Purify and Destroy: The Political Uses of Massacre and Genocide

Jacques Semelin

Paper, 352 pages,
ISBN: 978-0-231-14283-0
$24.50

September, 2007
Cloth, 352 pages,
ISBN: 978-0-231-14282-3
$30.50

"This book is a major accomplishment in the study of genocide. Semelin explores the deep cause, specific triggers, political and international context, dynamics of implementation, nature of killing, and political uses of genocide as a modern phenomenon." — Omer Bartov, Brown University, and author of Mirrors of Destruction: War, Genocide, and Modern Identity

"[An] outstanding contribution to the field of genocide studies." — Nafeez Mosaddeq Ahmed, International Affairs

"[A] must-read for those who want to seriously engage the problem of genocide and massacre in rigorous and systematic fashion." — Eric A. Heinze, Political Science Quarterly

Related Subjects

• Politics and Political Theory
• Race and Ethnicity

Series

• CERI Series in Comparative Politics and International Studies

About the Author

Jacques Semelin is professor of political science and research director at CERI-CNRS in Paris. After having studied civil resistance within Nazi Europe, he developed comparative genocide research and is now exploring processes of reconciliation and prevention. His previously published book in English is Unarmed Against Hitler: Civil Resistance in Europe, 1939-1943, and he is founder of the Online Encyclopedia of Mass Violence.

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