Final Solutions Human Nature, Capitalism and Genocide

Disturbing yet enlightening... The great merit of Sagall's work is that he reveals both the differences and the commonalities that mark the history of genocide. His thesis is that neither a socio-political nor a psychological analysis will suffice, but that a combination of the two is needed. On this basis, Sagall reveals the overarching structures and logics that unite the various events he examines, but also the unique internal history of each episode and the terror lying as its core. -- Kevin Kenny, Professor of History, Boston College Sagall illuminates that hottest button of topics - modern genocide - with a superb investigation that persuasively gives due weight in each instance to the mix of material bases and psychological factors at lethal play. No one has made so cogent a case for a Marxist analysis. Both academic experts and general readers can benefit from this lucid comparative study of the motivations underlying mass murder in the Americas, Nazi-occupied Europe, Armenia, and Rwanda. -- Kurt Jacobsen, University of Chicago, author of 'Pacification and Its Discontents' (2010) and 'Freud's Foes' (2009)