WithAncestor of the West, three distinguished French historians reveal the story of the birth of writing and reason, demonstrating how the logical religious structures of Near Eastern and Mesopotamian cultures served as precursors to those of the West.
Full of matter for anyone interested in language, religion, and politics in the ancient world. —R. T. Ridley,Journal of Religious History
In this accessible introduction to the ancient world, three leading French scholars explore the emergence of rationality and writing in the West, tracing its development and its survival in our own traditions. . . . Jean Bottero focuses on writing and religion in ancient Mesopotamia, Clarisse Herrenschmidt considers a broader history of ancient writing, and Jean-Pierre Vernant examines classical Greek civilization in the context of Near Eastern history. —Translation Review
Jean Bottérois director emeritus of L'École Pratique des Hautes Études in Paris. He is the author of many books, several of which have been translated and published by the University of Chicago Press, includingMesopotamia: Writing, Reasoning, and the Gods.
Full of matter for anyone interested in language, religion, and politics in the ancient world. —R. T. Ridley,Journal of Religion
With this book, three distinguished French historians tell the story of the birth of writing and reason, explaining how the logical and religious structures of Near Eastern and Mesopotamian cultures served as precursors to those of the West.
Foreword by François Zabbal
Translator's Note
PART ONE: RELIGION AND REASONING IN MESOPOTAMIA
Jean Bottéro
1. The Birth of Civilization
2. First Writing
3. The Intelligence of the World
4. The Gods: A Reasonable Religion
PART TWO: WRITING BETWEEN VISIBLE AND INVISIBLE WORLDS IN IRAN, ISRAEL, AND GREECE
Clarisse HerrlÓ
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