At the Existentialist Café (61 page)

25
  Aron and Sartre in radio debate: Aron,
Memoirs
, 218–19; Hayman,
Writing Against
, 244–5. On their relationship, see Jean-François Sirinelli,
Deux intellectuels dans le siècle: Sartre et Aron
(Paris: Fayard, 1995).

26
  Excrement letter and army officers: Beauvoir,
Beloved Chicago Man
, 97 (Beauvoir to Algren, 5 Nov. 1947), and 90–91 (Beauvoir to Algren, 25 Oct. 1947, continuation of letter of 23 Oct.).

27
  ‘Dreary, flabby mixture’, and ‘what would a man be’: Henri Lefebvre, excerpt from his
L’existentialisme
(1946), translated in his
Key Writings
, eds S. Elden, E. Lebas & E. Kofman (New York & London: Continuum, 2003), 9–11. Lefebvre later toned down his views and became more sympathetic to existentialism.

28
  
Dirty Hands
: Sartre,
Dirty Hands
, tr. Lionel Abel, in
No Exit and Three Other Plays
, 125–241. Sartre was dismayed when the play was taken up in the US as a propaganda tool by anti-Communists, and in 1952 he declared that he would only sanction performances in countries where the local Communist Party accepted it. Thompson,
Sartre
, 78.

29
  ‘A hyena with a fountain pen’:
Cohen-Solal,
Sartre
, 337. The remark was made at a peace congress in 1948.

30
  ‘Decay and moral degeneration’: Klíma,
My Crazy Century
, 69.

31
  Algren and Beauvoir difficulties: FOC, 137.

32
  Hallucinations and ‘dwarf forests’: FOC, 143.

33
  War fears: FOC, 242; Sartre, ‘Merleau-Ponty’, in
Situations
[IV], 225–326, this 285.

34
  ‘You must leave’: FOC, 243.

35
  ‘How to get away’: Beauvoir,
Beloved Chicago Man
, 406 (Beauvoir to Algren, 31 Dec. 1950).

36
  Going to US: ibid., 410 (Beauvoir to Algren, 14 Jan. 1951).

37
  None of them wanting to flee Communists: FOC, 244.

38
  ‘With that boyish air’: Sartre, ‘Merleau-Ponty’, in
Situations
[IV], 225–326, this 279.

39
  ‘Because brute force’: ibid., 274.

40
  Merleau-Ponty shocked by Korea: ibid., 275.

41
  Duclos and pigeon plot: Jacques Duclos,
Mémoires IV: 1945–1952: des débuts de la IVe République au ‘complot’ des pigeons
(Paris: Fayard, 1971), 339–492, esp. the autopsy: 404. The experts: 400–401.

42
  Aragon’s poem reproduced: ibid., 435–6. Also see Jacques Duclos,
Écrits de la prison
(Paris: Éditions sociales, 1952).

43
  ‘After ten years’ and ‘In the language’: Sartre, ‘Merleau-Ponty’, in
Situations
[IV], 225–326, this 287; also see
Sartre By Himself
, 72, and FOC, 245 (for Beauvoir on how it changed him).

44
  ‘Write or suffocate’: Sartre, ‘Merleau-Ponty’, in
Situations
[IV], 225–326, this 287–8. Sartre,
The Communists and Peace
. Originally published in parts in
Les Temps modernes
, 81 (July 1952); 84–5 (Oct.–Nov. 1952); 101 (April 1954).

45
  Rebellion: Camus,
The Rebel
, 178, 253.

46
  ‘So far but no further’: ibid., 19.

47
  Jeanson’s review: Francis Jeanson, ‘Albert Camus, or The Soul in Revolt’, in Sprintzen & Van den Hoven (eds),
Sartre and Camus: a historic confrontation
, 79–105 this 101. Originally published in
Les Temps modernes
, 79 (May 1952).

48
  ‘I am beginning’: Camus, ‘A Letter to the Editor of
Les Temps modernes
’, in Sprintzen & Van den Hoven (eds),
Sartre and Camus
, 107–29, this 126. Originally published in
Les Temps modernes
, 82 (Aug. 1952).

49
  Sartre’s reply: Sartre, ‘Reply to Albert Camus’, in Sprintzen & Van den
Hoven (eds),
Sartre and Camus
, 131–61, this 131–2. Originally published in
Les Temps modernes
, 82 (Aug. 1952), following Camus’ letter. Also reprinted in Sartre,
Situations
[IV], 69–105.

50
  Camus’ draft reply: Camus, ‘In Defence of
The Rebel
’, in Sprintzen & Van den Hoven (eds),
Sartre and Camus
, 205–21. Written Nov. 1952, but published posthumously as ‘Défense de
L’homme révolté
’, in Camus,
Essais
, 1,702–15.

