Cultures of Violence: Interpersonal Violence in Historical Perspective

Thinkers and historians have long perceived violence and its control as integral to the very idea of 'Western Civilization'. While there is an enduring fascination with war and state violence - shelf upon bookshop shelf are lined with the arcana of military history, and degree programmes are now devoted to the study of genocide - historians have been more reticent about studying interpersonal violence, despite the huge role it plays in human affairs. This timely collection, which focuses on the post-medieval West, brings together the latest interdisciplinary and historical research in the field.