Social Science

A Novel Narration of Religious Conversion

Craig Harline knows that history can be boring. He regrets the way in which many historians, himself included, often “write only for each other, in our special language” or “choose to write about subjects that are not exactly obvious in their relevance.” Accordingly, Harline’s Conversions: Two Family Stories from the

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Leila Ahmed on the History of the Veil

Leila Ahmed is best known as the first professor of women’s studies at Harvard Divinity School. In 1992, Yale University Press published her seminal book, Women and Gender in Islam, establishing the discourse for contemporary gender analysis in the historical and social contexts of Islam. Her latest book, A Quiet

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David Margolick on Writing the Story of Elizabeth and Hazel

Today, we officially publish David Margolick’s new biography, Elizabeth and Hazel: Two Women of Little Rock, looking at one of the most unforgettable photographs of the civil rights era and recounting the impact on the lives of Elizabeth Eckford and Hazel Bryan Massery. We’ve shown you the book trailer, and

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Lest We Forget: The Evolution of Dignity

Follow @yaleSCIbooks Sarah Underwood— For ninety-five percent of human’s existence on earth, people generally respected each other’s dignity. As hunter-gatherers, humans had to protect themselves from wild animals and the elements. It made little sense for others of our own species to become extra enemies. For the last five percent

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Book Trailer for Elizabeth and Hazel, by David Margolick

As we look back on this month’s Education theme, and reflect on the challenges and joys that face us every day in our learning, we should remember that American education was quite different not so very long ago.The desegregation of schools that began with the landmark US Supreme Court Case,

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Adam Bradley Asks: Is Rap Poetry? Is It Good Poetry?

Adam Bradley— Last fall saw the publication of The Anthology of Rap, a collection that I co-edited with Andrew DuBois. The book gathers nearly 300 lyrics by dozens of artists from across rap’s four decades. Our purpose was to highlight rap’s development as a literary art form by underscoring the

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Bob Morris Interviews Mary C. Gentile about Giving Voice to Values

Mary C. Gentile is quite popular. At the end of our series on her book, Giving Voice to Values: How to Speak Your Mind When You Know What’s Right, we had planned a Q&A with the author on the key points, but putting that on hold for the immediate moment,

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Who Says You Can’t Rewrite The History of the World?

Since you’ve been enjoying our contests and Nigel Warburton’s post on how E.H. Gombrich inspired his new book, we thought we’d try one more challenge for our readers, celebrating the new illustrated edition of A Little History of the World. So it’s not a rewrite, per se, (though the book

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Excerpt and Free Material from Giving Voice to Values

If you’re reading up on business practices, or even preparing for next semester’s leadership seminars, now is the time to start looking at Mary C. Gentile’s Giving Voice to Values. The questions she raises in her book (and on this blog): How do we motivate ethical decisions in business practices,

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Nigel Warburton on How E.H. Gombrich Inspired A Little History of Philosophy

As we are soon to publish A Little History of Philosophy, a lively and accessible introduction to Western philosophy and its thinkers, author Nigel Warburton reflects on his first encounter with the works of the eminent art historian, Ernst Gombrich, who wrote the bestselling A Little History of the World,

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