Camus and Sartre: A Legendary Friendship and Its Collapse (An Attractive Academic Translation Series)

Author: Ronald Aronson (Author), Zhang Letai (Translator)
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-04-01
Features: So far, we have yet to read a complete account of the relationship between Albert Camus and Jean-Paul Sartre. Their dramatic break during the height of the Cold War, much like the Cold War conflict itself, forces those who trace its origins to take sides rather than unravel its tragic complexities. Now, Ronald Aronson, using new sources of information, has written a full-length book about this 20th-century most famous friendship and its end in a long account. Albert Camus and Jean-Paul Sartre met for the first time in 1943 during the German occupation of France and quickly became friends. They formed an alliance in thought and politics, becoming overnight celebrities with the liberation of Paris. As playwrights, novelists, philosophers, journalists, and editors, the two seemed omnipresent, with every French media outlet following their lead after the war. However, the East-West relationship injected tension into their friendship, and their paths gradually diverged, leading to disagreements over philosophy, the responsibilities of intellectuals, and the necessity or possibility of political change. When Camus and Sartre successively took over the role of public spokespersons for their respective sides, a historic showdown became inevitable. Sartre believed in violence as a path to change, while Camus resolutely opposed it, leading to the brutal and highly publicized split in 1952. They ceased all contact thereafter, continuing to attack each other indirectly until Camus's death in 1960. In a report marked by meticulous detail and impartiality, Aronson chronicles this fascinating story, showing how Camus and Sartre moved from mutual admiration to bitter rivalry and continued to each other even after the break. Camus and Sartre blends biography and intellectual history, philosophical passion and political fervor, and will captivate every reader interested in the two great writers or the world-historical issues that led to their parting.