The Existentialist Offensive
@rethinkexistent.bsky.social
The Penguin Book of Existentialist Philosophy: bit.ly/PBEPBwlPbk
15 November 1945:
An interview with Camus appears on the front page of Les Nouvelle’s Littéraires headlined:
‘NON, je ne suis pas existentialiste’, nous dit ALBERT CAMUS
An interview with Camus appears on the front page of Les Nouvelle’s Littéraires headlined:
‘NON, je ne suis pas existentialiste’, nous dit ALBERT CAMUS
November 15, 2025 at 10:12 AM
15 November 1945:
An interview with Camus appears on the front page of Les Nouvelle’s Littéraires headlined:
‘NON, je ne suis pas existentialiste’, nous dit ALBERT CAMUS
An interview with Camus appears on the front page of Les Nouvelle’s Littéraires headlined:
‘NON, je ne suis pas existentialiste’, nous dit ALBERT CAMUS
1 November 1945:
Issue 2 of Les Temps Modernes is published
Beauvoir’s essay ‘Idéalisme moral et réalisme politique’ addresses a theme of her novel La Sang des Autres and her play Les Bouches Inutiles
– the place of morality in political action and the foundational value of each person’s freedom
Issue 2 of Les Temps Modernes is published
Beauvoir’s essay ‘Idéalisme moral et réalisme politique’ addresses a theme of her novel La Sang des Autres and her play Les Bouches Inutiles
– the place of morality in political action and the foundational value of each person’s freedom
November 1, 2025 at 9:09 AM
1 November 1945:
Issue 2 of Les Temps Modernes is published
Beauvoir’s essay ‘Idéalisme moral et réalisme politique’ addresses a theme of her novel La Sang des Autres and her play Les Bouches Inutiles
– the place of morality in political action and the foundational value of each person’s freedom
Issue 2 of Les Temps Modernes is published
Beauvoir’s essay ‘Idéalisme moral et réalisme politique’ addresses a theme of her novel La Sang des Autres and her play Les Bouches Inutiles
– the place of morality in political action and the foundational value of each person’s freedom
24 October 1945:
The United Nations officially comes into being, as the UN Charter has now been ratified by the majority of its signatories including the five permanent members of the Security Council.
24 October has been celebrated as United Nations Day since 1948.
The United Nations officially comes into being, as the UN Charter has now been ratified by the majority of its signatories including the five permanent members of the Security Council.
24 October has been celebrated as United Nations Day since 1948.
October 24, 2025 at 10:37 AM
24 October 1945:
The United Nations officially comes into being, as the UN Charter has now been ratified by the majority of its signatories including the five permanent members of the Security Council.
24 October has been celebrated as United Nations Day since 1948.
The United Nations officially comes into being, as the UN Charter has now been ratified by the majority of its signatories including the five permanent members of the Security Council.
24 October has been celebrated as United Nations Day since 1948.
Sources:
The Iris Murdoch archive at the University of Kingston for the notebook. Thank you to Lucy Bolton for the photo.
Iris Murdoch, A Writer at War: Letters and Diaries, 1939-45, edited by Peter J. Conradi for the letter.
The Iris Murdoch archive at the University of Kingston for the notebook. Thank you to Lucy Bolton for the photo.
Iris Murdoch, A Writer at War: Letters and Diaries, 1939-45, edited by Peter J. Conradi for the letter.
October 24, 2025 at 8:31 AM
Sources:
The Iris Murdoch archive at the University of Kingston for the notebook. Thank you to Lucy Bolton for the photo.
Iris Murdoch, A Writer at War: Letters and Diaries, 1939-45, edited by Peter J. Conradi for the letter.
The Iris Murdoch archive at the University of Kingston for the notebook. Thank you to Lucy Bolton for the photo.
Iris Murdoch, A Writer at War: Letters and Diaries, 1939-45, edited by Peter J. Conradi for the letter.
24 October 1945:
Sartre gives a lecture on existentialism in Brussels and one Iris Murdoch is in the audience.
From her notes, this was clearly a version of the now rather famous lecture he was to give in Paris five days later.
Sartre gives a lecture on existentialism in Brussels and one Iris Murdoch is in the audience.
From her notes, this was clearly a version of the now rather famous lecture he was to give in Paris five days later.
October 24, 2025 at 7:26 AM
24 October 1945:
Sartre gives a lecture on existentialism in Brussels and one Iris Murdoch is in the audience.
From her notes, this was clearly a version of the now rather famous lecture he was to give in Paris five days later.
Sartre gives a lecture on existentialism in Brussels and one Iris Murdoch is in the audience.
From her notes, this was clearly a version of the now rather famous lecture he was to give in Paris five days later.
21 October 1945:
A general election to the legislative assembly is held. This is the first time women can vote in a French national election.
A referendum asks whether the newly elected legislature should draft a new constitution. 96% of the votes cast are in favour.
A general election to the legislative assembly is held. This is the first time women can vote in a French national election.
