Pascal Brückner, winner of the Medici and Renaudo prizes, is known to Russian readers as a novelist ("The Divine Child", "The Thieves of Beauty", "Bitter Moon"). But Brückner is also one of the brightest thinkers of modern France. Pascal Brückner’s new book is a vivid pamphlet about the identity of Europe, its relationship with America and the Islamic world. The topics raised by the author are also relevant for Russia, which is comprehending its position in a changed world - in particular, in the post-Soviet space. CONTENTS: Introduction 91. Merchants of shame 172. Pathologies of debt 423. The font of innocence found 754. Fanaticism of restraint 1075. Second Golgotha 1336 Listen to my suffering 1627. Depression in Paradise 1948. Doubt and faith. Conflict between Europe and the USA 220