Research Catalog

Title

Imperfection / Patrick Grant.

Author

Grant, Patrick, 1941-

Publication

Edmonton : AU Press, c2012.

Supplementary Content

Publisher description

Items in the Library & Off-site

Details

Description

xiii, 227 p.; 23 cm.

Summary

""... aspirations to perfection awaken us to our actual imperfection." It is in the space between these aspirations and our inability to achieve them that Grant reflects upon imperfection. Grant argues that an awareness of imperfection, defined as both suffering and the need for justice, drives us to an unrelenting search for perfection, freedom, and selfdetermination. The twenty-one brief chapters of Imperfection develop this governing idea as it relates to the present situation of the God debate, modern ethnic conflicts, and the pursuit of freedom in relation to the uncertainties of personal identity and the quest for self-determination. Known for his exploration of the relationship between Buddhism and violent ethnic conflict in modern Sri Lanka, as well as his contribution to the study of Northern Ireland and the complex relationships among religion, literature, and ethnicity, Grant provides the reader with an analysis of the widespread rise of religious extremism across the globe. Referencing Plato, Van Gogh, Jesus, and the Buddha, he enlightens the reader with both succinct and original insights into human society. Imperfection is the result of an important Canadian public intellectual at work."--Publisher's website.

Series Statement

Cultural dialectics, 1915-836X

Uniform Title

Cultural dialectics.

Subjects

• Philosophy > History
• Self
• Imperfection
• Ethnic conflict > Religious aspects
• Criticism
• Philosophical theology

Bibliography (note)

• Includes bibliographical references.

Additional Formats (note)

• Issued also in electronic formats.

Contents

Part 1: Imperfection. Plato and the Limits of Idealism ; The Van Gogh Letters: The Art of the Unfinished ; The Trouble with Visions ; Northern Ireland, Sri Lanka, and Regressive Inversion ; Osama, Theo, and the Burnt Fool's Bandaged Finger ; What the Buddha Didn't Say ; Not So Good News: The Gospel According to Mark. Part 2: Self. Immortal Souls and State Executions ; The Eyes Have It: Seeing One's Self and Others ; The God of Battles and the Irish Dimension of Shakespeare's Henry V ; Crucifying Harry: Victims, Scapegoats, and the Northern Ireland Troubles ; Talking to the Cyclops: On Violence and Self-Destruction ; Doing Nothing About It: Taoism, Selflessness, and Non-Action ; Cliff Jumpers and Delta Dwellers: On Religious Language and Commitment. Part 3: Freedom. Dr. Johnson, Freedom, and the Book of Psalms ; Sex, Society, and Romeo and Juliet ; Cartoons from Denmark and the March of the Zombies ; Vergil and the Almighty Dollar ; Endgame in Sri Lanka: Dharmapala's Legacy and Rajapaksa's War ; Jung and The Secret of the Golden Flower ; Kieslowski's Red: Fraternity in the Making.

Call Number

JFE 12-6446

ISBN

• 9781926836751
• 1926836758

LCCN

2012452380

OCLC

779683223

Author

Grant, Patrick, 1941-

Title

Imperfection / Patrick Grant.

Imprint

Edmonton : AU Press, c2012.

Series

Cultural dialectics, 1915-836X

Cultural dialectics.

Bibliography

Includes bibliographical references.

Additional Formats

Issued also in electronic formats.

Connect to:

Publisher description

Research Call Number

JFE 12-6446