A referendum asks whether the newly elected legislature should draft a new constitution. 96% of the votes cast are in favour.
October 21, 2025 at 7:22 AM
21 October 1945:
A general election to the legislative assembly is held. This is the first time women can vote in a French national election.
A referendum asks whether the newly elected legislature should draft a new constitution. 96% of the votes cast are in favour.
A general election to the legislative assembly is held. This is the first time women can vote in a French national election.
A referendum asks whether the newly elected legislature should draft a new constitution. 96% of the votes cast are in favour.
15 October 1945:
Pierre Laval, who had the official title Prime Minister of France in the collaborationist Vichy government, is executed by firing squad.
Pierre Laval, who had the official title Prime Minister of France in the collaborationist Vichy government, is executed by firing squad.
October 15, 2025 at 12:25 PM
15 October 1945:
Pierre Laval, who had the official title Prime Minister of France in the collaborationist Vichy government, is executed by firing squad.
Pierre Laval, who had the official title Prime Minister of France in the collaborationist Vichy government, is executed by firing squad.
Two chapters of the projected fourth and final novel in the series were published in Les Temps Modernes in 1949, but the book was never finished.
Fragments of the book were gathered together in a posthumous edition of Sartre’s novels.
They are available in English as The Last Chance.
Fragments of the book were gathered together in a posthumous edition of Sartre’s novels.
They are available in English as The Last Chance.
October 2, 2025 at 7:46 AM
Two chapters of the projected fourth and final novel in the series were published in Les Temps Modernes in 1949, but the book was never finished.
Fragments of the book were gathered together in a posthumous edition of Sartre’s novels.
They are available in English as The Last Chance.
Fragments of the book were gathered together in a posthumous edition of Sartre’s novels.
They are available in English as The Last Chance.
It will be followed two months later by Le Sursis (The Reprieve) …
… and then four years later by La Mort dans l’Âme (Iron in the Soul).
The BBC broadcast a superb thirteen-episode TV adaptation of the first three novels in 1970.
… and then four years later by La Mort dans l’Âme (Iron in the Soul).
The BBC broadcast a superb thirteen-episode TV adaptation of the first three novels in 1970.
October 2, 2025 at 7:45 AM
It will be followed two months later by Le Sursis (The Reprieve) …
… and then four years later by La Mort dans l’Âme (Iron in the Soul).
The BBC broadcast a superb thirteen-episode TV adaptation of the first three novels in 1970.
… and then four years later by La Mort dans l’Âme (Iron in the Soul).
The BBC broadcast a superb thirteen-episode TV adaptation of the first three novels in 1970.
2 October 1945:
The day after Les Temps Modernes is launched, Sartre publishes the first novel in his series Les Chemins de la Liberté:
L’Âge de Raison is set in the summer of 1938 as Europe teeters on the brink of war.
The day after Les Temps Modernes is launched, Sartre publishes the first novel in his series Les Chemins de la Liberté:
L’Âge de Raison is set in the summer of 1938 as Europe teeters on the brink of war.
October 2, 2025 at 7:43 AM
2 October 1945:
The day after Les Temps Modernes is launched, Sartre publishes the first novel in his series Les Chemins de la Liberté:
L’Âge de Raison is set in the summer of 1938 as Europe teeters on the brink of war.
The day after Les Temps Modernes is launched, Sartre publishes the first novel in his series Les Chemins de la Liberté:
L’Âge de Raison is set in the summer of 1938 as Europe teeters on the brink of war.
1 October 1945:
The first issue of Les Temps Modernes is published –– a monthly cultural and political journal led by Sartre and Beauvoir, with a host of other major figures on the editorial board.
The journal is named after a Charlie Chaplin film. Pablo Picasso designed the cover.
The first issue of Les Temps Modernes is published –– a monthly cultural and political journal led by Sartre and Beauvoir, with a host of other major figures on the editorial board.
The journal is named after a Charlie Chaplin film. Pablo Picasso designed the cover.
October 1, 2025 at 6:26 AM
1 October 1945:
The first issue of Les Temps Modernes is published –– a monthly cultural and political journal led by Sartre and Beauvoir, with a host of other major figures on the editorial board.
The journal is named after a Charlie Chaplin film. Pablo Picasso designed the cover.
The first issue of Les Temps Modernes is published –– a monthly cultural and political journal led by Sartre and Beauvoir, with a host of other major figures on the editorial board.
The journal is named after a Charlie Chaplin film. Pablo Picasso designed the cover.
It is 80 years since Beauvoir and Sartre gave the word 'existentialism' a definition ...
... in a campaign of publications and events that Beauvoir later called 'the existentialist offensive'.
To celebrate, this feed will mark each key moment (including political events) for the next three months.
... in a campaign of publications and events that Beauvoir later called 'the existentialist offensive'.
To celebrate, this feed will mark each key moment (including political events) for the next three months.
September 27, 2025 at 9:26 AM
It is 80 years since Beauvoir and Sartre gave the word 'existentialism' a definition ...
