An incisive, at times controversial, consideration of moral action in the face of dehumanization, and its implications for everyday life. Hardly a memoirist or historian of the Holocaust and the gulag has failed to grapple with the issues of moral behavior in the Nazi and Soviet concentration camps. Did the suffering of the inmates bring out the best or the beast in them? And what of the victimizers—can they be viewed as less than human? Todorov (The Conquest of America, 1984), having considered scores of testimonies from survivors, rejects either extreme. ``The most optimistic conclusion we can draw from life in (and outside) the camps is that evil is not inevitable,'' he writes. But Todorov, a Bulgarian-born literary and cultural critic with the Centre National de Recherches in Paris, seeks to make fine distinctions among various types of moral behavior. This is not merely a historical quest; Todorov believes that, extreme as the situation of the camps was, it can shed light for us on morality in everyday life. Indeed, one of the distinctions he makes is between heroic virtues (loyalty, courage), which are most relevant in wartime, and ordinary virtues (caring, sharing), which apply at all times and which he considers superior to heroic virtues. Todorov offers a detailed consideration of inmates, oppressors, and onlookers. For instance, he notes that totalitarian governments aim to deprive their subjects of independent will and judgment; this implies that any of us, under totalitarian control, could commit atrocious acts; it doesn't, however, relieve individuals of guilt for their crimes. The impersonal tone of Todorov's analysis is relieved by occasional asides in which he follows his own rule that those making moral judgments must look first at themselves: He honestly and movingly considers his own naive complicity with Communist terror as a youth in Bulgaria. Todorov has original and surprising insights into the moral condition of those in the camps; but most important are his reflections on how the fragmentation and depersonalization of modern life contributed to that evil. His lessons for us today are compelling and ineluctable. (Author tour)
Pub Date: Jan. 1, 1996
ISBN: 0-8050-4263-6
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Henry Holt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 1995
BOOK REVIEW
Worthwhile reference stuffed with facts and illustrations.
A compendium of charts, time lines, lists and illustrations to accompany study of the Bible.
This visually appealing resource provides a wide array of illustrative and textually concise references, beginning with three sets of charts covering the Bible as a whole, the Old Testament and the New Testament. These charts cover such topics as biblical weights and measures, feasts and holidays and the 12 disciples. Most of the charts use a variety of illustrative techniques to convey lessons and provide visual interest. A worthwhile example is “How We Got the Bible,” which provides a time line of translation history, comparisons of canons among faiths and portraits of important figures in biblical translation, such as Jerome and John Wycliffe. The book then presents a section of maps, followed by diagrams to conceptualize such structures as Noah’s Ark and Solomon’s Temple. Finally, a section on Christianity, cults and other religions describes key aspects of history and doctrine for certain Christian sects and other faith traditions. Overall, the authors take a traditionalist, conservative approach. For instance, they list Moses as the author of the Pentateuch (the first five books of the Hebrew Bible) without making mention of claims to the contrary. When comparing various Christian sects and world religions, the emphasis is on doctrine and orthodox theology. Some chapters, however, may not completely align with the needs of Catholic and Orthodox churches. But the authors’ leanings are muted enough and do not detract from the work’s usefulness. As a resource, it’s well organized, inviting and visually stimulating. Even the most seasoned reader will learn something while browsing.
Worthwhile reference stuffed with facts and illustrations.Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2005
ISBN: 978-1-5963-6022-8
Page Count: -
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 23, 2010
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
This a book of earlier, philosophical essays concerned with the essential "absurdity" of life and the concept that- to overcome the strong tendency to suicide in every thoughtful man-one must accept life on its own terms with its values of revolt, liberty and passion. A dreary thesis- derived from and distorting the beliefs of the founders of existentialism, Jaspers, Heldegger and Kierkegaard, etc., the point of view seems peculiarly outmoded. It is based on the experience of war and the resistance, liberally laced with Andre Gide's excessive intellectualism. The younger existentialists such as Sartre and Camus, with their gift for the terse novel or intense drama, seem to have omitted from their philosophy all the deep religiosity which permeates the work of the great existentialist thinkers. This contributes to a basic lack of vitality in themselves, in these essays, and ten years after the war Camus seems unaware that the life force has healed old wounds... Largely for avant garde aesthetes and his special coterie.
Pub Date: Sept. 26, 1955
ISBN: 0679733736
Page Count: 228
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: Sept. 19, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 1955
© Copyright 2025 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
