Communities of Violence

By David Nirenberg ,

Book cover of Communities of Violence: Persecution of Minorities in the Middle Ages

Book description

In the wake of modern genocide, we tend to think of violence against minorities as a sign of intolerance, or, even worse, a prelude to extermination. Violence in the Middle Ages, however, functioned differently, according to David Nirenberg. In this provocative book, he focuses on specific attacks against minorities in…

When you buy books, we may earn a commission that helps keep our lights on (or join the rebellion as a member).

Why read it?

1 author picked Communities of Violence as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

This is a scholarly book, beautifully written but challenging both in its exposition and argument. Grounded in deep archival research, Nirenberg examines violence against religious minorities—Jews and Muslims—in the lands of the Christian Crown of Aragon in northeastern Spain and southern France. Navigating between rose-tinted and bleak accounts of this past, he makes the surprising argument that the long coexistence between Jews, Christians, and Muslims depended on regular and almost ritualistic violence between them. Violence, he proposes, enabled peace.

If you love Communities of Violence...

Ad

Book cover of The Beatles and the 1960s: Reception, Revolution, and Social Change

The Beatles and the 1960s by Kenneth L. Campbell,

The Beatles are widely regarded as the foremost and most influential music band in history and their career has been the subject of many biographies. Yet the band's historical significance has not received sustained academic treatment to date. In The Beatles and the 1960s, Kenneth L. Campbell uses The…

Want books like Communities of Violence?

Our community of 12,000+ authors has personally recommended 100 books like Communities of Violence.

Browse books like Communities of Violence

Book cover of The Ornament of the World: How Muslims, Jews, and Christians Created a Culture of Tolerance in Medieval Spain
Book cover of The Dream of the Poem: Hebrew Poetry from Muslim and Christian Spain, 950-1492
Book cover of Medieval Iberia, Second Edition: Readings from Christian, Muslim, and Jewish Sources

Share your top 3 reads of 2024!

And get a beautiful page showing off your 3 favorite reads.

2,354

readers submitted
so far, will you?

Ad

📚 If you like Communities of Violence, you might also like...

Book cover of Doctors at War: The Clandestine Battle against the Nazi Occupation of France

Doctors at War by Ellen Hampton,

Doctors at War: The Clandestine Battle against the Nazi Occupation of France takes readers into the moral labyrinth of the Occupation years, 1940-45, to examine how the medical community dealt with the evil authority imposed on them. Anti-Jewish laws prevented many doctors from practicing, inspiring many to form secret medical…

Book cover of Return to Vienna

Return to Vienna by Peter Dixon,

"Captain Charles Kennedy" parachuted into a moonlit Austrian forest and searched frantically for his lost radio set. His real name was Leo Hillman and he was a Jewish refugee from Vienna. He was going home. Men and women of Churchill’s secret Special Operations Executive worked to free Austria from Hitler's…

5 book lists we think you will like!

Interested in the Middle Ages, Spain, and France?

The Middle Ages 445 books
Spain 206 books
France 968 books