Revel, Jean François

Without Marx or Jesus; the new American Revolution has begun by Jean François Revel ( Book )
63 editions published between 1970 and 2002 in 10 languages and held by 1,817 libraries worldwide

How democracies perish by Jean François Revel ( Book )
48 editions published between 1983 and 1987 in 8 languages and held by 1,524 libraries worldwide

The totalitarian temptation by Jean François Revel ( Book )
38 editions published between 1975 and 1986 in 7 languages and held by 1,252 libraries worldwide

Anti-Americanism by Jean François Revel ( Book )
24 editions published between 2002 and 2006 in 4 languages and held by 1,245 libraries worldwide
"After the 9/11 attack on the United States, the brief moment of global sympathy for America soon began giving way to blame. Angered by these assaults on a nation he knows and admires, the distinguished French intellectual Jean-Francois Revel has come to America's defense in Anti-Americanism, a book that (paradoxically, given his country's especially vehement attacks on the U.S. and its policies) spent several weeks late last year on top of France's bestseller list." "Revel sees much anti-Americanism simply as anticapitalism in disguise on the part of those - in Europe and the rest of the world - who are still committed to doctrines that, at heart, are illiberal and even totalitarian. In probing the origins of the notion that America is the source of all evil, he shows how these charges ultimately stem from weakness and envy on the part of those who make them and are a neurotic effort to find an easy explanation for Europe's own loss of status in the post-war era."--BOOK JACKET.

The monk and the philosopher : a father and son discuss the meaning of life by Jean François Revel ( Book )
42 editions published between 1997 and 2005 in 10 languages and held by 1,052 libraries worldwide
The French philosopher and his son, a Buddhist monk, discuss a wide range of issues.

On Proust by Jean François Revel ( Book )
37 editions published between 1960 and 2004 in 3 languages and held by 930 libraries worldwide

The flight from truth : the reign of deceit in the age of information by Jean François Revel ( Book )
31 editions published between 1988 and 2007 in 6 languages and held by 772 libraries worldwide

Culture and cuisine : a journey through the history of food by Jean François Revel ( Book )
30 editions published between 1979 and 2007 in 5 languages and held by 705 libraries worldwide

The French by Jean François Revel ( Book )
14 editions published between 1945 and 1968 in 3 languages and held by 572 libraries worldwide
French author holds a mirror up to his countrymen and condemns their social, cultural, and political life.

Democracy against itself : the future of the democratic impulse by Jean François Revel ( Book )
20 editions published between 1979 and 2004 in 5 languages and held by 519 libraries worldwide
In this remarkable new book - as much a work of political philosophy as a meditation on current affairs - Jean-Francois Revel provides the first complete account of the startling events that have led to the revival of democracy throughout the world. Recalling the "euphoria" that swept the democratic countries after the fall of communism, Revel asks whether it was justified, and he concludes that we came much closer to losing the Cold War than many believe. Indeed, communism fell despite the weakness of the democratic front and the cynicism, self-hatred, and romantic illusions about revolution that have pervaded the Western elites in recent decades. In fascinating detail, Revel masterfully recreates the final phase of the Cold War and argues that the movement to end communism was not a revolution in the ordinary sense, but a reaction against revolution which paved the way for an acceptance of democracy as the only form of government that works. For while admittedly imperfect, democracy is still the only self-correcting system, while totalitarian societies are always forced to the catastrophic end of their own logic. Yet despite this worldwide rejection of utopian illusions, the victory of democracy is by no means historically inevitable. Vigorous alternatives remain, particularly in the Third World, where Islamic fundamentalism offers perhaps the most serious contemporary challenge to democratic values. In order to ensure its success, Revel argues, we must identify our interests with the flourishing of democratic principles. Thus, our foreign aid must place political reforms ahead of economic development, and we must establish a right to intervene in the internal affairs of nondemocratic regimes, respecting only those that are rooted in popular sovereignty. But even under democratic governments, we are unlikely ever to construct a world that is much better than ourselves. That is why the deepest challenge to democracy is a moral and political challenge from within. "Democracy allows free men to be born," Revel concludes, "but only free men allow democracy to last."