BRILL
Access to environmental justice; a comparative study.
The twelve chapters in this volume, assembled by Harding (Asia- Pacific law, U. of Victoria, Canada), came out of a research investigation called the SOAS Access to Environmental Justice project conducted from 1993 to 1998, which concentrated on the effectiveness of "legal gateways" to environmental justice and focused on water and air pollution, access to land, and solid waste disposal. Some contributions to the project do not appear in the book and others are new. Therefore, the volume presents a wider range of investigation than the project, with seven city studies — of Accra, Bangalore, Cape Town, Karachi, Kuala Lumpur, Tokyo, and Xiamen — as well as studies of access to environmental justice in Indonesia, Nepal, China, the South West Pacific, Thailand, the UK, and the US. Lawyers and NGOs were surveyed to gather systematic data about the social use of legal gateways for public participation. Contributors are law scholars, attorneys, and policy specialists from around the world. Martinus Nijhoff is an imprint of Brill. (Annotation ©2007 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)
Akrasia in Greek philosophy; from Socrates to Plotinus.
Scholars of philosophy from the Americans and Europe explore what classical Greek philosophers said about akrasia (lack of control) which they attributed to a deficiency either of the knowledge or of motivation needed to maintain control. Their topics include how punishment is supposed to help with intellectual error in the Georgias, Plato and endrateia (control), and Epictetus on moral responsibility for precipitate action. Most of the 13 essays are from a December 2003 conference at the Catholic University of Louvain. (Annotation ©2007 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)
The alphabet of nature.
Helmont (1614-98) was a Flemish doctor, alchemist, and student of the Jewish Kabbalah. His first book, A Short Sketch of the Truly Natural Hebrew Alphabet argues that Hebrew was the original language, and that Hebrew words exactly mirror things. It uses this revelation to describe how people born deaf can be made not only to understand speech but to speak themselves. Coudert (religious studies, U. London) and Corse (English literature, Arizona State U.) present the 1667 Latin edition with English translation on facing pages, along with the original illustrations. (Annotation ©2007 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)
Aristotle on definition.
Deslauriers (philosophy, McGill U.) argues that Aristotle presents a theory of definition in which a particular type, that which states the formal cause of a single entity, is fundamental. Through a close analysis of the texts, she comes to consider definitions as first principles in demonstrations, although they themselves cannot be demonstrated, and asks how such definitions can have the certainty required to fulfill that role. She covers the four types of definition, analyzes the relationship between definitions and aitia, relates definition to its object in the Metaphysics, and states the essence in the Topics. The result, though challenging in its subject matter, is insightful and well-presented. (Annotation ©2007 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)
Between the rule of power and the power of rule; in search of an effective world order.
Van Staden (international relations, Leiden U., the Netherlands) argues that the unipolarity of American power is not an obstacle to building a stable and just international order. Rather, it can be seen as a prerequisite, because only the United States is strong enough to provide leadership for organizing needed collective action. However, while the international order should be organized towards, rather than against American power, the United States also needs to legitimize the exercise of its political power, in order to reduce the political costs incurred, by involving other countries in its decisions. After describing this model of "effective multilateralism" in more detail, he sets out his preferred policy agenda of human security that multilateralism should be used to pursue and also considers the role of the European Union within his proposed international order. (Annotation ©2007 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)
Bhutan; traditions and changes; proceedings.
The theme of traditional culture adapting to change link the 10 papers on the Himalayan country. Their topics include a preliminary investigation of Bhutanese castle ruins and caves associated with Lha sras Gtsang ma, becoming a Pawo, patterns in the ritual dissemination of Padma Gling pa's treasures, and changing the contours of the legal landscape as shown in the Jabmi Act of 2003. There is no index. (Annotation ©2007 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)
Borrowing court systems; the experience of socialist Vietnam.