51
  Beauvoir:
The Rebel
a betrayal: FOC, 272.

52
  ‘The more I accuse myself’: Camus,
The Fall
, 103. On the novel, see also FOC, 362.

53
  ‘We feel that we are being judged’: Sartre,
Saint Genet
, 598.

54
  Beauvoir on being judged: ASAD, 49.

55
  ‘The enormous condescension’: E. P. Thompson,
The Making of the English Working Class
(London: Gollancz, 1980), 14. The line is often quoted, but rarely in its proper context, which seems relevant here: ‘I am seeking to rescue the poor stockinger, the Luddite cropper, the “obsolete” hand-loom weaver, the “utopian” artisan, and even the deluded follower of Joanna Southcott, from the enormous condescension of posterity. Their crafts and traditions may have been dying. Their hostility to the new industrialism may have been backward-looking. Their communitarian ideals may have been foolhardy. But they lived through these times of acute social disturbance, and we did not.’

56
  ‘It is perfectly true’: Kierkegaard, Notebook IV A 164; 1843 (D), in
A Kierkegaard Reader
, eds Roger Poole & Henrik Stangerup (London: Fourth Estate, 1989), 18; Sartre,
Saint Genet
, 599.

57
  Not showing Merleau-Ponty the article: Sartre, ‘Merleau-Ponty’, in
Situations
[IV], 225–326, this 289.

58
  Merleau-Ponty’s lecture: Merleau-Ponty,
In Praise of Philosophy
, 4–5, 63.

59
  ‘In a glacially cold tone’ and ‘I hope’: Stewart (ed.),
The Debate Between Sartre and Merleau-Ponty
, 343 (Merleau-Ponty to Sartre, 8 July [1953]). Stewart’s collection includes (327–54) a translation of the whole correspondence, first published in
Le magazine littéraire
(2 April 1994), and also included in ‘Sartre and MP: les lettres d’une rupture’, in
Parcours deux, 1951–1961
, 129–69, and Merleau-Ponty,
Œuvres
, 627–51.

60
  Heat: Sartre, ‘Merleau-Ponty’, in
Situations
[IV], 225–326, this 197.

61
  No longer ‘engaged’: Stewart (ed.),
The Debate Between Sartre and Merleau-Ponty
,
327–54, this 334 (Sartre to Merleau-Ponty, undated but before Merleau-Ponty’s reply dated 8 July 1953).

62
  ‘Become engaged on every event’: ibid., 338–9 (Merleau-Ponty to Sartre, 8 July [1953]).

63
  ‘For God’s sake’ and ‘If I appeared’: ibid., 351 (Sartre to Merleau-Ponty, 29 July 1953).

64
  Merleau-Ponty smiling: FOC, 332.

65
  ‘Found his security’: Sartre, ‘Merleau-Ponty’, in
Situations
[IV], 225–326, this 232.

66
  Discussing for hours: Marianne Merleau-Ponty, personal communication.

67
  Editorial meetings and mutterings: Sartre, ‘Merleau-Ponty’, in
Situations
[IV], 225–326, this 292.

68
  
‘Alors, c’est fini’
: Marianne Merleau-Ponty, personal communication; see also Sartre, ‘Merleau-Ponty’, in
Situations
[IV], 225–326, this 298.

69
  Never called: Sartre, ‘Merleau-Ponty’, in
Situations
[IV], 225–326, this 301.

70
  ‘Casually, with that sad gaiety’: ibid., 301–302. His daughter also remembers a dark period.

71
  ‘Light and free as air’ and ‘a living accord’: Sartre, ‘Merleau-Ponty’, in
Situations
[IV], 225–326, this 300.

72
  ‘Sartre and Ultrabolshevism’: Merleau-Ponty, ‘Sartre and Ultrabolshevism’, in
Adventures of the Dialectic
, 95–201, especially 95–6.

73
  Beauvoir’s attack: Beauvoir, ‘Merleau-Ponty and Pseudo-Sartreanism’, in
Political Writings
195–258. (Originally published in
Les Temps modernes
, 1955.)

74
  Anti-Merleau-Ponty meeting: Roger Garaudy et al.,
Mésaventures de l’anti-marxisme: les malheurs de M. Merleau-Ponty. Avec une lettre de G. Lukács
(Paris: Éditions sociales, 1956). The meeting took place on 29 Nov. 1955. See Emmanuelle Garcia, ‘Maurice Merleau-Ponty: vie et œuvre’, in Merleau-Ponty,
Œuvres
, 27–99, this 81.

75
  ‘Someone was speaking’: Sartre, ‘Merleau-Ponty’, in
Situations
[IV], 225–326, this 318–19. Marianne Merleau-Ponty also remembers their greetings as cool.

