Introduction; Part I The Martyrs of Antiquity; Chapter 1 The Passionate Witness; Chapter 2 “The Blood of Christians Is Seed”; Part II The Rise of the Warrior-Martyr; Chapter 3 The Spirit of Jihad; Chapter 4 The Crusades, the Templars, and the Assassins; Chapter 5 The Khalsa Sikhs and the “Game of Love”; Part III Martyr-Warriors; Chapter 6 The Divine Wind; Part IV The New Predatory Martyrs; Chapter 7 The Black Tigers of Sri Lanka; Chapter 8 Dispersal and Occupation; Chapter 9 Intifada; Chapter 10 Predatory Martyrs and the Rejection of Innocence; Chapter 11 The Martyr’s Smile; Chapter 12 Some Thoughts on the Future of Martyrdom;
Hugh Barlow is Professor Emeritus and Director of Criminal Justice Studies at Southern Illinois University, Edwardsville. He is the author, most recently, of Criminal Justice in America (Prentice-Hall 2000).
“An easily accessible account of the development of martyrdom, Dead
for Good makes an important contribution to the history of
religious violence. Reminicient of the work of Karen Armstrong and
Elaine Pagels, Hugh Barlow presents a masterful account of how
religion, death and sacrifice developed into the cult of martyrdom
of today. Dead for Good traces the development of martyrdom from
its earliest incarnation, presenting previously overlooked cases by
including religiously motivated altrustic self sacrifice as well as
the use of martyrdom for political purposes and for terrorism. A
must read for people interested in the subject.”
—Mia Bloom, School of International Affairs, University of Georgia
and author of Dying to Kill: The Allure of Suicide Terror
“Hugh Barlow’s own fascination with voluntary “martyrdom” led him
to take us on a fascinating journey, riding the time-machine from
Socrates’ famous absorption of a cup of hemlock to present-day
“suicide attacks” in the Middle East. Thoroughly researched, yet
full of novel-like gripping narratives, this book succeeds in
giving the reader a glimpse of what might happen in the mind of
candidates to “martyrdom” while never loosing sight of the overall
context that brings this phenomenon into being, and fuels it.”
- Gilbert Achcar, author of The Clash of Barbarisms
“Hugh Barlow is a gifted writer. In this book he uses his skills as
a renowned sociologist to bring the reader a refreshing and
engaging analysis of a phenomenon that has scared but at the same
time fascinated the world for decades. This is a must-read for
anyone who is interested in understanding martyrdom operations from
a broad historical and cultural perspective.”
—Ami Pedahzur, The University of Texas at Austin, author of Suicide
Terrorism
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