Nicholson fled the travail of a legal practice to Vietnam in the 1990s, only to find a reason for even more work, this time on the relationship between Vietnamese and Soviet law, its associated evolution and its approach to socialist dispute resolution. Her primary topic is legal change, so her research goes to unexpected depths in the impact of change when socialism is a common political ideology. Although she asserts the Soviet court model was introduced and maintained in Vietnam, she finds anomalies in how that system was imposed, whether by Soviet hegemony or by mutual application of socialist precepts. She covers aspects of comparative law, legal transplantation, dispute resolution in the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (DRV), the introduction of the courts, and the role of legal culture in similarities and differences. She closes with an assessment of contemporary Vietnamese courts. (Annotation ©2007 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)
Brill's companion to Hellenistic epigram; down to Philip.
Scholars of Greek and Latin literature synthesize recent scholarship on the classical genre during the Hellenistic period, looking at models and form, poetics, genre, epigrams and their intertexts, and reception from classical to modern times. The Philip, of course, is not Alexander's father, who lived before the Hellenistic period even began, but a Roman poet apparently active in the court of Caligula. (Annotation ©2007 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)
Brill's New Pauly; encyclopaedia of the ancient world: Antiquity; v.10: Obl-Phe.
The English translation of the comprehensive German reference has reached the downhill side of the alphabet. Topics include concepts, people, places, events, literary and artistic styles and schools, institutions, and customs and practices. The entries are alphabetical, and chronological if two or more are identical. The cross-referencing is extensive, and each substantial article includes a bibliography. The volume is not indexed. (Annotation ©2007 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)
The Buddhist conquest of China; the spread and adaptation of Buddhism in early medieval China, 2d ed. (reprint, 1972)
Zürcher (East Asian history emeritus, Leiden U., the Netherlands) describes the formation of gentry Buddhism and the amalgamation of Buddhism with the main trends of medieval thought, more from the perspective of Chinese history than the history of Buddhism. When it was originally published in 1959, it was the first attempt in a Western language to describe the rise of Buddhism in China. A 1972 second edition included printed Chinese characters, but what is now known to have been a transitional printing technology did not allow much other revision. That second edition is reprinted here as the classic articulation of the foundation of what has now become a thriving academic discipline. (Annotation ©2007 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)
Challenges for human rights.
Falcón y Tella (law and legal philosophy, U. Complutense de Madrid) describes the recent movement to recognize that individuals as well as states are subject to international law, and the impact of that on humanitarian law and international criminal law. Among other issues, he examines the International Criminal Court, which protects individual victims by punishing individual human rights offenders. No information is provided about the original Spanish edition; the translator is Howard Shneider. (Annotation ©2007 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)
The chronicles and annalistic sources of the early Mamluk Circassian period.
Following the method established by his graduate advisor, Donald P. Little, Massoud offers a highly detailed comparison of various Egyptian and Syrian accounts of three political events from the Burji period (dating in the late 14th and early 15th centuries). The annals are discussed separately, then the various accounts are discussed and analyzed comparatively. Detailed appendices provided further historical information. The result is a valuable account of the era's historiography. Massoud is at the Collége Ahuntsic in Montreal, Canada. (Annotation ©2007 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)
Christian churches in Dahomey-Benin; a study of their socio-political role.
Claffey (social and political studies, Milltown Institute of Theology, and Philosophy, Dublin) was a Catholic missionary in West Africa from 1977 to 1999, and draws on his personal observations as well as interviews and conversations, academic literature, and other sources to examine of role of Christian churches in the origin of the modern state of Benin. (Annotation ©2007 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)
Coercion, conversion and counterinsurgency in Louis XIV's France.
McCullough examines the royal response to popular revolt, rebellion, and resistance under Louis XIV. In particular, the text explores the complexities authorities dealt with in deciding to use coercive force; Louis XIV's reliance on his standing army to maintain order within the kingdom; the significant difficulties encountered by intendants, governors and other local authorities as they tried to implement the Crown's coercive policies; and implications of this study for more familiar debates including the nature of French absolutism and the role of armed coercion in the process of 17th- century state formation. The author completed a doctoral degree in history at the U. of Illinois in 2005; he now works in defense policy analysis for a private firm in McLean, Virginia. (Annotation ©2007 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)
Commerce and print in the early Reformation.
