Désignant des femmes qui ont des droits et exercent des pouvoirs, le mot domina est fréquemment utilisé par Jérôme dans son traité Contre Jovinien et dans ses correspondances féminines. Les acceptions de ce terme, qui vont de l'épouse à la vierge chrétienne, en passant par la maîtresse des esclaves et la supérieure du monastère, donnent une image très claire du contexte socio-culturel qui les vit naître. Le point commun entre ces différentes occurrences est manifestement l'idéal cher à Jérôme, à savoir (...) le mode de vie inspiré des Pères du désert. Elles font voir à quel point la conversion monastique, qui faisait vivre les femmes de haut rang en compagnie de leurs esclaves, pouvait scandaliser l'aristocratie romaine.The word domina, which designates women who have rights and exercise power, is frequently used by Jerome in his treatise Against Jovinian and in his correspondence with women. The accepted uses of this term, which extend from wife to Christian virgin, including the mistress of slaves and the superior of the monastery, give a very clear image of the socio-cultural context from which they arose. The common point between these different occurrences is manifestly the ideal for Jerome, that is to say, the way of life inspired by the Fathers of the desert. We can see to what point monastic conversion, which had highly placed women live in the company of their slaves, could scandalise the Roman aristocracy. (shrink)

Jane Jacobs’ The Death and Life of Great American Cities was published in 1961 and is now generally considered one of the most important books ever written on cities and city life. At a time when suburbia appeared to be human destiny, and architectural and urban theorists questioned whether the city should survive, Jacobs taught people to see, understand, and love cities again. The book continues to be widely studied and discussed but is seldom read and understood in its entirety (...) – this guidebook will help readers both pull the text apart and tie it up together. This guidebook includes: a chapter by chapter exploration of the key arguments and ideas in the text a brief biography of Jane Jacobs examining her influences and the context in which The Death and Life was produced an outline of the book’s critical reception over the past fifty years and its contemporary relevance a comprehensive bibliography of both Jacobs’ writing and works written about her. (shrink)