On Camus

by Jean-Paul Sartre, Chris Turner (Translation)

A window onto one of the most consequential friendships in philosophical history, that of Sartre and Camus—and on its end.

Iconic French novelist, playwright, and essayist Jean-Paul Sartre is widely recognized as one of the most important philosophers of the twentieth century, and his work has remained relevant and thought-provoking through the decades. The Seagull Sartre Library now presents some of his most incisive philosophical, cultural, and literary critical essays in twelve newly designed and affordable editions.
 
Sartre met Albert Camus in Occupied France in 1943, and from the start, they were an odd one from the upper reaches of French society; the other, a pied-noir born into poverty in Algeria. The love of “freedom,” however, quickly bound them in friendship, while their fight for justice united them politically. But in 1951 the two writers fell out spectacularly over their literary and political views, their split a media sensation in France. This volume holds up a remarkable mirror to that fraught relationship. It features an early review by Sartre of Camus’s The Stranger ; his famous 1952 letter to Camus that begins, “Our friendship was not easy, but I shall miss it”; and a moving homage written after Camus’s sudden death in 1960.

Genres: Philosophy

96 pages, Paperback

Published August 12, 2021

About the author

Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre was a French philosopher, playwright, novelist, screenwriter, political activist, biographer, and literary critic, considered a leading figure in 20th-century French philosophy and Marxism. Sartre was one of the key figures in the philosophy of existentialism (and phenomenology). His work has influenced sociology, critical theory, post-colonial theory, and literary studies. He was awarded the 1964 Nobel Prize in Literature despite attempting to refuse it, saying that he always declined official honors and that "a writer should not allow himself to be turned into an institution."
Sartre held an open relationship with prominent feminist and fellow existentialist philosopher Simone de Beauvoir. Together, Sartre and de Beauvoir challenged the cultural and social assumptions and expectations of their upbringings, which they considered bourgeois, in both lifestyles and thought. The conflict between oppressive, spiritually destructive conformity (mauvaise foi, literally, 'bad faith') and an "authentic" way of "being" became the dominant theme of Sartre's early work, a theme embodied in his principal philosophical work Being and Nothingness (L'Être et le Néant, 1943). Sartre's introduction to his philosophy is his work Existentialism Is a Humanism (L'existentialisme est un humanisme, 1946), originally presented as a lecture.

Reviews

[Jack Meermans · Rating 3 out of 5]

This essay was among a collection of Sartre's I read titled "Sartre on: Dos Passos, Faulkner, Hemingway, Camus, Descartes, Giraudoux, Mauriac, Kafka, Conformism, Individualism, New York, Communism, Materialism.

Sartre's description of Camus' explicit writing encourages me to read the stranger, as my favorite writer- David Byrne is incredibly implicit and metaphorical with his lyrical choice. Additionally, I enjoyed reading about Sarte's view of Americans and their cities as he is a foreigner.

[Stephen Lazaro]

It's easy to forget what a catty bitch Sartre was

[Tilia]

I was not into the idea of reading more sartre before reading this (I hate nausea, the feeling and the book) but his take down of Camus was beautiful and I now want to read all of his essays

[Lauren Ponton · Rating 4 out of 5]

i enjoy their beef