The Age of Reason (novel)
LC Class PQ2637.A82 A713 1992 | | |
Followed by | The Reprieve |
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The Age of Reason[1] (French: L'âge de raison) is a 1945 novel by the philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre. It is the first part of the trilogy The Roads to Freedom.
Plot
The novel, set in the bohemian Paris of 1938, focuses on three days in the life of philosophy teacher Mathieu who is seeking money to pay for an abortion for his girlfriend, Marcelle. Sartre analyses the motives of various characters and their actions and takes into account the perceptions of others to give the reader a comprehensive picture of the main character.
Literary themes
The Age of Reason is concerned with Sartre's conception of
Critical response
The New York Times review stated "There is, indeed, something more in The Age of Reason than an exciting novel and a philosophical problem. As a somber background to Mathieu's private dilemma, Sartre presents a picture of the war in Spain and of the eve of the war in Europe."[2]
The Harvard Crimson published an unattributed review of the book which states "Sartre's new novel is a rare and welcome plant in a period that almost completely lacks a balanced combination of emotional intensity and maturity in its writers." However, the review goes on to remark how Sartre seems to be preoccupied with describing the physical act of vomiting.[3]
References
- ISBN 0-394-71838-0(paperback).
- ^ O'Brien, Justin (July 13, 1947). "Sartre's Trillogy, Volume One". The New York Times.
- ^ "The Bookshelf: The Age Of Reason". The Harvard Crimson. August 5, 1947.