Customer Reviews

A sign for Cain: An exploration of human violence

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The chapter "A Geranium in the Window" is one of the best available studies of the major role psychiatry played in the development and implementation of the genocide program of the Nazi's. For anyone interested in the real history of psychiatry and psychiatric research, this book would be very valuable.

It is undeniable the violence invades over and over the social life of the mankind, much more than they want to believe. This book is a generous, wide and erudite analysis of the violence in all its aspects: Wertham is a very illustrated man and uses not only sociology and psychology studies but also criminality issues , history, art and literature. He understands the violence not only in its profound historic complexity, but besides he focuses on the quotidian simplicity: from the toys, in mass media and even in the political murderers, in the mutinies and the ineffable wars. All issues are different but somehow are correlated. He proposes to find its internal connections and carve in relief the latent violence under the mask that retain. There are so may unknown, interweaved and unthinkable points of view that you will find important material to discuss and reflect.
Even the first edition dates from 1966, the book remains as a must reference for those who are really interested in that crucial theme.