageous woman who held fast to her faith in humanity. First published in 1989, When Heaven and Earth Changed Places was hailed as an instant classic. Now, more than two decades later, this indispensable memoir continues to be one of our most important accounts of a conflict we must never forget.

NY. Anchor. 2017. (1989). 460p.

A Short History of Greece: From Early Times To 1964

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By W. A. Heurtley, H. C. Darby C.W. Crawley And C.M. Woodhouse

FROM THE COVER: “An introduction to Greek history from prehistoric times until the end of 1964. It is based on the historical sections of the Hand- book first issued by the Naval Intelligence Division of the Admiralty during the war and is a companion volume to the successful series of short histories of France, Germany, Italy and Yugoslavia already published. The original contributors were the late W. A. Heurtley, Professor H. C. Darby and C. W. Crawley. The final section has been written by the Hon. C. M. Wood- house, who was formerly Director-General of the Royal Institute of International Affairs. This history will appeal to general readers and tourists as well as students in universities and schools.

'This extraordinary book compresses into 183 pages of text the history of mainland Greece from the earliest times to the end of 1964. What is more, itdoes so from the unfamiliar perspective of the present day . . . Anyone would gain by reading this short book; but most of all, perhaps, those who have attacked Greek history through the other end of the telescope.' Economist

London. Cambridge At The University Press. 1967. 210p.

Martin Luther's 95 Theses

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By Martin Luther

“Out of love for the truth and from desire to elucidate it, the Reverend Father Martin Luther, Master of Arts and Sacred & Theology, and ordinary lecturer therein at Wittenberg, intends to defend the following state- ments and to dispute on them in that place. There fore he asks that those who cannot be present and dispute with him orally shall do so in their absence by letter. In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, Amen.”

Summer For The Gods: The Scopes Trial and America's Continuing Debate over Science and Religion

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By Edward J. Larson

FROM THE PREFACE: “ThE SCOPES TRAIL has dog ged me for more than a decade, ever since I wrote my first book on the Ameri- can controversy over creation and evolution. The trial only constituted one brief episode in the earlier book, yet people who knew of my work

asked me more about that one event than everything else in the book combined--and they would tell me about the Scopes trial and what it meant to them. Over the years, their questions and comments led me to reflect on the so-called trial of the century. Finally, one of my colleagues, Peter Hoffer, suggested that I write a separate book solely about the trial and its place in American history. The idea made immediate sense. As a historical event and topic of legend, the trial had taken on a life and meaning of its own independent of the overall creation-evolution controversy. Indeed, this book is different from my earlier one in that they chronicle remarkably separate stories. Both are tales worth telling as sto- ries of our time. Furthermore, no historian had examined the Scopes trial as a separate study in decades. I had access to a wealth of new archival material about the trial not available to earlier historians, and the benefit of additional hindsight…”

Cambridge. Harvard University Press. 1997. 317p.

Bury My Heart At Wounded Knee: An Indian History of the American West

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by Dee Brown

FROM THE COVER: “Thelast words of this revisionary history of the American West come from an anonymous Indian: ‘They made us many promises, more than I can remember, but they never kept but one: they promised to take our land, and they took it. They are white Americans. like the author of this damning case against our national roots i n greed, perficly, ignoranceand malice. The motive force f o rour theft of land and identity from the Indians was Alanifest Destiny, the belief that white men were ordained to rule this continent, a policy that, in Dee Vrown’s words, “lifted land hunger to a lofty plane.’ Manifest destiny was a simple instrument to operate, once we got the hang of it. We would buy or battle the indians off the land we wanted…”

NY. Bantam. 1971. 498p.

Benjamin Franklin: The Autobiography and Other Writings

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Selected and Edited with an Introduction by L. Jesse Lemisch

FROM THE INTRODUCTION: “In the following pages we meet the many-sided Franklin. We see him through his own eyes and sometimes through the eyes ofothers: bis wife, his son, Abigail Adams, fellow-scientist Joseph Priestley, to name a few. H e is father, son, brother, husband, lover; he is scientist,in- ventor,educator, diplomat, propagandist, politician, hu- morist; he reveals his own ambition and advises us on the way to wealth and in the art of conversation; he explains his religion and tells us how he did good. Franklin introduces himself to us in his Memoirs- as he always called his autobiography. We meet him at the punchbowl where, from time to time, he steps aside from the ball to hurriedly relate his reminiscences. He comes to aquiet corner of the halland speaks candidly, but he is still dressed for a public ball. He tells us the truth but is careful to keep his distance: "Let all Men know thee, but no man know thee thoroughly," said Poor Richard…”

NY. Signet Classic. 1961.

Before the Mayflower: A History of the Negro in America 1619-1964

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By Lerone Bennett, Jr.

FROM THE COVER: “A full history of the American Negro, from his origins in the great empires of the Nile Valley and the western Sudan through the Negro revolt of the 1960's. Mr. Bennett clarifies the role of Negro Americans during the Colonial period, the Revolutionary War, the Slavery era, the Civil War, the years of Reconstruction, and the crucial epoch from Booker T. Washington to Martin Luther King, Jr. His account is interspersed with portraits of the great figures like Benjamin Banneker, Frederick Douglass, W.E. B. DuBois and others, as well as with reports on the exploits and contributions of many men and women whose names generally have been forgotten in the pages of American history. In a special section of "Landmarks and Milestones," he outlines the significant dates, events, and per- sonalities of American Negro history from 1492 to 1964.”

Baltimore. Penguin. 1964.