Jankélévitch, Vladimir (1903-85). Philosopher. Born in Bourges, Jankélévitch headed the philosophy agrégation list in 1926. He brought a wide range of classical cultural references to his highly personal style of writing, and wrote extensively on music. He developed a non-substantialist philosophy of time and the instant, strongly influenced by Bergson. His books focused on moral and psychological themes, such as death, evil, lying, irony, boredom, purity, and forgiveness, which he analysed in their existential dimensions. He became professor of philosophy at the Sorbonne in 1952.

[Michael Kelly]

The New Oxford Companion to Literature in French. Copyright © 1995, 2005 by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved.