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Christian Signol’s Les vrais bonheurs and Michel Serres’s Biogée: Two books of joy for the modern world

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Abstract

The purpose of this comparative study is to probe the common threads that exist between the prose of Christian Signol and the complex, interdisciplinary philosophy of Michel Serres. Specifically, this exploration delves into the problematic nature of the timeless pursuit of happiness in the modern world, as perceived by Signol and Serres. Predicated upon their astute observations of modernity and everything that it entails for the modern subject, the authors wonder whether it is becomingly increasingly difficult to project meaning upon the absurdity of existence in what they describe to be an inauthentic, sterile space. Moreover, both writers express their disquieting anxiety related to globalization and excessive urbanization. They assert that these interrelated processes have further problematized the elusive quest for happiness at the beginning of a new millennium. However, Signol and Serres remain cautiously optimistic that it is still possible to live a meaningful and fulfilling life. In this vein, they propose pragmatic ontological solutions for healing cosmic alienation including a revitalization of the senses.

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Notes

  1. It should be noted that Signol has received the Prix Solidarité and the Prix Genevoix.

  2. The autobiographical and intertextual elements of this essay also merit further consideration. For instance, Signol explicitly makes reference to Jean Giono, Albert Camus, and Marcel Proust in Les vrais bonheurs. However, a systematic analysis of the importance of these features transcends the pragmatic limitations of this investigation.

  3. In Biogée, Serres employs this expression several times. For instance, see pp. 132–133.

  4. Ian Tucker (2011) notes that Serres’s philosophy stresses “the primary materiality of the human condition” (p. 150).

  5. The specific role of the senses will be discussed in a later section of this essay.

  6. The colloquial expression “creuse-toi un peu” also sheds light on this passage as well. In this section of Biogée, Serres compels the reader to think a little harder about our relationship to the natural world that sustains us.

  7. Similar to Baudrillard, Signol and Serres also deconstruct the notion that an automatic correlation exists between material possessions and happiness. Both authors reach the conclusion that procuring a plethora of consumer items does not maximize happiness whatsoever given the disconnect between hyper-real simulations of the “good(s) life” and actual happiness. See pp. 21 and 192 of Les vrais bonheurs. For a discussion of Serres’s apprehension related to hyper-reality, see Laura Salisbury (2006) in addition to p. 87 of La Légende des anges and pp. 98, 110, and 111 of Les Cinq sens. A more comprehensive investigation of this subject transcends the limitations of the present study.

  8. I am using this term in the same sense that Albert Camus employs it in his lyrical collection of essays entitled Noces.

  9. For a more systematic investigation of Serresian time, see Ma (2006), Connor (2010), and Adamson (1997).

  10. In a recent documentary filmed as part of the popular Empreintes series, Serres discusses the formative experience of sailing and dredging the Garonne River. The documentary can be seen in its entirety at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iMWljs7qF_0.

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Correspondence to Keith Moser.

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Moser, K. Christian Signol’s Les vrais bonheurs and Michel Serres’s Biogée: Two books of joy for the modern world. Neohelicon 43, 603–619 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11059-016-0324-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11059-016-0324-2

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