Blood Rites
Origins and History of the Passions of War

Blood Rites: Origins and History of the Passions of War covers the development of war from the prehistoric people who were at first the prey of larger animals and to the early 1990s when some thought that war had become outmoded with the advent of nuclear weapons so horribly destructive that we woul......more

It is a major feat to make war boring. Ehrenreich is attempting here (or so it seems) to walk the thin line between academic rigor and readability; she has not succeeded in the latter, and, as a self-described amateur, she undoubtedly has also fallen shot of the former. It's a shame, really. Ehrenrei......more

It's been almost 40 years since the "end of history" as professed by Francis Fukuyama, yet wars are still happening in some major flashpoints in the world. In Blood Rites, Barbara Ehrenreich presents interesting research into humanity’s relationship with war, tracing its roots to ancient rituals and......more

Potencjalne powody, dla których ludzkość prowadzi wojny od tysiącleci. Poparte wieloma mitami, opowieściami i wyobrażeniami uwiecznionymi w kulturach wielu cywilizacji. Z książki wynika, że kiedy już staliśmy się drapieżcami i łowcami, a duże zwierzęta zaczęły w mezolicie wymierać, to gatunek ludzki......more

Wow! I was already a fan of Barbara Ehrenreich, based on her more recent work, when this book caught my eye. This is a thoughtful, skeptical, probing, thorough exploration of one of the most important and puzzling problems our species faces. Dr. Ehrenreich makes a strong argument for turning some of......more