Sarah Kofman (; September 14, 1934 – October 15, 1994) was a French philosopher .

Biography

Kofman began her teaching career in

Toulouse Toulouse ( , ; oc, Tolosa ) is the prefecture of the French department of Haute-Garonne and of the larger region of Occitania. The city is on the banks of the River Garonne, from the Mediterranean Sea, from the Atlantic Ocean and from Pa ...

in 1960 at the

Lycée Saint-Sernin The Lycée Saint-Sernin, also referred to simply as Saint-Sernin, is a public Lycée, located at ''3 place Saint-Sernin'', in the city center of Toulouse, in front of the Basilica of Saint-Sernin. The current headmaster is Thierry Verger. The h ...

, and worked with both

Jean Hyppolite Jean Hyppolite (; 8 January 1907 – 26 October 1968) was a French philosopher known for championing the work of Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel, and other German philosophers, and educating some of France's most prominent post-war thinkers. His ...

and Gilles Deleuze. Her abandoned primary thesis (''thèse principale'') for her

State doctorate Habilitation is the highest university degree, or the procedure by which it is achieved, in many European countries. The candidate fulfills a university's set criteria of excellence in research, teaching and further education, usually including a ...

, later published as ''Nietzsche et la métaphore'', was supervised by Deleuze. In 1969 Kofman met Jacques Derrida and began attending his seminars at 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, S ...

. Kofman did not receive tenure until 1991, when she was appointed to a chair at Paris I. Kofman was the author of numerous books, including several on

Friedrich Nietzsche Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche (; or ; 15 October 1844 – 25 August 1900) was a German philosopher, prose poet, cultural critic, philologist, and composer whose work has exerted a profound influence on contemporary philosophy. He began his ...

and

Sigmund Freud Sigmund Freud ( , ; born Sigismund Schlomo Freud; 6 May 1856 – 23 September 1939) was an Austrian neurologist and the founder of psychoanalysis, a clinical method for evaluating and treating pathologies explained as originating in conflicts ...

. Her book, ''L'énigme de la femme: La femme dans les textes de Freud'' (1980), is perhaps the most thorough consideration of Freud's ideas concerning

female sexuality Human female sexuality encompasses a broad range of behaviors and processes, including female sexual identity and Human sexual activity, sexual behavior, the physiological, psychological, social, cultural, political, and spiritual or religious ...

Writings

Though many of her philosophical writings focused on Nietzsche and Freud, Kofman wrote several works in an autobiographical vein. ''Paroles suffoquées'' (1987) is dedicated to the memory of her father, rabbi Bereck Kofman, whom she saw for the last time on July 16, 1942, and who was killed at Auschwitz. ''Rue Ordener, rue Labat'' (1994) also opens with the removal of her father by the

French police Law enforcement in France has a long history dating back to AD 570 when night watch systems were commonplace.Dammer, H. R. and Albanese, J. S. (2014). ''Comparative Criminal Justice Systems'' (5th ed.). Wadesworth Cengage learning: Belmont, ...

, and describes what Kofman understands to have been his fate. The title refers to two Parisian streets: the address at which her family lived until her father's arrest; and the address at which she was sheltered for much of the remainder of the war. Kofman was taken in by a Parisian divorcée who became her surrogate mother and whom she called Mémé. The book tells the story of this period, and of the custody dispute between Mémé and Kofman's mother following the liberation of Paris.

Death

Kofman committed suicide in 1994. The fact that she did so on the date of Nietzsche's 150th birthday has been seen by some writers as significant.Christie McDonald
Sarah Kofman: Effecting Self Translation
p. 191 After her death, Jacques Derrida wrote the following:

Bibliography

Books

*''L'enfance de l'art: Une interprétation de l'esthétique freudienne'' (1970). Trans.: ''The Childhood of Art: An Interpretation of Freud's

Aesthetics Aesthetics, or esthetics, is a branch of philosophy that deals with the nature of beauty and taste, as well as the philosophy of art (its own area of philosophy that comes out of aesthetics). It examines aesthetic values, often expressed t ...

'' (1988). *''Nietzsche et la métaphore'' (1972). Trans.: ''Nietzsche and Metaphor'' (1993). *''Camera obscura: De l'idéologie'' (1973). Trans.: ''

Camera Obscura A camera obscura (; ) is a darkened room with a small hole or lens at one side through which an image is projected onto a wall or table opposite the hole. ''Camera obscura'' can also refer to analogous constructions such as a box or tent in w ...

