Cheran

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Andrew Shail and Gillian Howie

"This collection brings menstruation into the new feminist history of the body. From Aristotle to twentieth-century gynaecological texts, the chapters analyse the ways in which menstruation has been understood inside and beyond Western culture. The twenty studies examine how mythical and scientific knowledges of the body work to produce popular notions about femaleness. They chart the ways in which the historical alteration of menstruation - from magical act through sign of lesser maleness, polluting spiritual weakness, index of sexed being, hygienic calamity, act of consumer flow, to pathological deficiency - has influenced and reflected our relationship with this most ideologically-laden form of blood. They reveal how many cultures and historical periods have pivoted notions of health and sexed identity on ideas about menstruation and expose that, through our cultural texts, we are talking about menstruation all the time."--Jacket.

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Marie-Cécile Thoral

The French declaration of war on Austria on 20 April 1792 committed the nation to more than twenty years of war. Faced with a coalition of European powers, the revolutionaries called upon the citizenry to form a truly national army. The result was an unprecedented tightening of the bond between war and nation. That the conflict would have consequences for the very foundations of French society was inevitable given its sheer scale, duration, and geographical extent (the whole of continental Europe and beyond in the campaigns in Saint-Domingue and Egypt); its far-reaching impact on civilian society and commerce; and its forcible involvement of hundreds of thousands of young Frenchmen. The theme of this book is the first-hand experience of French military and civilians during these conflicts, seen through their eyes and using their testimony, as well as an assessment of the place of the Revolutionary and Napoleonic conflicts in the evolution of the art of warfare, and the elements of modernity which made them the first example of 'total war'.

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Pierre Moulin, Pierre Le Vec, and Linda Dannenberg

From an elegant wine-producer's estate near Saint-Remy to a raggedly beautiful ranch deep in the Camargue to a Renaissance mas in the foothills of the Alps, Pierre Deux's French Country offers a guided tour of the splendors of Provence. Here is a vivid evocation of the Provencal landscape, houses, crafts, and style of living.

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Alex Hughes and Keith Reader

The international team of contributors and consultants have provided over 700 entries offering wide-ranging coverage and crossing the traditional boundaries between disciplines in the humanities and social sciences. French culture is defined in its broadest sense and areas covered include: economy, education, film, food and wine, gender and sexuality, intellectual life, language and identity, literature, media, music, performing arts, politics, religion, society, and visual arts. Entries range from shorter, factual contributions to longer overview essays, and provide an essential context for anyone studying French, readers with an interest in critical theory and anyone pursuing comparative studies in European culture.