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Oxford University Press The Legacy Of Simone De Beauvoir by Edited by Emily R. Grosholz
The legacy of Simone de Beauvoir has yet to be properly assessed and explored. The 50th anniversary of the publication of The Second Sex inspired this volume which brings together philosophers and literary critics, some of whom are well known for their books on Beauvoir Bauer, Le Doeuff, Moi, others new to Beauvoir studies though long familiar with her work Grosholz, Imbert, James, Stevenson, Wilson. One aim of this collection is to encourage greater recognition of Beauvoirs philosophical writings through systematic reflection on their place in the canon and on her methods. The Second Sex played a central role in the profound shift in philosophys self-understanding that took place in the latter half of the twentieth century, and today offers new problems for reflection and novel means for appropriating older texts. Its reflective iconoclasm can be compared to that of DescartesMeditations; its enormous, directly discernible impact on our social world invites comparison with Lockes Two Treatises of Government.The collection also examines the relationship between Beauvoirs literary writing and her philosophical thought. Deeply concerned with the critical and creative powers of reason as well as with the betterment of our suffering world, Simone de Beauvoir wrote in a variety of genres in addition to the philosophical essay: the novel, political journalism, and the memoir. The multiplicity of her voices was closely related to her philosophical project. Since Beauvoirs method like that of W. E. B.du Bois proceeded from her own immediate experience, her reflections had to find expression sometimes as narrative, sometimes as autobiography, sometimes as argument.The Legacy of Simone de Beauvoir demonstrates the many ways in which Beauvoirs writings, in particular The Second Sex, can serve as resources for thought, for the life of the mind which is as concerned with the past and future as it is with the present.show more