Books by Luc (Ecole des hautes etudes en sciences sociales Boltanski

* Abortion is a contentious issue in social life but it has rarely been subjected to careful scrutiny in the social sciences. Here, Boltanski, a leading sociologist, seeks to develop a sociology of birth and abortion. * He draws on reports gathered from hospital settings and in-depth interviews with women who have had abortions.

* This is a major new work of social theory by one of the leading sociologists in France today. Formerly a close collaborator of Pierre Bourdieu, Luc Boltanski has gone on to develop his own distinctive brand of critical, pragmatic sociology. * His recent book The New Spirit of Capitalism is widely recognized as a major work.

* A major new book by one of the world s leading sociologists. * Forms the basis for the path-breaking work that Boltanski has developed over the past 20 years, work that has examined the moral foundations of society in and through the forms of everyday conflict.

What is the morally acceptable response to images of starving children, bombed villages and mass graves brought to us by television? Luc Boltanski discusses the ways in which spectators have tried to respond to what they have seen and asks if there remains a place for pity in modern politics.