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The social sciences and philosophy.
By taking philosophy and its history as its object, sociology can make a contribution to the efforts of philosophy to free itself from the constraints which determine it. Philosophy tends to resolve the antinomy of historicity and truth by updating past works through commentary. This presupposes a more or less total denial of historicity. This refusal is common to the three ways of explicitly dealing with this antinomy : revelation of the primal revelation (Heidegger), retrospective construction of past philosophies as theoretical possibles (Kant), and the dialectic which transcends and conserves (Hegel). A genuine social history which would relocate philosophy in the field of cultural production and in the social field as a whole would make it possible to understand philosophies and their succession as something other than the «philosophizing philosophy of history» and would at the same time enable present-day philosophers to break free of the established «un-thought» written into their heritage.

The Future of the Information Society: a European Perspective, by Martti Ahtisaari
The information society is opening up a revolutionary era. It is changing the structures of the economy by developing the service markets. Thanks to new technologies, Finland — which was hard-hit by recession in the early 1990s — has been able to regain durably stable growth. From this point of view, the key was a change of mentality and an open mind about the future. The information society also has a strong influence on culture. It tends to strengthen linguistic and cultural diversity. Lastly, it directly affects society and the individual, in particular by reinforcing civilian society. The information society has tremendous potential, but if it is to meet the ideals of freedom, shared responsibility and equality, the emphasis must be placed on citizens' participation in the decision-making process, on tolerance and on reducing inequality.

Of all the soc sci's, pol'al sci has, to date, been the 1 that has taken the least part in the efforts of UNESCO toward peaceful cooperation. This situation impairs the study of pol'al phenomena in countries outside of Western Europe & North America & contributes to the Ideological diff's which are already reflected in the double terminology: peaceful cooperation in the West & peaceful coexistence in the East. For the attempts at internat'l cooperation of the sci'sts to become positive contributions, it will be necessary to conduct limited studies in connection with the other soc sci's (eg, studies of the admin'ive, gov'al & pol'al aspects of the effects of technical transformations) & to seek an improvement in the understanding of the actual functions of inter-gov'al org's & of internat'l aid programs. Tr by J. A. Broussard from IPSA.

When Pole Sud was established in 1994, the European political & economic stage was organized around a North/South duality that reflected the rapidly changing policies in the countries of Southern Europe. The term "cultural region" was very much in vogue in social scientific research, & from this perspective Italy, Greece, Spain, & Portugal mobilized a legion of political scientists to analyze the converging paths of their shifting public policies. During the course of the 90s & 00s, Pole Sud has offered a range of comparative studies describing the political & economic transformation of Southern European nation-states. In this introduction to the current issue, the author reviews Pole Sud's contributions over the first decade of its existence; this review issue republishes an array of some of the most salient articles. In addition, the introduction promises that the journal's future will also evolve as a forum for the discussion of Southern European policy shifts, both from the region's own perspective, & that of its political & economic partners. W. A. Butler

Cet article porte sur certains aspects de la réception de Gramsci en France. Cette réception s'effectue dans le champ politique aussi bien qu'académique, Gramsci étant non seulement un classique des sciences sociales, mais aussi une figure politique. Par ailleurs, elle prend place dans un contexte intellectuel où d'autres penseurs, tels que Pierre Bourdieu, développent sur certains thèmes des idées proches des siennes. L'argument central de l'article est que Gramsci, Bourdieu et les cultural studies forment une « constellation » d'auteurs et de concepts, qu'il est fécond dans le contexte français de penser conjointement. L'article se conclut sur quelques réflexions concernant le récent renouveau des études gramsciennes en France.

To ask oneself whether sociology of law is really a science leads unavoidably to the following questions : what is the definition of this discipline, what place is assigned to sociology of law within the general theories of law and of society, and what are the limits of its object. One of the main difficulties of sociology of law, when compared to natural sciences or even when compared to other sections of sociology, is a matter of definition of the object of the study of law because of its uncertain boundaries and of cultural fluctuations. According to the author, there is no general, universal sociology of law ; sociology of law can only be « a science of small and middling findings, and of middle range theories at least in the short run ». He proposes a general framework for the social study of law in Western countries and groups the contents of the discipline under three main headings : the analysis of social forces which produce or influence the legal system, the analysis of the operation of the legal system itself and the analysis of the impact of law.

The cultural dimension of the attack on Charlie Hebdo raises questions about the meaning of the event in terms of public policies on art and culture. At issue particulary is the re-situation of those policies in their relationship with democratic achievement in the context of the French republican model. Analysis through the prism of cultural mediation, considered as a communication process designed to produce a symbolic type of work, casts new light on the objectives and the ways and means of implementing such policies.