今日の世の中で増加の一途を辿る冒涜行為。宗教や人種的マイノリティーの認知度向上、新たなメディアの発展、監視社会化の進展、前時代的な冒涜罪の遺産など、その要因を検討します。有名な事例のほか、図らずも冒涜的になった風刺画、冒涜と性と避妊の関係性なども紹介し、人々の記憶に残るものと忘れ去られるものがある理由を考えます。人知を超えた絶対的存在であるはずの神が世俗世界に傷つけられ得るとの前提を置いている点で、冒涜という概念が矛盾をはらんでいることを指摘します。
 

• Offers a global analysis of blasphemy across different religions and contexts
• Analyses why blasphemy persists today, even as society grows increasingly secular
• Considers some of the most famous cases of blasphemy, along with lesser know instances
• Discusses the influence of colonial histories of blasphemy as a Christian export

  
In a world where not everyone believes in God, 'blasphemy' is surely a concept that has passed its use-by-date. And yet blasphemy (like God and religion) seems to be on the rise. In this Very Short Introduction Yvonne Sherwood asks why this should be the case, looking at factors such as the increased visibility of religious and racial minorities, new media, and engines of surveillance (which are far more omniscient than the old gods could ever be), and the legacies of colonial blasphemy laws.
   
Throughout, Sherwood uncovers new histories, from the story of accidentally blasphemous cartoons, to the close associations between blasphemy, sex, and birth control. She also argues that blasphemy itself involves an inherent contradiction in imagining the divine as an entity that must be revered above all, yet also a being that could possibly be hurt by anything that happens in the merely human sphere. Unpicking some of the most famous cases of blasphemy, Sherwood also looks at obscure instances, asking why some 'blasphemies' have become infamous, while others have disappeared.