Jean-Paul Sartre, a towering figure in existentialist thought, was born on June 21, 1905, in Paris, France. Throughout his life, he interwove philosophy with literature, leaving an indelible mark on both fields. His legacy is enriched not only by his intellectual contributions but also by his passionate engagement with political causes.

Early Life and Education

Sartre's early life was marked by familial shifts following his father's death when he was just a year old. Raised by his mother and her parents, Sartre later moved to La Rochelle at age eleven after his mother remarried. This period of his life is vividly recounted in his Nobel Prize-winning autobiography, Les Mots (The Words), where he reflects on his formative years with introspective clarity. Sartre pursued his interest in philosophy at the prestigious Ecole Normale Supérieure in Paris, graduating in 1929 as the leading student of his class. It was here that he encountered Simone de Beauvoir, his intellectual equal and lifelong companion, sharing a profound personal and professional bond.

Early Career and World War II

Following his graduation, Sartre served in the French military's Meteorological Corps for two years, a brief detour before embarking on his teaching career in various secondary schools across France. His literary journey began with the publication of his first novel, La Nausée (Nausea), in 1938, which introduced groundbreaking existential themes. With the advent of World War II, Sartre was drafted into the French army but was soon captured by German forces, leading to a nine-month imprisonment in a prisoner of war camp. Upon his release in 1941, he returned to German-occupied Paris and joined the French Resistance, contributing to clandestine newspapers such as Combat and Les Lettres Françaises. During this tumultuous period, Sartre penned L’être et le néant (Being and Nothingness), in 1943, a seminal work that solidified his status as a leading existential philosopher.

Post-War Influence and Intellectual Pursuits

The end of the war marked a new chapter in Sartre's life, characterized by heightened political engagement and the evolution of his existential philosophy. In 1945, Sartre and de Beauvoir established Les Temps Modernes, a journal that became instrumental in the dissemination and debate of existentialist ideas. His body of work during this period includes the novel Nausea, the philosophical treatise Being and Nothingness, the play Huis-clos (1944; No Exit), and his autobiography The Words. Notably, in 1964, Sartre was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature for The Words, an accolade he famously declined, underscoring his commitment to autonomy and personal principles.

Later Years and Legacy

From 1960 onward, Sartre faced a significant decline in his eyesight, which progressively worsened until he was nearly blind by the time of his death. Despite this impairment, Sartre remained fervently involved in political activities and maintained a public presence through impactful interviews. He spent the last years of his life engaged in activism, refusing to retreat into obscurity. Sartre passed away on April 15, 1980, from a lung tumor, and his funeral was attended by an estimated twenty-five thousand people, a testament to his far-reaching influence and enduring legacy.