Sartre and the Word

Abstract

dates of patriarchy we will better grasp the lived struggles of Sartre the person, get a more comprehensive understanding of Sartre's rela tionships with others, especially Simone de Beauvoir, and acquire a deeper appreciation of Sartre's work. Boule draws on the rich litera ture of gender studies, sociology, and psychoanalysis, and on Beau voir's interviews with and accounts of Sartre, to probe the gendered dynamics revealed in Sartre's autobiographical and philosophical writings. He makes the case that from 1905-1945 the psycho-social and gendering influences at work in Sartre's development led Sartre to embrace a philosophy and persona of stoicism. He argues that Sartre was transformed during the war—that after 1945 Sartre repu diated his stoic stance and embarked on the search for authenticity— and concludes that Sartre changed significantly after 1973 when he becomes almost blind. For those who are interested in the workings of the patriarchal gender system and for those interested in Sartre's life and work, there is much to ponder in these provoking and insightful analyses. Reading Boule's study led me to the names Lacan, Cixous, Sade and Beauvoir. I could not read his account of Sartre's self formation without hearing Lacan's account of the mirror stage and its subse quent period of aggressivity. I could not read his analyses of Sartre's understanding of literature without thinking of Cixous' discussions of feminine writing. I could not read his discussions of Sartre's sexu ality without recalling Beauvoir's account of the Marquis de Sade's sexuality in Must We Burn Sade? Further, given what we know about Sartre's and Beauvoir's collaborations, I could not help but situate The Second Sex's account of the erotic within the context of what Boule identifies as the masculinity at work in Being and Noth