Vol. 8 · No. 2 · 2002

Elizabeth A. Bowman

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Abstract

As if to mark the 20th anniversary of Sartre's death in 1980-and there was in fact some connection-French writers, journalists, talking heads and publishers put on a Sartre extravaganza. The occasion was the publication of six books on Sartre within the span of a month in early 2000: Denis Bertholet's Sartre (Plon), Michel-Antoine Burnier's L'Adieu à Sartre (Plon), Benoit Denis' Littérature et engagement (Seuil), Bernard-Henri Levy's Le Siècle de Sartre (Gras-set), Philippe Petit's La Cause de Sartre (P.U.F.), and Olivier Wickers' Trois Aventures extraordinaires de Jean-Paul Sartre (Gallimard).[1] Sartre's name in headlines was plastered on news kiosks all over Paris during the second half of January, 2000. Le Nouvel Observateur announced: "After 20 Years of Purgatory, Sartre Returns,"[2] and Le Point proclaimed: "Sartre: The Passion for Making Mistakes."[3] The implicit warning was: "Don't let Sartre's mistakes return!"