In the Name of Identity by Amin Maalouf
I want to try and understand why so many people commit crimes in the name of identity, writes Amin Maalouf. Identity is the crucible out of which we come: our background, our race, our gender, our tribal affiliations, our religion (or lack thereof), all go into making up who we are. All too often, however, the notion of identity--personal, religious, ethnic, or national--has given rise to heated passions and even massive crimes. Moving across the world's history, faiths, and politics, he argues against an oversimplified and hostile interpretation of the concept. He cogently and persuasively examines identity in the context of the modern world, where it can be viewed as both glory and poison. Evident here are the dangers of using identity as a protective--and therefore aggressive--mechanism, the root of racial, geographical, and colonialist subjugation throughout history.Maalouf contends that many of us would reject our inherited conceptions of identity, to which we cling through habit, if only we examined them more closely. The future of society depends on accepting all identities, while recognizing our individualism.
Amin Maalouf was born in Beirut to a Christian family. He worked as an international reporter before the Lebanese civil war broke out in 1975 and he relocated to Paris. Maalouf's novels and book-length essays have been translated into nearly forty languages, and he has also written four opera librettos. His awards include the Prix Goncourt for his 1993 novel The Rock of Tanios and Spain's Prince of Asturias Award for Literature in 2010.
| SKU | Unavailable |
| ISBN 13 | 9781559705936 |
| ISBN 10 | 1559705930 |
| Title | In the Name of Identity |
| Author | Amin Maalouf |
| Condition | Unavailable |
| Publisher | Arcade Publishing |
| Year published | 2001-09-14 |
| Number of pages | 164 |
| Cover note | Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary. |
| Note | Unavailable |