José Gil (born 15 June 1939
Muecate,
Portuguese Mozambique) is a Portuguese philosopher.
In his youth he lived in
Lisbon
Lisbon (; pt, Lisboa ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 544,851 within its administrative limits in an area of 100.05 km2. Grande Lisboa, Lisbon's urban area extends beyond the city's administr ...
,
Portugal, but his experiences under
António Salazar's 1933-1974
dictatorship, made him decide to study in a free country. He moved to
Paris,
France where in 1982 he got his
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from the University of Paris (
Université de Vincennes à Saint-Denis) where he researched on the body as a power field under the supervision of
François Châtelet
François Châtelet (27 April 1925 – 26 December 1985) was a historian of philosophy, political philosophy and professor in the socratic tradition. He was the husband of philosopher Noëlle Châtelet, the sister of Lionel Jospin.
Biogr ...
. There he assisted at
Gilles Deleuze
Gilles Louis René Deleuze ( , ; 18 January 1925 – 4 November 1995) was a French philosopher who, from the early 1950s until his death in 1995, wrote on philosophy, literature, film, and fine art. His most popular works were the two volu ...
's classes whose influence on his thinking was decisive.
Between 1986 and 1989 he conducted an original research project on the aesthetics of
Fernando Pessoa, at the Collège International de Philosophie, where he directed a program.
He wrote several books prior to 1983 but when "Portugal, Today: Fear of Existing" (''Portugal, Hoje: O Medo de Existir'', Lisboa: Relógio d'Água) was published in November 2004, there was a massive response. The book describes, in a way considered by some to be very accurate, what is to be Portuguese and how Portuguese people perceive themselves, other people and the world, thus helping to establish what it is to be "Portuguese" and related identities. The fact that the book was a success enabled the Portuguese to share a public awareness of the problem which may be relevant to helping to solve it.
The following month, December 2004, ''
Le Nouvel Observateur'' named him one of the 25 Great Thinkers of the contemporary world along with
Richard Rorty,
Peter Sloterdijk,
Toni Negri and
Slavoj Žižek
Slavoj Žižek (, ; ; born 21 March 1949) is a Slovenian philosopher, cultural theorist and public intellectual. He is international director of the Birkbeck Institute for the Humanities at the University of London, visiting professor at New Y ...
.
For several years he has taught courses on
aesthetics,
Deleuze and
Spinoza at
Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Department of
Philosophy
Philosophy (from , ) is the systematized study of general and fundamental questions, such as those about existence, reason, knowledge, values, mind, and language. Such questions are often posed as problems to be studied or resolved. Some ...
. He also writes for several Portuguese and foreign magazines. The academic year 2008/ 2009 brought his teaching career to an end.
In 2008 he has published two books: one on Deleuze's philosophy (The Imperceptible Becoming of Immanence/ ''O Imperceptível Devir da Imanência'', Lisboa: Relógio d'Água); and a second one, a fictional work, "At noon, the birds" (ao meio-dia, os pássaros, Lisboa: Relógio d'Água).
Works
* 1983: ''La Crucifiée'', Éditions de la Différence.
* 1983: ''Un'Antropologia delle Forze'', Einaudi.
[''in'' José Gil, ''Portugal, Hoje: O Medo de Existir'', Relógio d'Água, Lisboa, Março de 2005 (6.ª reimpressão). ]
* 1984: ''La Corse, entre la liberté et la terreur – Étude sur la dynamique des systèmes politiques corses'', Éditions de la Différence (2.ª edição: 1991).
* 1985: ''Métamorphoses du corps'', Éditions de la Différence.
* 1986: ''A Crucificada'', Relógio d'Água.
* 1987: ''
Fernando Pessoa ou a Metafisica das Sensações'', Relógio d'Água.
* 1988: ''
Fernando Pessoa ou la métaphysique des sensations'', Éditions de la Différence.
* 1988: ''Corpo, Espaço e Poder'', Litoral Edições.
* 1990: ''Cemitério dos Desejos'', Relógio d'Água.
* 1990: ''Cimetière des Plaisirs'', Éditions de la Différence.
* 1994: ''O Espaço Interior'', Presença.
* 1994: ''Os Monstros'', Quetzal.
* 1995: ''Salazar: a Retórica da Invisibilidade'', Relógio d'Água.
* 1996: ''A Imagem-Nua e as Pequenas Percepções'', Relógio d'Água.
* 1997: ''Metamorfoses do Corpo'', Relógio d'Água.
*
* 1999: ''Diferença e Negação na Poesia de Fernando Pessoa'', Relógio d'Água.
* 2001: ''Movimento Total – O Corpo e a Dança'', Relógio d'Água.
* 2003: ''A Profundidade e a Superfície – Ensaio sobre o Principezinho de Saint-Exupéry'', Relógio d'Água.
* 2004: ''Portugal, Hoje: O Medo de Existir'', Relógio d'Água, Lisboa, Novembro de 2004.
* 2005: ''Sem Título – Escritos sobre Arte e Artistas'', Relógio d'Água.
Sources
* http://www.relogiodagua.pt/
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gil, Jose
Portuguese philosophers
Living people
1939 births