This paper explains the meaning and significance of violence in Georges Sorel’s Reflections on Violence (1908) through an examination of three distinctions that structure the book. First between the proletarian strike and the merely political strike; second between myth and utopia; third between violence and force. The paper looks to Sorel’s ear…[Read more]

Georges Sorel’s ideas about education are key to making sense of his critique of the Third Republic. Cutting across the heated debates over classical as opposed to modern curricula, Sorel drew on a complex account of the nature of scientific knowledge to offer a sustained defense of education within the factory and on the picket line as a source o…[Read more]

Cet artcle défend l’idée que, dans la pensée sociale de Sorel, la production artistique, de même que la catégorie de l’esthétique dans sa philosophie, revêtent beaucoup plus d’importance qu’on ne l’a pensé jusqu’à présent. Giambattista Vico est le principal auteur sur lequel s’appuie Sorel pour introduire l’esthétique dans l’analyse de la réali…[Read more]

A survey of Buddhism in Japan from roughly the time of its introduction into the mid-ninth century. The following topics are covered:
The Introduction of Buddhism to Japan – Transmission Myths – The Myth of Prince Shōtoku – The Myth of a Buddhist-Shintō Rivalry – Temples in and around the Capital – Provincial Temples – The Order of Nuns – Female…[Read more]

Syllabus for 2022 version of my course: Zen Buddhism.