: Of Ideology'' (1998). *''Quatre romans analytiques'' (1974). Trans.: ''Freud and Fiction'' (1991). *''Autobiogriffures'' (1976). *''Aberrations: Le devenir-femme d' Auguste Comte'' (1978). *'' Nerval: Le charme de la répétition'' (1979). *''Nietzsche et la scène philosophique'' (1979). *''L'énigme de la femme: La femme dans les textes de Freud'' (1980). Trans.: ''The Enigma of Woman: Woman in Freud's Writings'' (1985). *''Le respect des femmes (

Kant Immanuel Kant (, , ; 22 April 1724 – 12 February 1804) was a German philosopher and one of the central Enlightenment thinkers. Born in Königsberg, Kant's comprehensive and systematic works in epistemology, metaphysics, ethics, and aest ...

Rousseau Jean-Jacques Rousseau (, ; 28 June 1712 – 2 July 1778) was a Genevan philosopher, writer, and composer. His political philosophy influenced the progress of the Age of Enlightenment throughout Europe, as well as aspects of the French Revolu ...

)'' (1982). *''Comment s'en sortir?'' (1983). *''Un métier impossible: Lecture de "Constructions en analyse"'' (1983). *''Lectures de Derrida'' (1984). *'' Mélancholie de l'art'' (1985). *''Pourquoi rit-on? Freud et le mot d'esprit'' (1986). *''Paroles suffoquées'' (1987). Trans.: ''Smothered Words'' (1998). *''Conversions:'' Le Marchand de Venise ''sous le signe de Saturne'' (1987). *''Socrate(s)'' (1989). Trans.: ''

Socrates Socrates (; ; –399 BC) was a Greek philosopher from Athens who is credited as the founder of Western philosophy and among the first moral philosophers of the ethical tradition of thought. An enigmatic figure, Socrates authored no te ...

: Fictions of a Philosopher'' (1998). *''Séductions: De

Sartre Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre (, ; ; 21 June 1905 – 15 April 1980) was one of the key figures in the philosophy of existentialism (and phenomenology), a French playwright, novelist, screenwriter, political activist, biographer, and lite ...

à Héraclite'' (1990). *''

Don Juan Don Juan (), also known as Don Giovanni ( Italian), is a legendary, fictional Spanish libertine who devotes his life to seducing women. Famous versions of the story include a 17th-century play, ''El burlador de Sevilla y convidado de piedra'' ...

ou le refus de la dette'' (1991). *''"Il n'y a que le premier pas qui coûte": Freud et la spéculation'' (1991). *''Explosion I: De l'"Ecce Homo" de Nietzsche'' (1992). *''Explosion II: Les enfants de Nietzsche'' (1993). *''Le mépris des Juifs: Nietzsche, les Juifs, l'antisémitisme'' (1994). *''Rue Ordener, rue Labat'' (1994). Trans.: ''Rue Ordener, Rue Labat'' (1996). *''L'imposture de la beauté et autres textes'' (1995). *''Selected Writings'' (2007). Edited by Thomas Albrecht, Georgia Albert & Elizabeth G. Rottenberg; introduction by Jacques Derrida.

Articles

Note: this list does not include portions of books where a translation of the entire book was subsequently published. *"No Longer Full-Fledged ''Autobiogriffies''," ''SubStance'' 29 (1981): 3–22. From: ''Autobiogriffures'' (1976). *"Sartre: Fort! Ou Da?", ''Diacritics'' 14, 4 (1984): 9–18. *"Damned Food," ''SubStance'' 49 (1986): 8–9. *"Tomb for a Proper Name," ''SubStance'' 49 (1986): 9–10. *"Nightmare: At the Margins of Medieval Studies," ''SubStance'' 49 (1986): 10–13. From: ''Comment s'en sortir?'' (1983). *"

Prometheus In Greek mythology, Prometheus (; , , possibly meaning " forethought")Smith"Prometheus". is a Titan god of fire. Prometheus is best known for defying the gods by stealing fire from them and giving it to humanity in the form of technology, kn ...

, the First Philosopher," ''SubStance'' 50 (1986): 26–35. From: ''Comment s'en sortir?'' (1983). *"Nietzsche and the Obscurity of Heraclitus," ''Diacritics'' 17, 3 (1987): 39–55. From: ''Séductions: De Sartre à Héraclite'' (1990). *"Baubô: Theological Perversion and Fetishism," in Michael Allen Gillespie & Tracy B. Strong, ''Nietzsche's New Seas: Explorations in Philosophy, Aesthetics, and Politics'' (Chicago & London: University of Chicago Press, 1988). From: ''Nietzsche et la scène philosophique'' (1979). *"Beyond Aporia?", in

Andrew Benjamin Andrew Benjamin (born 1952, Australia) is an Australian philosopher. He holds a post as Distinguished Professor at the University of Technology, Sydney. Benjamin first came to critical attention with his writings in continental philosophy, writ ...

