Émile Chartier

Émile Chartier
Alain in 1931
Born 3 March 1868
Mortagne-au-Perche, Orne
Died 2 June 1951
Le Vésinet
Other names Alain
Alma mater École Normale Supérieure
Era 20th-century philosophy
Region Western philosophy
School Continental philosophy

Émile-Auguste Chartier (French: [ʃaʁtje]; 3 March 1868 – 2 June 1951), commonly known as Alain ([alɛ̃]), was a French philosopher, journalist, and pacifist.[1] He adopted his pseudonym in homage to the 15th-century Norman poet Alain Chartier.

Early life

Alain was born in 1868. He entered lycée d'Alençon in 1881 and studied there for five years. On 13 June 1956, the lycée was renamed lycée Alain, after its most famous student.

Career

After Alain qualified at the École Normale Supérieure and received the agrégation in philosophy, he taught at various institutions: Pontivy, Lorient, Lycée Pierre Corneille in Rouen,[2] and, in Paris: (Lycée Condorcet and Lycée Michelet). From 1903, he contributed to several journals using his pseudonym, Alain. He was most commonly referred to as "Alain" by his pupils and peers.

In 1909, he was appointed a teacher (or professor) at the Lycée Henri-IV in Paris. He deeply influenced his pupils, who included Raymond Aron, Simone Weil, Georges Canguilhem, and André Maurois.[1] Reviewing the beneficial effect he had on his former pupils Simone Weil and Simone de Beauvoir, Professor John Hellman writes that Alain was the greatest teacher of their generation.[3]

Among his most important publications are The Dreamer, 81 chapters about the spirit and passions, About Happiness, Mars, and The citizen against powers.[1]

Death

He died in 1951. He is buried in the Père Lachaise Cemetery.

Works (selection)

  • Petit Traité d'Harmonie pour les aveugles (Short Treaty of Harmony for the Blind; in braille), 1918
  • Mars; Or the Truth about War, New York, Jonathan Cape & Harrison Smith N.D., 1930
  • Alain on Happiness, New York, Ungar, 1973
  • The Gods, New directions, 1974

References

  1. 1 2 3 Foray, Philippe (1993). "ALAIN (1868-1951)" (PDF). Prospects: the quarterly review of comparative education. Paris: UNESCO: International Bureau of Education. XXIII (1/2): 21–37. doi:10.1007/bf02195023. Retrieved 2009-04-14.
  2. ↑ Lycée Pierre Corneille de Rouen - History
  3. ↑ John Hellman (1983). Simone Weil: An Introduction to Her Thought. Wilfrid Laurier University Press. p. 8. ISBN 0-88920-121-8.
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