Conference: The possibility of the worst

Laurent Wirth, associate professor of history, will give a conference on The possibility of the worst in the face of war: 1914, 1939, 2022...

February 24, 2022: For the first time since 1945, a high-intensity interstate war broke out in Europe, shocking Europeans who thought this was no longer possible on their continent. Yet there was no shortage of warning signs.
As with the wars started in 1914 and 1939, we can speak, with hindsight, of a fatal march towards war in the years which preceded it. But we must also take into account the feelings of those who experienced its sudden eruption.
What is the respective role of fate and astonishment in the collective perception of the outbreak of two world wars and, perhaps, of a third of which we are experiencing the sinister beginnings?

The title of Calderón's play, the worst is not always certain, should not make us forget that it is always possible.

This is a public session of the Société des études du Lot.