(ed.), ''Post-structuralist Classics'' (London & New York: Routledge, 1988). From: ''Comment s'en sortir?'' (1983). *"'Ça cloche'," in Hugh J. Silverman (ed.), ''Derrida and Deconstruction'' (New York & London: Routledge, 1989). From: ''Lectures de Derrida'' (1984). Originally delivered at the 1980 Cerisy colloquy, "Les finds de l'homme." *"Conversions: ''The Merchant of Venice'' under the Sign of Saturn," in Peter Collier & Helga Geyer-Ryan (eds.), ''Literary Theory Today'' (Cambridge: Polity Press, 1990). From: ''Conversions:'' Le Marchand de Venise ''sous le signe de Saturne'' (1987). *"Metaphoric Architectures," in

Laurence A. Rickels Laurence Arthur Rickels (born December 2, 1954) is an American literary and media theorist, whose most significant works have been in the tradition of the Frankfurt School's efforts to apply psychoanalytic insights to mass media culture. Some ...

(ed.), ''Looking After Nietzsche'' (Albany: State University of New York Press, 1990). *" Descartes Entrapped," in Eduardo Cadava, Peter Connor, &

Jean-Luc Nancy Jean-Luc Nancy ( , ; 26 July 1940 – 23 August 2021) was a French philosopher. Nancy's first book, published in 1973, was ''Le titre de la lettre'' (''The Title of the Letter'', 1992), a reading of the work of French psychoanalyst Jacques Laca ...

, ''Who Comes After the Subject?'' (New York & London: Routledge, 1991). From: ''Nietzsche et la scène philosophique'' (1979). *"Rousseau's Phallocratic Ends," in *"Explosion I: Of Nietzsche's ''Ecce Homo''," ''Diacritics'' 24, 4 (1994): 50–70. From: ''Explosion I: De l'"Ecce Homo" de Nietzsche'' (1992). *"A Fantastical Genealogy: Nietzsche's Family Romance," in Peter J. Burgard (ed.), ''Nietzsche and the Feminine'' (Charlottesville & London: University Press of Virginia, 1994). From: ''Explosion I: De l'"Ecce Homo" de Nietzsche'' (1992). *"'It's Only the First Step That Costs'," in

Sonu Shamdasani Sonu Shamdasani (born 1962) is a London-based author, editor in chief, and professor at University College London. His research and writings focus on Carl Gustav Jung (1875–1961), and cover the history of psychiatry and psychology from the mid- ...

& Michael Münchow (eds.), ''Speculations After Freud: Psychoanalysis, Philosophy, Culture'' (London & New York: Routledge, 1994). From: ''"Il n'y a que le premier pas qui coûte": Freud et la spéculation'' (1991). *" Wagner's Ascetic Ideal According to Nietzsche," in Richard Schacht (ed.), ''Nietzsche, Genealogy, Morality: Essays on Nietzsche's Genealogy of Morals'' (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1994). *"The Psychologist of the Eternal Feminine (Why I Write Such Good Books, 5)," ''Yale French Studies'' 87 (1995): 173–89. From: ''Explosion II: Les enfants de Nietzsche'' (1993). *"Accessories (''Ecce Homo'', 'Why I Write Such Good Books,' 'The Untimelies,' 3)," in Peter R. Sedgwick (ed.), ''Nietzsche: A Critical Reader'' (Oxford: Blackwell, 1995). From: ''Explosion II: Les enfants de Nietzsche'' (1993). *"The Economy of Respect: Kant and Respect for Women," in Robin May Schott (ed.), ''Feminist Interpretations of Immanuel Kant'' (University Park, Penn.: Pennsylvania State University Press, 1997). From: ''Le respect des femmes (Kant et Rousseau)'' (1982). *"The Imposture of Beauty: The Uncanniness of Oscar Wilde's ''Picture of Dorian Gray''," in Penelope Deutscher & Kelly Oliver (eds.), ''Enigmas: Essays on Sarah Kofman'' (Ithaca & London: Cornell University Press, 1999). From: ''L'imposture de la beauté et autres textes'' (1995).

Interviews

*"Sarah Kofman," interview with Alice Jardine, in Alice Jardine & Anne M. Menke (eds.), ''Shifting Scenes: Interviews on Women, Writing, and Politics in Post-68 France'' (New York & Oxford: Columbia University Press, 1991). *"Writing without Power: A Conversation with Sarah Kofman," interview with Ursula Konnertz, ''Women's Philosophy Review'' (June 1995): 5–8.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kofman, Sarah 1934 births 1994 suicides Writers from Paris École Normale Supérieure alumni Academic staff of the University of Paris French autobiographers 20th-century French Jews French women philosophers Jewish philosophers Continental philosophers Philosophers of sexuality Women and psychology Freudians Poststructuralists 20th-century French philosophers 20th-century French women writers Suicides in France French women essayists Women autobiographers Women religious writers 20th-century French essayists