Reframing Twentieth-Century French Philosophy : The Roots of Desire - Elodie Boublil

Reframing Twentieth-Century French Philosophy

The Roots of Desire

By: Elodie Boublil (Editor), Renaud Barbaras (Contribution by), Scott Davidson (Contribution by), Till Grohmann (Contribution by), Stefan Kristensen (Contribution by)

Hardcover | 26 May 2023

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Reframing Twentieth-Century French Philosophy: The Roots of Desire, edited by Elodie Boublil, investigates the works of French philosophers who have been relegated to the margins of the canon, even if their teachings and writings have been recognized as highly influential. The contributions gather around the concept of "desire" to make sense of the French philosophical debate throughout the twentieth century. The first part of the volume investigates the concept of desire by questioning the role of reflexivity in embodiment and self-constitution. It examines specifically the works of three authors-Maine de Biran, Jean Nabert, and Jean-Louis Chretien-to highlight their specific contribution to twentieth-century French philosophy. The second part of the volume explores desire's pre-reflective and affective dynamics that resist objectification and reflexivity by analyzing the contributions of lesser-known thinkers such as Simone Weil, Sarah Kofman, and Henri Maldiney. The last part of the volume focuses on three philosophical endeavors that aim to positively rethink the foundations of phenomenology and French philosophy: Jacques Garelli, Marc Richir, and Mikel Dufrenne.

Industry Reviews

The essays collected in this volume "reframe" how we see aspects of twentieth century French philosophy that are largely unknown. The volume contains essays on Maine de Biran, Jean Nabert, Jean-Louis Chr?tien, Simone Weil, Sarah Kofman, Henri Maldiney, Jacques Garelli, Marc Richir, and Mickel Dufrenne. Each essay shows how these more obscure philosophers influenced the more well-known French philosophers. All the essays revolve around the question of desire. Reframing Twentieth Century French Philosophy is a must read for anyone interested in 20th century continental philosophy.

--Leonard Lawlor, Sparks Professor of Philosophy, Penn State University

There have been several attempts to tell the history of philosophy in France in the 20th century, and most of them tell that history by focusing on the same major thinkers. This collection, to its credit, draws attention to important figures overlooked by the standard histories, thinkers like Maine de Biran or Jean Nabert, whose works influenced their better-known compatriots; or thinkers like Simone Weil, Mikel Dufrenne, Henri Maldinay, or Sarah Kofman, who were their fellow travelers and interlocutors, but whose work has heretofore rarely been engaged by the English-speaking philosophical community. In order to correct this oversight, this volume brings together provocative essays that show how these philosophers' reflections on desire, whether in dialogue with dialectics, phenomenology, psychoanalysis, ethics, or each other, tells a different history of 20th-century French philosophy, a history whose telling is long overdue.

--Alan D. Schrift, Grinnell College

The essays collected in this volume "reframe" how we see aspects of twentieth century French philosophy that are largely unknown. The volume contains essays on Maine de Biran, Jean Nabert, Jean-Louis Chr?tien, Simone Weil, Sarah Kofman, Henri Maldiney, Jacques Garelli, Marc Richir, and Mickel Dufrenne. Each essay shows how these more obscure philosophers influenced the more well-known French philosophers. All the essays revolve around the question of desire. Reframing Twentieth Century French Philosophy is a must read for anyone interested in 20th century continental philosophy.


There have been several attempts to tell the history of philosophy in France in the 20th century, and most of them tell that history by focusing on the same major thinkers. This collection, to its credit, draws attention to important figures overlooked by the standard histories, thinkers like Maine de Biran or Jean Nabert, whose works influenced their better-known compatriots; or thinkers like Simone Weil, Mikel Dufrenne, Henri Maldinay, or Sarah Kofman, who were their fellow travelers and interlocutors, but whose work has heretofore rarely been engaged by the English-speaking philosophical community. In order to correct this oversight, this volume brings together provocative essays that show how these philosophers' reflections on desire, whether in dialogue with dialectics, phenomenology, psychoanalysis, ethics, or each other, tells a different history of 20th-century French philosophy, a history whose telling is long overdue.

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