Research

“Masculinity as an impasse. Beauvoir’s understanding of men’s situation in The Second Sex,” Simone de Beauvoir Studies, Vol. 32 (2), 2022, pp.187-206.

This paper argues that The Second Sex can be read as a compelling philosophical exploration of masculinity: Beauvoir proposes to understand masculinity as a situation which is historically, socially, and economically defined. It is an impasse as men are stuck in a position where they seek recognition from women but they construct women in such a way that the recognition women can give them is always incomplete and unsatisfying. Showing that masculinity is an impasse is important in itself, and it’s also crucial for Beauvoir’s feminist emancipatory agenda: it shows that men have non- altruistic reasons to take part in the movement of women’s emancipation.

"BDSM", in Clare Chambers, Brian Earp, and Lori Watson (eds.), Routledge Handbook of Philosophy of Sex, Milton: Taylor and Francis, 2022, pp. 437-451

“From Oppression to Independence : Beauvoir’s Philosophy of Love in The Second Sex” (« De l’oppression à l’indépendance. La philosophie de l’amour dans Le Deuxième Sexe »), Philosophie, n° 144, January 2020, pp. 48-63

Translated in Portuguese (Plural, 28(2), 2021, pp.184-202) and in Italian (Philosophy Kitchen, Rivista di filosofia contemporanea, n°16, 2022, pp.139-153)

Beauvoir’s philosophy of love has been studied in a few papers but these papers focus mainly on a description of the forms of love that are analyzed in The Second Sex without questioning the role that Beauvoir’s philosophy of love plays in her general argument on women’s oppression. Although one could think that philosophy of love plays a minor role in The Second Sex, this paper argues that for Beauvoir the transformation of heterosexual love may well be the main way to convert oppression in emancipation at the individual level. Beauvoir’s philosophy of love is this crucial to link her analysis of women’s oppression with her proposing paths towards emancipation.

“Living Philosophy: Beauvoir’s Memoirs as a philosophical ‘œuvre’” (« Vivre la philosophie : les Mémoires comme œuvre philosophique »), Littérature, n° 191, September 2018, pp. 53-67.

This paper seeks to remedy the lack of philosophical analyses of the philosophical dimension of Beauvoir’s autobiographical work in using the existentialist link Beauvoir establishes between life and philosophy to make three points: first, her Memoirs constitute a crucial documentary resource to understand Beauvoir’s essays and the original philosophical stance she defends in them. Second, Memoirs show a two-way relationship between philosophy and life, on an epistemic and on a practical level. Third, autobiography is a way to overcome the inherent flaws of philosophy when it’s written in 3rd person: only a literary account allows to make appear a singular universal that displays the tension between situation and freedom in an authentic way.