... in a campaign of publications and events that Beauvoir later called 'the existentialist offensive'.
To celebrate, this feed will mark each key moment (including political events) for the next three months.
... in a campaign of publications and events that Beauvoir later called 'the existentialist offensive'.
To celebrate, this feed will mark each key moment (including political events) for the next three months.
#philsky
The cover art for the forthcoming ––
✨The Penguin Book of Existentialist Philosophy ✨
–– is Marie Raymond's painting:
✨ Arabesques ou Variations sur la volute ✨ (1948)
For more on Marie Raymond, including images of many paintings, visit her archive's website: marieraymond.com
The cover art for the forthcoming ––
✨The Penguin Book of Existentialist Philosophy ✨
–– is Marie Raymond's painting:
✨ Arabesques ou Variations sur la volute ✨ (1948)
For more on Marie Raymond, including images of many paintings, visit her archive's website: marieraymond.com
September 11, 2025 at 10:58 AM
#philsky
The cover art for the forthcoming ––
✨The Penguin Book of Existentialist Philosophy ✨
–– is Marie Raymond's painting:
✨ Arabesques ou Variations sur la volute ✨ (1948)
For more on Marie Raymond, including images of many paintings, visit her archive's website: marieraymond.com
The cover art for the forthcoming ––
✨The Penguin Book of Existentialist Philosophy ✨
–– is Marie Raymond's painting:
✨ Arabesques ou Variations sur la volute ✨ (1948)
For more on Marie Raymond, including images of many paintings, visit her archive's website: marieraymond.com
In 1984, HBO made a three-hour TV film of it starring Jodie Foster, which was then edited down for the French market into a 40-minute cinema release with dubbed dialogue.
August 1, 2025 at 5:55 PM
In 1984, HBO made a three-hour TV film of it starring Jodie Foster, which was then edited down for the French market into a 40-minute cinema release with dubbed dialogue.
It is available in English under the title The Blood of Others
August 1, 2025 at 5:44 PM
It is available in English under the title The Blood of Others
80 years ago today ...
1 August 1945
Beauvoir published her second novel, Le Sang des autres. Set in Paris during the outbreak of the second world war, the novel explores tensions between individual relationships and political commitment.
1 August 1945
Beauvoir published her second novel, Le Sang des autres. Set in Paris during the outbreak of the second world war, the novel explores tensions between individual relationships and political commitment.
August 1, 2025 at 5:36 PM
80 years ago today ...
1 August 1945
Beauvoir published her second novel, Le Sang des autres. Set in Paris during the outbreak of the second world war, the novel explores tensions between individual relationships and political commitment.
1 August 1945
Beauvoir published her second novel, Le Sang des autres. Set in Paris during the outbreak of the second world war, the novel explores tensions between individual relationships and political commitment.
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Happy *100th* birthday, Frantz Fanon!
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To celebrate, here is Rethinking Existentialism Chapter 8 –– Black Skin, White Masks –– free to download for one week only ::
bit.ly/RethExistFan...
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#philsky
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Happy *100th* birthday, Frantz Fanon!
.
.
To celebrate, here is Rethinking Existentialism Chapter 8 –– Black Skin, White Masks –– free to download for one week only ::
bit.ly/RethExistFan...
.
.
#philsky
July 20, 2025 at 7:53 PM
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Happy *100th* birthday, Frantz Fanon!
.
.
To celebrate, here is Rethinking Existentialism Chapter 8 –– Black Skin, White Masks –– free to download for one week only ::
bit.ly/RethExistFan...
.
.
#philsky
.
Happy *100th* birthday, Frantz Fanon!
.
.
To celebrate, here is Rethinking Existentialism Chapter 8 –– Black Skin, White Masks –– free to download for one week only ::
bit.ly/RethExistFan...
.
.
#philsky
A mere 29 pages into his 32-page ‘Meditations on Nausea’ Robert Solomon opens the final section with …
January 21, 2025 at 7:40 PM
A mere 29 pages into his 32-page ‘Meditations on Nausea’ Robert Solomon opens the final section with …
(exciting news coming in 2024 …)
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Happy new year, everyone!
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🥳
:: ~~~
Happy new year, everyone!
~~~ ::
🥳
January 1, 2024 at 3:31 PM
(exciting news coming in 2024 …)
:: ~~~
Happy new year, everyone!
~~~ ::
🥳
:: ~~~
Happy new year, everyone!
~~~ ::
🥳
Jonathan Webber, Matthew Eshleman, Kate Kirkpatrick, and Komarine Romdenh-Romluc discussing some of the central arguments of Rethinking Existentialism at this year's UK Sartre Society conference.
October 23, 2023 at 9:03 AM
Jonathan Webber, Matthew Eshleman, Kate Kirkpatrick, and Komarine Romdenh-Romluc discussing some of the central arguments of Rethinking Existentialism at this year's UK Sartre Society conference.