The need for roots : prelude to a declaration of duties towards mankind / translated by Arthur Wills ; with a preface by T. S. Eliot

Weil, Simone

ISBN 10: 0415271029 / ISBN 13: 9780415271028

Published by Abingdon: Routledge, 2002

About this Item

Weil, Simone. The need for roots : prelude to a declaration of duties towards mankind / translated by Arthur Wills ; with a preface by T. S. Eliot. Abingdon: Routledge, 2002 (this copy post-2007). Routledge Classics Series. Paperback, near fine. Previous price label to reverse. Binding strong and tight. xvi, 298pp. + publisher advertisements. Contents clean and bright. The Need for Roots was first published in French in 1949, titled L'Enracinement. The first English translation was published in 1952. Like all of Weil's books, it was published posthumously. The work diagnoses the causes of the social, cultural and spiritual malaise which Weil saw as afflicting 20th century civilisation, particularly Europe but also the rest of the world. 'Uprootedness' is defined as a near universal condition resulting from the destruction of ties with the past and the dissolution of community. Weil specifies the requirements that must be met so that peoples can once again feel rooted, in a cultural and spiritual sense, to their environment and to both the past and to expectations for the future. The book discusses the political, cultural and spiritual currents that ought to be nurtured so that people have access to sources of energy which will help them lead fulfilling, joyful and morally good lives. A leading theme is the need to recognise the spiritual nature of work. RightWayUp Books aims to provide accurate and detailed descriptions. All images are of the actual book for sale - no stock images are ever used. Thank you for looking at this listing.

Seller Inventory # ABE-1737981402764

Bibliographic Details

• Title: The need for roots : prelude to a declaration of duties towards mankind / translated by Arthur Wills ; with a preface by T. S. Eliot
• Publisher: Abingdon: Routledge
• Publication Date: 2002
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0415271029
• ISBN 13: 9780415271028
• Binding: Soft cover
• Condition: Near Fine
• Seller catalogs:
  • Religion and spirituality
  • Politics
  • Philosophy

About this title

Synopsis

Hailed by Andre Gide as the patron saint of all outsiders, Simone Weil's short life was ample testimony to her beliefs. In 1942 she fled France along with her family, going firstly to America. She then moved back to London in order to work with de Gaulle. Published posthumously The Need for Roots was a direct result of this collaboration. Its purpose was to help rebuild France after the war. In this, her most famous book, Weil reflects on the importance of religious and political social structures in the life of the individual. She wrote that one of the basic obligations we have as human beings is to not let another suffer from hunger. Equally as important, however, is our duty towards our community: we may have declared various human rights, but we have overlooked the obligations and this has left us self-righteous and rootless. She could easily have been issuing a direct warning to us today, the citizens of Century 21.

About the Author

Simone Weil (1909-1943). A political theorist and activist, a revolutionary and a philosopher and religious mystic. She starved herself to death in protest against the Nazi occupation of France.