Labyrinth in Culture and Society: Pathways to Wisdom

Attali offers a historical analysis of how we elected, over the centuries, to rid ourselves of the indirect path for the supposed superiority of the straight line. We moved from the meandering to the linear, from the complex to the singular, from the curved and sensual to the straight and narrow. Consequently our thinking became shallow and unable to grasp the depth of meaning the labyrinthine symbolic world held for us. Now, as we enter the twenty-first century, the daedal depth of wisdom is recapturing our imaginations. The complex patterns enfolded with these ancient designs are calling us to reclaim the lost and forgotten parts of ourselves.

Jacques Attali was born in Algiers in 1943. A novelist, essayist, and writer, he served as special adviser to French President Francois Mitterrand from 1981 to 1991. Dr. Attali is now chairman of A&A, an international consulting firm based in Paris. Recently, he also served as conseiller d'Etat in Paris, and has advised the United Nations General Secretary on nuclear proliferation. His works in English include: Millennium: Winners and Losers in the Coming World Order; A Man of Influence Career of S.G. Warburg; and Noise: Essay on the Political Economy of Music.