The Norton Reader

Jean-Paul Sartre (1905-1980) was educated in Paris and Germany and taught philosophy in Paris, where he developed the principles of existentialism. One of Sartre’s most well-known novels, Being and Nothingness, explores the nature of being in both objects and humans and outlines the idea that, in humans, existence precedes essence. In other words, humans create their own essence through their struggles in the world and the individual choices they make. Sartre’s companion and intellectual muse was Simone de Beauvoir, whom Sartre met at the Sorbonne in 1928.

Sites about Jean-Paul Sartre:

• Link 1: http://members.aol.com/donjohnr/Philosophy/Sartre.html

  This Sartre page contains links to a number of Sartre’s texts online, as well as links to other resources related to philosophy.

• Link 2: http://www.kirjasto.sci.fi/sartre.htm

  This extensive biography is cross-referenced with links to information about some of the important people in Sartre’s life, including Simone de Beauvoir and Albert Camus.

• Link 3: http://www.tameri.com/csw/exist/sartre.shtml

  This even more extensive biography traces Sartre’s life as a student, a revolutionary, and a prisoner of war in World War II. This page also includes a useful guide to Sartre’s politics and philosophy.

• Link 4: http://www.geocities.com/sartresite/

  Sartre’s philosophy was highly influenced by other intellectuals, writers, and philosophers, such as Fyodor Dostoyevsky, Edmund Husserl, Karl Marx, and others. Their influence on his notion of existentialism is nicely explained in the “Theses” and “Influences” sections of this well-organized Web page, which also includes a comprehensive biography.