Evolution and Conversion Dialogues on the Origins of Culture [Paperback]

Evolution and Conversionexplores the main tenets of Ren? Girard's thought in a series of dialogues. Here, Girard reflects on the evolution of his thought and offers striking new insights on topics such as violence, religion, desire and literature. His long argument is a historical one in which the origin of culture and religion is reunited in the contemporary world by means of a reinterpretation of Christianity and an understanding of the intrinsically violent nature of human beings. He also offers provocative re-readings of Biblical and literary texts and responds to statements by Daniel Dennett and Richard Dawkins. Including an introduction by the authors, this is a revealing text by one of the most original thinkers of our time.

Contents
Acknowledgements
Foreword
Introduction: 'One long argument from the beginning to the end'
Pierpaolo Antonello and Joao Cezar Castro Rocha

1 The Life of the Mind
2 'A Theory by Which to Work': The Mimetic Mechanism
3 The Symbolic Species
4 Dialogues and Criticism: From Frazer to Levi-Strauss
5 Method, Evidence and Truth
6 The Scandal of Christianity
7 Modernity, Postmodernity and Beyond

Chronology of Girard's Life
List of Girard's Publications
Index

Ren? Girard(1923-) was Andrew B. Hammond Professor Emeritus of French Language, Literature, and Civilization at Stanford University, USA, from 1981 to his retirement in 1995. A historian, literary critic and philosopher, he is the author of over 30 books includingViolence and the Sacred.