Beauty and Rebellion - A Portrait of Simone de Beauvoir

Author: Qian Xiuzhong
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-07-01
Features: French President Mitterrand called de Beauvoir the "most outstanding woman writer in France and the world," and The New Yorker praised her as the "most beautiful existentialist." Sartre described her as possessing both male wisdom and female sensitivity. She was the only woman in the world who sought to turn culture upside down. The Second Sex is widely recognized as "the most sound, rational, and wise book in history" on discussing women, and is hailed as the Bible of Western women. Her novel The Mandarins won the French Goncourt Prize in 1954. Simone de Beauvoir was a renowned French writer and scholar, with multiple identities as a philosopher, essayist, and playwright, while also a pioneer of the feminist movement. de Beauvoir's influence on the world came from two aspects: as a pioneer of the feminist movement, she contributed the groundbreaking The Second Sex; and by refusing marriage, choosing not to have children, and accompanying the existentialist master Sartre for life. These two aspects were so overwhelming that they overshadowed another important gift she possessed—an incredibly charming writing ability. With a great philosophical mind and a fresh, hungry, and curiosity unique to women, de Beauvoir continuously analyzed herself with a Rousseau-esque style of writing, candid and straightforward, offering humanity countless outstanding works. She won the Goncourt Prize in 1954 and is a world-class best-selling author. Sartre described her as possessing both male wisdom and female sensitivity. She visited China with Sartre in 1955 and, as a friendly envoy of the French people, climbed the Tiananmen reviewing stand on National Day. After returning, she published a 400,000-character The Long March—Chinese Sketches, and her comprehensive work on women's issues, The Second Sex, is hailed as a classic of feminism. She once compared herself to a ghost, wanting to pass through walls and observe the human world without participating. In 1986, she entered Sartre's grave wearing the ring of a lover across the ocean, and this was the unique woman—Simone de Beauvoir. Paris named the 37th bridge on the Seine "de Beauvoir Bridge" in her honor to commemorate this outstanding woman.
Reasons to Read This Book
Simone de Beauvoir is a world-class best-selling author and writer who won worldwide recognition with her works. Her unique lifestyle drew strong controversy, and her "love contract" with the existentialist master Sartre was seen by some as proof that love triumphs over conventional marriage, while others held the opposite view. Reading this book not only allows readers to understand the author's life experiences and the background of the writing of the acclaimed The Second Sex, but also prompts them to reflect on various social issues such as family, marriage, and homosexuality.