76
  Amused looks: ibid., 318. For Spender’s perspective, see Spender,
New Selected Journals
, 215 (26 March 1956). For Merleau-Ponty’s contributions to this conference, see Merleau-Ponty, ‘East–West Encounter (1956)’, tr. Jeffrey Gaines, in Merleau-Ponty,
Texts and Dialogues
, 26–58.

77
  ‘One leaves behind reveries’: cited in Paul Ricœur, ‘Homage to Merleau-Ponty’,
in Bernard Flynn, Wayne J. Froman & Robert Vallier (eds),
Merleau-Ponty and the Possibilities of Philosophy: transforming the tradition
(New York: SUNY Press, 2009), 17–24, this 21.

78
  Philosophers are awake: Merleau-Ponty,
In Praise of Philosophy
, 63.

79
  ‘I thought that while I was being faithful’: Sartre, ‘Merleau-Ponty’, in
Situations
[IV], 225–326, this 293.

80
  
The Mandarins
: see FOC, 311; Lanzmann,
The Patagonian Hare
, 235. Both agree it was Lanzmann who suggested the title.

81
  ‘He said first of all’ and ‘I want to kill’, etc.: FOC, 294–6.

82
  List and diagram of quarrels: Sartre, ‘Relecture du Carnet I’, (notebook,
c
. 1954), in his
Les Mots
, 937–53, this 950–51.

83
  ‘A thing is dead’: Beauvoir,
Adieux
, 275.

84
  ‘There was a side of him’ and ‘He was probably’: Sartre, ‘Self-Portrait at Seventy’, in
Sartre in the Seventies
(
Situations X
), 3–92, this 64.

85
  ‘Merciless towards the failings’: Aron,
The Opium of the Intellectuals
, ix.

86
  Unfit to teach: Aron,
Memoirs
, 329.

87
  
‘Bonjour’
: Todd,
Un fils rebelle
, 267–8; see also Aron,
Memoirs
, 447–9, and Hayman,
Writing Against
, 435.

88
  ‘What do you think?’: Aron,
Memoirs
, 457. The interview with Bernard-Henri Lévy was published in
Le nouvel observateur
(15 March 1976).

89
  Soviet trip and articles: Cohen-Solal,
Sartre
, 348–9, citing articles published in
Libération
(15–20 July 1954). See also FOC, 316–23.

90
  Delegating writing to Cau: Beauvoir,
Adieux
, 366.

91
  ‘There’s no time!’ and giving up pleasures: Cau,
Croquis de mémoire
, 236, 248.

92
  Bourgeois self-indulgence: see Sartre, ‘On
The Idiot of the Family
’, 109–32, in
Sartre in the Seventies
(
Situations
X), this 111.

93
  Beauvoir watching nervously: Beauvoir,
Adieux
, 174.

94
  Twenty pages a day: Hayman,
Writing Against
, 1, citing Contat & Rybalka in
Le Monde
(17 April 1980).

95
  Breakfast: Huston,
An Open Book
, 295.

96
  Turbine: Cohen-Solal,
Sartre
, 281. Pit stop: Olivier Wickers,
Trois aventures extraordinaires de Jean-Paul Sartre
(Paris: Gallimard, 2000), 23.

97
  Corydrane: FOC, 397; see also Cohen-Solal,
Sartre
, 373–4.

98
  ‘I liked having confused, vaguely questioning ideas’: Beauvoir,
Adieux
, 318.

99
  ‘Facility’ and ‘It was dreadful’: ibid., 174.

100
  ‘About the plashing sound’: ibid., 181. He is talking about his notebook entitled ‘La Reine Albemarle’, written 1951–2 based on Italian travels in Oct. 1951: Sartre,
La Reine Albemarle
, ed. Arlette Elkaïm-Sartre (Paris: Gallimard, 1991). See Sartre,
Les Mots
, 1,491.

101
  
‘Il est bon’
: Merleau-Ponty, interview with Georges Charbonnier (May 1959), in
Parcours deux
, 235–40, this 236.

102
  ‘A sinister scoundrel’ and ‘I’d say, a person who’s not bad’: Sartre & Lévy,
Hope Now
, 63.

103
  ‘We are now going off the air’: Janet Flanner,
Paris Journal
, ed. W. Shawn, 2 vols (New York: Atheneum, 1965–71), I, 329 (4 Nov. 1956). On the Hungarian events, see Victor Sebestyén,
Twelve Days: Revolution 1956
(London: Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 2006).

104
  
Les Temps modernes
special issue:
Les Temps modernes
, 12e année, 131 (Jan. 1957), ‘La révolte de la Hongrie’. On their turmoil: FOC, 373.

105
  
Critique
as Sartre’s response: FOC, 397.

106
  ‘The
Critique
is a Marxist work’: Sartre, ‘Self-Portrait at Seventy’, in
Sartre in the Seventies
(
Situations X
), 3–92, this 18.