Jean-François Lyotard

Kiff Bamford (Leeds Beckett University)

The Literary Encyclopedia. Volume 1.5.2.07: French Writing and Culture: Postwar and Contemporary, 1945-present.
Vol. editors: Kate Averis (University of Western Australia), Hugo Azerad (University of Cambridge), Patrick ffrench (King's College London), Edward Forman (University of Bristol), Akane Kawakami (Birkbeck, University of London), Siobhán McIlvanney (King's College London), Sinan Richards (King's College London), Tim Unwin (University of Bristol), David Williams (University of Sheffield)

Dates

Born 10 Aug 1924
Died 21 Apr 1998
Activity 1944-1998

Places

Born in France
Active in France

Activities

Primary

Cultural Theorist/ Critic
Philosopher

Resources

Lyotard's Works

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Jean-François Lyotard is a French philosopher predominantly associated in the English-speaking world with the term ‘postmodern’ and his short text

La Condition postmoderne

(1979) [translated as

The Postmodern Condition

1984]. The focus on this somewhat unrepresentative text, however, obscures the breadth of his thought and contributions to both cultural studies and continental philosophy. Lyotard’s engagement with politics and cultural activities resulted in a diverse range of shorter writings, many of which he edited into collections, and his contribution to the landmark exhibition

Les Immatériaux

at the Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris, in 1985. Lyotard’s most significant single works include

Discours, Figure

(1971) [translated as

Discourse, Figure

2011],

Économie Libidinale

…

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2928 words

Citation: Bamford, Kiff. "Jean-François Lyotard". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 06 December 2012 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=2831, accessed 24 April 2024.]

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