This new edition of the highly acclaimed study on the causes of war has been expanded and updated to include a complete discussion of World War II and the road towards nuclear war. Analyzing all international wars since 1700; this widely quoted work solves the riddle of why some wars are long and some are short; and demonstrates how the outbreak of peace offers insight into the outbreak of war. Proving that war and peace are alternating phases of a relationship between rival nations; it offers a crucial; new understanding of international armed conflict.
#1392169 in Books 2006-12-12 2006-12-12Original language:EnglishPDF # 22 20.25 x 18.00 x 14.00l; 101.00 #File Name: 002865928717000 pages
Review
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful. major disappointmentBy avrabaKeep your old edition of the Judaica- It's far better. Though there is new material here; it's not an enjoyable experience to trace or find this- You would be unlikely to find important new comments or analysis and you will not wish to browse/generally read through the entries as you might in a good encyclopeadia; such as the old Jewish encyclopedia (16 vols) of the early 1900's (Funk Wagnells) or the 12 Vol. (American) Jewish encyclopaedia- I do not understand how anyone could contemplate in this way a second edition of the 1970's Judaica decide to remove virtually all the illustrations !! The editors took on too ambitious a project for their skills and simply failed. One of the reviewers mentioned that this "update" (of more than 30 years) "was done in 2 years; yet it could have taken 20 years": Well; this shows exactly the problem- a proper work of this scale needed more time; this update was simply rushed and its lack of depth and poor finish; aesthetically otherwise; is all too apparent.48 of 48 people found the following review helpful. A Series of DisappointmentsBy Werner CohnMy first disappointment: The wealth of illustration of the first edition is virtually gone. You can still find a treatment of Eliezer Ben-Yehuda; of course; but you will not see the great picture of him with his wife Hemdah; taken in 1912. Nor will you find the many other similar pictorial treasures of the first edition. If you must buy this edition; be sure to find a place on your shelves for the old one as well.My second disappointment: The shoddy treatment of bibliographies. There are; to be sure; lists of books that are appended to the various articles. But there is no annotation. A bibliography without annotation; as it has been said so well; is like a body without a soul. These lists of books will not make it easy for anyone in search of knowledge to find the more helpful sources. But here the new editors have an excuse; if that is what you would call it: the first edition was just as bad in this regard.My third disappointment: The new knowledge of the last 35 years; insofar as it finds its way into this new work; is often just appended as additions to the old articles. Even where new knowledge revolutionizes the old; the old is still accorded honor of precedent. What was obviously called for is a complete reworking; but this is not what the editors have done.My fourth disappointment: At least some of the newer material is so superficial that it is useless for any scholarly purpose. I looked up "Exodus;" hoping to find what archaeologists and historians have to say about the Biblical account. The article says; flatly; that it is the scholarly consensus that the Biblical Exodus is "unhistorical;" meaning; I suppose; that it never happened. The article gives no reference to any archaeologist or historian; nor to any book or other article that would throw light on the subject. What can a student make of this ? Simply take on faith the word of the EJ II ? This is no way to write a work of reference. The writer of this article would receive a failing grade; easily; if he presented it for credit at a university.There are of course many good things in this new work; and I am sure that with more time and perhaps more inclination I could have found many more than I did.One good set of articles is about the Ethiopian Jews; even though it is not easy to find it unless you happen to know that the group is now called Beta Israel. The articles are by Steven Kaplan and his associates. Kaplan undoubtedly knows more about the subject than almost anyone else. But even here the EJ II's sloppy method of documentation gets in the way. As it happens; there is a small number of other scholars who have made seminal contributions to this subject; notably Kay Shelemay and James Quirin. Neither of these is mentioned by EJ II.This work is serious enough - just - to constitute a required purchase for any general research library. If it was the aim of the editors to achieve this minimum; they have succeeded. But it does not seem that they will win any warm admiration of scholars. That; in my book; makes the work a failure; a squandered opportunity.15 of 16 people found the following review helpful. A preliminary report on a vital reference work for all those who take interest in the Jewish worldBy Shalom FreedmanI am writing this preliminary review of 'Judaica' in the hope that it can be of some help to potential purchasers and future readers of the work. No one asked me to write this review but the readers of it should know that I wrote five relatively small entries for the Encyclopedia; and am not thus a wholly unbiased reviewer.Primarily though I do not so much intend to present my opinion but rather to report on one of the Encyclopedia's principal editors; Michael Berenbaum has to say about the Encyclopedia. I will I hope accurately paraphrase remarks he made about the 'Encyclopedia' in a talk given at the 'Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs' on February 19; 2007.Michael Berenbaum says that the editors aimed to preserve the quality of the original Judaica while accurately reflecting the major changes that have taken place in the past thirty- five years in the Jewish world. In this regard one full- volume of the Encyclopedia is dedicated solely to dynamic and rapidly developing Israel. Berenbaum stressed that the Encyclopedia strongly reflects the changes that Feminism have brought in the past thirty- five years. There are three hundred new entries devoted to Jewish women. Many major entries such as the Gershom Scholem entry on 'Jewish Mysticism' were republished but augmented by a report on the work that has occurred since. In the 'Jewish Mysticism ' area Scholem's work was complemented by the work of a leading figure in the field. Prof. Moshe Idel.Berenbaum said that the world of Jewish learning has vastly expanded in the past thirty - five years. In 1972 there were only a few universities which had Jewish Studies programs. Now there are hundreds of scholars in the area. This means new work is being done in many different areas.Berenbaum stresses the vastness of the world of Jewish learning; the impossibilty of any single scholar comprehending it. He is however filled with admiration for the creativity in all areas of life displayed by the Jewish people and believes this is reflected within the 'Encyclopedia' itself.Berenbaum compliments the chief - editor of the work Fred Skolnik who he calls a Renaissance Man of Jewish studies. He notes that this update was done in two years but that it could have taken twenty. The relative speed is in part attributable to the new technologies ( Internet; E-mail; Fax) which did not exist thirty- five years agoI cannot at this point honestly vouch for the quality of the work which has been done.I expect however that in months and years ahead I will be turning to the New Judaica. As one interested in the 'Jewish world' I cannot count the number of times the 1972 Edition provided vital information for my own work. I expect the new Judaica will do the same for many thousands of researchers; and readers.
