The Second Sex (132 page)

THE PHILOSOPHY OF JEAN-PAUL SARTRE
edited by Robert Denoon Cumming

Here in one volume is a unique, essential overview of the philosophy of Jean-Paul Sartre. Extensive excerpts from Sartre’s major philosophical and literary writings—
Being and Nothingness, The Critique of Dialectical Reason, Nausea, No Exit, The Flies, St. Genet
, as well as lesser-known works—are organized systematically, illustrating the key elements of his thinking.

Philosophy

NO EXIT AND THREE OTHER PLAYS
by Jean-Paul Sartre

No Exit
, Sartre’s most well-known existentialist play, shows the great novelist and philosopher’s mastery over drama.
No Exit
is his unforgettable portrayal of hell;
The Flies
, a modern reworking of the Electra-Orestes story.
Dirty Hands
depicts a young intellectual torn between theory and praxis, and
The Respectful Prostitute
is a scathing attack on American racism.

Drama

RESISTANCE, REBELLION, AND DEATH
by Albert Camus

In the speech he gave upon accepting the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1957, Albert Camus said that a writer “cannot serve today those who make history; he must serve those who are subject to it.” And in these twenty-three political essays, he demonstrates his commitment to history’s victims, from the fallen
maquis
of the French Revolution to the casualties of the Cold War.
Resistance, Rebellion, and Death
displays Camus’ rigorous moral intelligence addressing issues that range from colonial warfare in Algeria to the social cancer of capital punishment.

Essays

THE MYTH OF SISYPHUS
by Albert Camus

One of the most influential works of the twentieth century,
The Myth of Sisyphus and Other Essays
is a crucial exposition of existentialist thought. Influenced by works such as
Don Juan
and the novels of Kafka, these essays begin with a meditation of suicide; the question of living or not living in a universe devoid of order or meaning. With lyric eloquence, Albert Camus brilliantly posits a way out of despair, reaffirming the value of personal existence, and the possibility of life lived with dignity and authenticity.

Philosophy

THE HISTORY OF SEXUALITY
by Michel Foucault

Why has there been such a veritable explosion of discussion about sex in the West since the seventeenth century? How did we ever come to believe that our increasing talk about it would make us feel less repressed? In
The History of Sexuality
, his ambitious multipart study, Michel Foucault offers a dazzling, iconoclastic exploration of why we feel compelled to continually analyze and discuss sex, and of the social and mental mechanisms of power that cause us to direct the question of what we are to what our sexuality is.

Philosophy

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