Writers Laughing: Jean-Paul Sartre and Simone de Beauvoir

jp and sdb

Love this. What are they laughing about? We don’t know. But there’s also this:

Jean-Paul Sartre and Simone de Beauvoir
Image Credit: Corbis

 

And this:

jp and sdb2

I read somewhere that Sartre loved to sing “Old Man River” and often did so at the top of his lungs. A friend of mine used to do an impression of this (baritone voice, passionate feeling, crazy French accent, some existentialist twists) that never failed to make me laugh.

It is an unconfirmed rumor that this is the source of the mirth in these photos.



6 responses to “Writers Laughing: Jean-Paul Sartre and Simone de Beauvoir”

  1. Sounds like a good writing challenge to me, figuring out what they were laughing about 🙂

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  2. Simone de Beauvoir, author of “The Second Sex” and who famously coined the phrase that has become antithesis to feminism: “woman as The Other” must simply be laughing politely to cover up her disgust at the oppressive nature of patriarchy being described by existentialist Sartre.

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    1. Right on, Deb. Have you read Hazel Rowley’s “Tete-a-tete” about them? Really makes you loathe Sartre if you didn’t already.

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  3. They are laughing and having fun!

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  4. Right on. Deb. Have you read Hazel Rowley’s “Tete-a-tete”? makes you loathe Sartre even if you didn’t before.

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  5. I notice the undertone created by the presence of the beautiful blonde, who is certainly visible to both the main subjects of these photos. The mirth may be in good faith—or not.

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