Chapters in this book

1. Frontmatter i
2. Contents v
3. Preface 1
4. Part 1 Physiognomy of an Apocalyptic Age
5. 1.1 Cataclysm 23
6. 1.2 Eristics and Salvation 33
7. 1.3 A Self-chronicling Society 46
8. Part 2 The Book of Living
9. 2.1 The Totalising Work 55
10. 2.2 The Treatise as Totality 60
11. 2.3 Parsing Totality 64
12. 2.4 The Articulation of The Book of Living 70
13. 2.5 Analogues? 98
14. Part 3 The Jāḥiẓian Library Under Attack
15. 3.1 Introducing the ‘Introduction’ 107
16. 3.2 Translation 111
17. 3.3 Commentary 129
18. 3.4 The Argument 144
19. Part 4 The salvific book
20. 4.1 Biobibliographies 175
21. 4.2 The Form of the ‘Introduction’ 193
22. 4.3 The Enigma of the Addressee 224
23. 4.4 Invective 239
24. 4.5 The Cohesiveness of Society 256
25. 4.6 An Encyclopaedia to Save Society 266
26. Part 5 The architecture of design
27. 5.1 Governance of the Cosmos 277
28. 5.2 The Grateful Response, 1 319
29. 5.3 The Grateful Response, 2 333
30. 5.4 Obliquity 364
31. Part 6 Appreciating design
32. 6.1 An Eristical Contest 391
33. 6.2 Translation 394
34. 6.3 The Argument 418
35. 6.4 Conclusion 423
36. Postface 427
37. Appendix: The Praise of Books 430
38. Notes 470
39. Bibliography 534
40. Index 571