Table of Contents

Introduction; 1. The break-up of the village; 2. The peasant as seen by the middle class; 3. The literature on rural relations; 4. Crime as a medium of historical anthropology; 5. Landscape with villages; Part I. Peasant Society and the Individual: 1. Fire in the village: i. The arsonist; ii. Work; iii. The village; iv. The families; 2. The mad-doctor's gaze: i. From the social symptons to the physical; ii. Female arsonists and puberty; iii. Catharsis or disease?; Part II. The Status of Women and the Place of Children: 1. The bridal wagon; 2. Silent births: i. Infanticides; ii. Time spent as a maid; iii. Relationships between unmarried farm servants; iv. 'With the angels'; v. Gossip; Part III. The Disputed Boundaries of the Village: 1. Poaching - economics, culture and sexuality: i. 'Nothing but shoot game'; ii. A trade on the edge of the village; iii. The village goes poaching; iv. The young men; v. The reality of fantasy; 2. Domination in jeopardy: i. The provincial judge - attempts to mediate; ii. The 'good natured mountain folk' and the 'stormy times'; iii. Manhood and execution; iv. A fantasy of reconciliation; Conclusion: on the threshold between two worlds.