La Violence Histoire Sociale

La Violence, une histoire sociale (Violence, a social history) studies the question of crime, and more specifically homicidal violence, between the 16th and 18th centuries. Borrowing conceptual tools from sociology, the author explains the gradual decline in such violence, particularly dueling, by the decline in group attachment. The book shows the weakening of kinship ties and the concomitant tightening of the conjugal bond, as well as the relativization and individuation of honor, driven by a new aspiration for individual fulfillment and happiness.