A valuable study of what the term "genocide" means - and what the concept should include. To solve the problem of precision, UCLA emeritus professor Kuper starts with the UN Convention on Genocide (1948). There, genocide was defined as any of the following acts "committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group, as such": killing members of the group, or causing them serious physical or mental harm; prevention of birth within the group, or transfer of children out of the group; infliction of conditions calculated to bring death or destruction to the group. By tracing the path of this document through the UN, Kuper shows the political processes that helped narrow the concept of genocide. For example, the West wanted a provision labeling the destruction of political groups as genocide, but the Soviets blocked it; conversely, the Soviets wanted cultural genocide included, and the West blocked that. Kuper concludes that nations don't want to block their own possible future actions - and argues that political groups should be included in the definition. Then, accepting the UN definition as a starting point, he turns his attention (via historical instances of genocide) to the 20th century and the nature of genocide. It is a feature of plural societies, he contends - of societies that contain "persistent and pervasive cleavages" between the racial, ethnic, and/or religious groups that compose them. In cases of extreme pluralism, the divisions between these groups are overlaid with divisions between power, and genocide is one possible means by which an elite can maintain itself. The classic case of this is the Turkish massacre of its subject Armenians, the first of two cases Kuper explores in some depth. The second, the German extermination of Europe's Jews, differed in degree; it knew no national boundary, employed more sophisticated technology, had a more developed

The impact of technology-enhanced mass death in the twentieth century, argues Zachary Braiterman, has profoundly affected the future shape of religious thought. In his provocative book, the author shows how key Jewish theologians faced the memory of Auschwitz by rejecting traditional theodicy, abandoning any attempt to justify and vindicate the relationship between God and catastrophic suffering. The author terms this rejection "Antitheodicy," the refusal to accept that relationship. It finds voice in the writings of three particular theologians: Richard Rubenstein, Eliezer Berkovits, and Emil Fackenheim. This book is the first to bring postmodern philosophical and literary approaches into conversation with post-Holocaust Jewish thought. Drawing on the work of Mieke Bal, Harold Bloom, Jacques Derrida, Umberto Eco, Michel Foucault, and others, Braiterman assesses how Jewish intellectuals reinterpret Bible and Midrash to re-create religious thought for the age after Auschwitz. In this process, he provides a model for reconstructing Jewish life and philosophy in the wake of the Holocaust. His work contributes to the postmodern turn in contemporary Jewish studies and today's creative theology.

Josef Korbel, whose career encompasses both scholarly and diplomatic roles, presents a crisp, up-to-date survey of postwar relations between East and West. Seeking analytic, reasoned answers to the question of détente, he discusses in detail the changes in mood, policy, and practice that have occurred and are occurring. What exactly does rapprochement mean to the U.S.S.R., the U.S., East and West Europe? Is its primary objective the relaxing of tension or the achievement of security? the expansion of national interests? ideological conversion? reduction of Soviet influence? What have been the practical results of the policy of detente in the political, economic, and cultural spheres? What are the "realities" of the situation? Are the Western and Eastern blocs willing to consider a general European settlement? What effect did the Czechoslovak invasion have? What of the future? The heart of Mr. Korbel's discussion is the cornerstone of a détente edifice, West Germany's Ostpolitik, her rapprochement strategies. His reasonable conclusion looks to the future: the assets, dangers, and prospects of détente for the peace-keeping of Europe. Originally published in 1972. The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.

A revised paperback edition of composer George Rochberg's landmark essays "Rochberg presents the rare spectacle of a composer who has made his peace with tradition while maintaining a strikingly individual profile. . . . [H]e succeeds in transforming the sublime concepts of traditional music into contemporary language." --- Washington Post "An indispensable book for anyone who wishes to understand the sad and curious fate of music in the twentieth century." --- Atlantic Monthly "The writings of George Rochberg stand as a pinnacle from which our past and future can be viewed." --- Kansas City Star As a composer, George Rochberg has played a leading role in bringing about a transformation of contemporary music through a reassessment of its relation to tonality, melody, and harmony. In The Aesthetics of Survival , the author addresses the legacy of modernism in music and its related effect on the cultural milieu, particularly its overemphasis on the abstract, rationalist thinking embraced by contemporary science, technology, and philosophy. Rochberg argues for the renewal of holistic values in order to ensure the survival of music as a humanly expressive art. A renowned composer, thinker, and teacher, George Rochberg has been honored with innumerable awards, including, most recently, an Alfred I. du Pont Award for Outstanding Conductors and Composers, and an André and Clara Mertens Contemporary Composer Award. He lives in Pennsylvania.