Fudge (European history, Corpus Christi College, Vancouver, Canada) explores the spread of religious innovation in Europe during the 16th century and the significance of mercantile settings in that process, particularly the new industry of printing and distributing printed books, but also the communication and transportation systems supporting that industry. Among his topics are mercantile networks and printing in Germany and elsewhere, commercial contacts and the tides of reform, vernacular scriptures and scurrilous propaganda, and circles of diffusion. (Annotation ©2007 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)
Converting cultures; religion, ideology and transformations of modernity.
As the 19 essays of this collection show, conversion to another religion or way of belief — as occurs when non-western societies adopt western norms — brings about grave changes within societies and raises questions regarding belief and modernity. The essays examine specific historical cases, among them secular conversion in 1930s Turkey, the Tolstoian religion in Meiji Japan, and mass conversion in 1930s India. The remaining essays are also centered on issues in Turkey, Japan, India, and China. In addition, two articles related to the Ottoman world discuss crypto-Jews and crypto-Christians in the Middle East and the Bulgarian women's movement. Washburn teaches Japanese and comparative literature and Reinhart teaches religion; both are at Dartmouth College in New Hampshire. (Annotation ©2007 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)
Conundrums of humanity; the quest for global justice.
Power (foreign correspondent for the International Herald Tribune) draws on his long experience in observing international affairs in order to analyze 11 separate "conundrums" of the recent international order, including whether "we" (globally speaking presumably) can: avoid a clash of civilizations, allow for the free movement of people, diminish war, get rid of nuclear weapons, push the frontier of human rights observance, and feed all the people. He also asks whether human rights can be pursued by making war, whether the United Nations is up to its chartered mission, how far human development can progress, whether Africa has a future, and whether China will dominate the coming century. He has a generally positive outlook on the answers to these questions, even while noting that many challenges remain. Martinus Nijhoff is an imprint of Brill. (Annotation ©2007 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)
Cultural rights in international law; Article 27 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and beyond.
This volume analyzes the relatively neglected international legal area of cultural rights: the right to participate in cultural life, which is enshrined in article 27 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and Article 16 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. The author reviews these and other international legal instruments, international practice, and the role of United Nations organizations in the promotion and implementation of cultural rights. She also makes an argument for renewed attention to the importance of cultural rights as central to many long-term problems of human development and conflict and provides recommendations on strengthening international promotion and protection of cultural rights. Martinus Nijhoff is an imprint of Brill. (Annotation ©2007 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)
Denmark and the Crusades, 1400-1650.
In this revision of his PhD thesis (2005, U. of Southern Denmark, where he now teaches), Jensen presents a thorough account of the participation of Denmark in crusading activities from 1400-1650. He examines the impact of crusade politics and ideology on the political fabric of Denmark, papal and local taxation for the crusades, the Hussite crusades, the crusading activities of Christian I against the Turks, the preaching of the crusades in Denmark, and crusading activity after the Reformation. A separate chapter is devoted to the crusades and Greenland, including a section on Danish crusades to India (which they, like the Portuguese, believed could be reached by sailing towards Greenland). A substantial bibliography is provided. (Annotation ©2007 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)
Deviancy in early rabbinic literature: a collection of socio-anthropological essays.
Fishbane (Jewish studies, Touro College) assembles 11 essays that summarize his research in early rabbinic literature over the past 20 years. He examines people primarily in the Mishnah, Tosefta, and Talmud who engaged in behavior that diverged from what was considered normal in their society. His topics include female sorceresses in the Babylonian Talmud, the physically handicapped in the Mishnah, and rituals and the Israelite soldier in the Torah and the Mishnah. (Annotation ©2007 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)
