Overview

On October 19, 1876 a group of leading French citizens, both men and women included, joined together to form an unusual group, The Society of Mutual Autopsy, with the aim of proving that souls do not exist. The idea was that, after death, they would dissect one another and (hopefully) show a direct relationship between brain shapes and sizes and the character, abilities and intelligence of individuals. This strange scientific pact, and indeed what we have come to think of as anthropology, which the group's members helped to develop, had its genesis in aggressive, evangelical atheism.With this group as its focus, The End of the Soul is a study of science and atheism in France in late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. It shows that anthropology grew in the context of an impassioned struggle between the forces of tradition, especially the Catholic faith, and those of a more freethinking modernism, and moreover that it became for many a secular religion.Among the adherents of this new faith discussed here are the novelist Emile Zola, the great statesman Leon Gambetta, the American birth control advocate Margaret Sanger, and Arthur Conan Doyle, whose Sherlock Holmes embodied the triumph of ratiocination over credulity. Boldly argued, full of colorful characters and often bizarre battles over science and faith, this book represents a major contribution to the history of science and European intellectual history.

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9780231128469

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Reviews

[Hecht] brings wit and enthusiasm to her densely packed tale of the freethinking anthropologists, who first knew each other as distraught republicans during the Second Empire. -- Nina C. Ayoub, Chronicle of Higher Education Hecht is... a very good writer and a brilliant researcher. Highly recommended for all academic libraries. -- Library Journal A fascinating glimpse of a little-known chapter in French history. -- Publishers Weekly Hecht has given us a very strong account of the republican scientific vision... This book will be richly rewarding to scholars of the Third Republic, to historians of anti-clericalism and of the social sciences, and even to laymen with an interest in the current round of the nature-nurture culture wars about the genome and evolutionary psychology. -- Martin S. Staum, H-France Book Reviews Clearly, this is a superb work, one that captures a major moment in French and European thought with thorough scholarship and literary grace. Highly recommended. -- Choice A comprehensively researched, carefully contextualized, engagingly narrated, and provocatively revelatory book about an underappreciated episode in the history of anthropology and religion. -- George W. Stocking, Journal of Anthropological Research Jennifer Hecht's endlessly fascinating book...A great gift for that special intellectual history buff in your life. -- The Society of Mutual Autopsy The often poignant life-histories she recounts...are one of the real pleasures on offer in this wide-ranging, original study of late nineteenth-century French anthropologists. -- Elizabeth Williams, American Historical Review The book makes a significant contribution and should be of interest not only to historians but to a wider readership interested in the intersection of culture, science, and politics. Hecht has produced a work of impressive erudition. -- Susan Terrio, Anthropological Quarterly Hecht is a vivid writer with a keen eye for the evocative anecdote and the unexpected interconnection... Hecht's book will make provocative reading for historians of science, religion, and republican politics. -- Journal of the History of the Behavioral Sciences The result is a well-researched, persuasive, and engaging contribution to the cultural history of modern France. -- John I. Brooks III, Journal of Modern History

"""[Hecht] brings wit and enthusiasm to her densely packed tale of the freethinking anthropologists, who first knew each other as distraught republicans during the Second Empire."" -- Nina C. Ayoub, Chronicle of Higher Education ""Hecht is... a very good writer and a brilliant researcher. Highly recommended for all academic libraries."" -- Library Journal ""A fascinating glimpse of a little-known chapter in French history."" -- Publishers Weekly ""Hecht has given us a very strong account of the republican scientific vision... This book will be richly rewarding to scholars of the Third Republic, to historians of anti-clericalism and of the social sciences, and even to laymen with an interest in the current round of the nature-nurture culture wars about the genome and evolutionary psychology."" -- Martin S. Staum, H-France Book Reviews ""Clearly, this is a superb work, one that captures a major moment in French and European thought with thorough scholarship and literary grace. Highly recommended."" -- Choice ""A comprehensively researched, carefully contextualized, engagingly narrated, and provocatively revelatory book about an underappreciated episode in the history of anthropology and religion."" -- George W. Stocking, Journal of Anthropological Research ""Jennifer Hecht's endlessly fascinating book...A great gift for that special intellectual history buff in your life."" -- The Society of Mutual Autopsy ""The often poignant life-histories she recounts...are one of the real pleasures on offer in this wide-ranging, original study of late nineteenth-century French anthropologists."" -- Elizabeth Williams, American Historical Review ""The book makes a significant contribution and should be of interest not only to historians but to a wider readership interested in the intersection of culture, science, and politics. Hecht has produced a work of impressive erudition."" -- Susan Terrio, Anthropological Quarterly ""Hecht is a vivid writer with a keen eye for the evocative anecdote and the unexpected interconnection... Hecht's book will make provocative reading for historians of science, religion, and republican politics."" -- Journal of the History of the Behavioral Sciences ""The result is a well-researched, persuasive, and engaging contribution to the cultural history of modern France."" -- John I. Brooks III, Journal of Modern History"

Author Information

Jennifer Michael Hecht is the author of Doubt: A History and two award-winning books of poetry, The Next Ancient World and Funny. She is a contributor to The New York Times and The Washington Post and is a fellow of the New York Institute for the Humanities.

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