Substantial handwritten manuscript fragment in French, unsigned, nineteen gridded pages, 8.25 x 10.5, no date. An untranslated and unpublished portion of Sartre's working manuscript for the important philosophical book Critique of Dialectical Reason, containing some thoughts on his existentialist understanding of the political dimension of human existence. The manuscript concerns a diverse selection of material from throughout the book, with each page relating to a different passage and often greatly differing from the final version as published in 1960. In fine condition, with light toning, and some small edge tears and losses.
Following his 1943 work Being and Nothingness, Critique of Dialectical Reason was Sartre's second large-scale philosophical treatise and ranks among the most significant philosophical works in his corpus. His concern in the Critique is with the historical significance of everyday life examined through the lens of Marxism and the work represents his greatest attempt at synthesizing his existentialist philosophy with sociological analysis. Owing to its complexities and nuance the Critique is one of Sartre's most discussed and relevant works today, with some arguing that it represents a departure from his original existentialism while others read it as a continuation and elaboration upon his earlier work. Sartre himself considered Critique of Dialectical Reason one of his most important pieces and near the end of his life and declared it the principal philosophical work for which he wished to be remembered. Penned by Sartre in the course of writing his Critique, this lengthy manuscript represents a remarkable development in the history of 20th-century thought.
