Monique Canto-Sperber (born 1954) is a French philosopher. Her works, translated in several languages, are focused on ethics and contemporary political issues. A former Director of the
École normale supérieure
École may refer to:
* an elementary school in the French educational stages normally followed by secondary education establishments (collège and lycée)
* École (river), a tributary of the Seine flowing in région Île-de-France
* École, Savoi ...
from 2005 to 2012, she has been President of
Paris Sciences et Lettres – Quartier latin
Paris Sciences et Lettres University (PSL University or simply PSL) is a public research university based in Paris, France. It was established in 2010 and formally created as a university in 2019. It is a collegiate university with 11 constituen ...
, a French higher education and research institution, since 2012.
Biography
Monique Canto-Sperber was born on May 14, 1954, in
French Algeria
French Algeria (french: Alger to 1839, then afterwards; unofficially , ar, الجزائر المستعمرة), also known as Colonial Algeria, was the period of French colonisation of Algeria. French rule in the region began in 1830 with the ...
and has been living in France since 1964. An alumnus of the Ecole normale supérieure de jeunes filles, she is Agrégée and holds a PhD in philosophy.
After teaching at the universities of Rouen and Amiens, she became Research Director at the CNRS in 1993. Between 2001 and 2004, she was a member of the Comité consultatif national d'éthique and served as its president from 2004 to 2007.
She produces the radio programme "Questions d'éthique" on France Culture, broadcast every Monday evening.
She is officier de la Légion d'honneur officier de l'ordre du Mérite et chevalier des Arts et des Lettres.
Her work in ancient philosophy is centred on ethical theory and epistemology; she has published several commented translations of Plato (Gorgias, Ion, Euthydème, Ménon) and various books. She has also taken an active part in the renewal of moral philosophy in France, with the creation in 1993 of a book collection by the Presses Universitaires de France.
Direction of the ENS
Monique Canto-Sperber has been the head of the Ecole normale supérieure since 2005 (renewed in 2010). She has introduced the practice of scientific advisory committees in humanities and social sciences departments, created an International Council for Strategic Orientation, developed a specific ENS Diploma and started a rehabilitation of research spaces.
She has also encouraged the projection of the Ecole normale supérieure as an institution of research and higher education comparable to leading international research universities, rather than as a specific French creation. She has promoted the creation of a group of institutions called
Paris Sciences et Lettres - Quartier latin. In February 2012, she was elected as the President of
Paris Sciences et Lettres - Quartier latin.
Direction of PSL
Paris Sciences et Lettres – Quartier latin
Paris Sciences et Lettres University (PSL University or simply PSL) is a public research university based in Paris, France. It was established in 2010 and formally created as a university in 2019. It is a collegiate university with 11 constituen ...
(PSL) is a new research university, made of cooperative actions between the
École normale supérieure
École may refer to:
* an elementary school in the French educational stages normally followed by secondary education establishments (collège and lycée)
* École (river), a tributary of the Seine flowing in région Île-de-France
* École, Savoi ...
, the
Collège de France
The Collège de France (), formerly known as the ''Collège Royal'' or as the ''Collège impérial'' founded in 1530 by François I, is a higher education and research establishment (''grand établissement'') in France. It is located in Paris ne ...
,
ESPCI ParisTech
ESPCI Paris (officially the École supérieure de physique et de chimie industrielles de la Ville de Paris; ''The City of Paris Industrial Physics and Chemistry Higher Educational Institution'') is a prestigious grande école founded in 1882 by ...
,
Chimie ParisTech
Chimie ParisTech (officially École nationale supérieure de chimie de Paris (''National Chemical Engineering Institute in Paris''), also known as ENSCP or Chimie Paris), founded in 1896 within the University of Paris, is an engineering school an ...
,
Paris Observatory
The Paris Observatory (french: Observatoire de Paris ), a research institution of the Paris Sciences et Lettres University, is the foremost astronomical observatory of France, and one of the largest astronomical centers in the world. Its histor ...
,
Paris Dauphine University
Paris Dauphine University - PSL (french: Université Paris-Dauphine, also known as Paris Dauphine - PSL or Dauphine - PSL) is a public research university based in Paris, France. It is one of the 13 universities formed by the division of the ancie ...
and the
Curie Institute.
Philosophy
Ethics
A specialist of ancient philosophy, Monique Canto-Sperber has worked on and translated dialogues of Plato. In her book, ''Greek Ethics'', Monique Canto-Sperber argues notably that the contemporary conception of Greek moral philosophy as essentially forms of eudemonism is an artefact and that contemporary debates only present a very partial view on the topic. Her works stress the practical life enhancing aspect of moral philosophy using examples from the arts and literature.
She has also played an important role in the introduction in France of contemporary debates in Anglo-American philosophy.
She has edited at the Presses Universitaires de France a ''Dictionnaire d'éthique et de philosophie morale'', with numerous French and international specialists, on major issues of moral philosophy.
Political philosophy
During the last 15 years, Monique Canto-Sperber has also written important works of political philosophy. In books such as ''Rules of Freedom'' or ''Does liberalism need to be saved?'', she offers an analysis of liberalism that attempt to give the notion a new legitimacy in progressive political thinking.
Recent books such as ''L'Idée de guerre juste'' and ''La Morale du monde'' offer her vision of international relations.
Bibliography
* ''Les paradoxes de la connaissance. Essais sur le Ménon de Platon'', 1991
* ''La philosophie morale britannique'', 1994
* Direction du ''Dictionnaire d'éthique et de philosophie morale'', 2004
* (dir.) ''Philosophie grecque'', en collaboration avec J.
Barnes
Barnes may refer to:
People
* Barnes (name), a family name and a given name (includes lists of people with that name)
Places
United Kingdom
*Barnes, London, England
**Barnes railway station
** Barnes Bridge railway station
** Barnes Railway Bri ...
, L.
Brisson, J.
Brunschwig, et G.
Vlastos Vlastos is a surname. Notable people with the surname include:
* Sifis Vlastos (?), fifteenth century Cretan rebel
*Gregory Vlastos (1907–1991), scholar of ancient philosophy
*Kostia Vlastos
Kostia Vlastos (17 October 1883 – 28 October 19 ...
, 1997.
* ''Éthiques grecques'', 2001
* ''L'Inquiétude morale et la Vie humaine'', 2002
* ''Le Socialisme libéral. Une anthologie (Europe - États-Unis)'', 2003
* ''Les Règles de la liberté'', 2003
* ''Le Bien, la Guerre et la Terreur. Pour une morale internationale'', 2005
* ''Faut-il sauver le libéralisme ?'', avec Nicolas Tenzer, 2006
* ''Le Libéralisme et la gauche'', 2008
* "L'idée de guerre juste", 2010
* "La Morale du monde", 2010
Notes and references
External links
Le site de Monique Canto-Sperber''Questions d'éthique''sur le site de
France Culture
France Culture is a French public radio channel and part of Radio France. Its programming encompasses a wide variety of features on historical, philosophical, sociopolitical, and scientific themes (including debates, discussions, and documentari ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Canto-Sperber, Monique
1954 births
Living people
Lycée Condorcet alumni
École Normale Supérieure alumni
Academic staff of the École Normale Supérieure
French political philosophers
French historians of philosophy
French women philosophers
Continental philosophers
20th-century French philosophers
21st-century French philosophers
20th-century French women writers
21st-century French women writers
Knights of the Legion of Honour
Officers of the Legion of Honour
Commanders of the Ordre national du Mérite
Epistemologists
French scholars of ancient Greek philosophy
French women historians