At the height of the Algerian war, Jean-Paul Sartre embarked on a fundamental reappraisal of his philosophical and political thought. The result was the Critique of Dialectical Reason, an intellectual masterpiece of the twentieth century, now republished with a major original introduction by Fredric Jameson. In it, Sartre set out the basic categories for the renovated theory of history that he believed was necessary for post-war Marxism.
Sartre's formal aim was to establish the dialectical intelligibility of history itself, as what he called 'a totalisation without a totaliser'. But, at the same time, his substantive concern was the structure of class struggle and the fate of mass movements of popular revolt, from the French Revolution at the end of the eighteenth century to the Russian and Chinese revolutions in the twentieth: their ascent, stabilisation, petrification and decline, in a world still overwhelmingly dominated by scarcity.

Volume One of Sartre's intellectual masterpiece, introduced by Fredric Jameson

About the Author
Jean-Paul Sartre was a philosopher, novelist, public intellectual, biographer, playwright and founder of the journal Les Temps modernes. Born in Paris in 1905, Sartre was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1964 - and turned it down. His books include Nausea, Intimacy, The Flies, No Exit, The Freud Scenario, War Diaries, Critique of Dialectical Reason, and the monumental treatise Being and Nothingness. He died in 1980.

Reviews
The work is a landmark in modern social thought ... a turning point in the thinking of our time. -- Raymond Williams * Guardian *
The Critique is essential to any serious understanding of Sartre. -- George Steiner * Sunday Times *



Book Information
ISBN 9781859844854
Author Jonathan Ree
Format Paperback
Page Count 858
Imprint Verso Books
Publisher Verso Books
Weight(grams) 1102g
Dimensions(mm) 216mm * 135mm * 46mm