This study sets out to explain the importance of Emmanuel Mounier (1905-1950), taking it to be ideological, that is, operating simultaneously on a social and a conceptual level. It therefore stresses economic, social, political and cultural forces in addition to personal and philosophical ones. It attempts to show the processes involved in the creation of an ideology and an ideologist, and the factors governing their relationship. Chapter one examines Mounier's formation as a member of the catholic intellectual élite, tracing his early studies, experiences and patrons in Grenoble and Paris. Chapter two analyses the situation and events which led to the foundation of the review Esprit, which Mounier directed until his death, his first attempts to formulate a political ideology and his response to the political and social crises of the 1930's. Chapter three traces the philosophical roots and evolution of Mounier's personalism, showing its function as an intellectual matrix and method of analysis. Chapter four shows Mounier's reactions to the war, his activities under the Vichy regime and his place in the Resistance, emphasising the importance of this period for his later ideological position. Chapter five studies Mounier's initial aspirations to establish personalism as a major political ideology of liberated France, and traces the erosion and eventual collapse of his hopes to the point where his political position became scarcely tenable. Chapter six examines Mounier's confrontations with existentialism and Marxism in his attempts to maintain and extend the ideological power of personalism and, with it, catholicism. It also critically assesses Mounier's main post-war philosophical works. The conclusion analyses the contradictions implicit in Mounier's work and his relative success and failure as an ideologist. The bibliography includes a full list of Mounier's known works.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:bl.uk/oai:ethos.bl.uk:461684 |
| Date | January 1974 |
| Creators | Kelly, Michael |
| Publisher | University of Warwick |
| Source Sets | Ethos UK |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
| Source | http://wrap.warwick.ac.uk/63115/ |
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