Simone de BEAUVOIR
Lettre autographe signée inédite : "Sartre a trouvé les lettres tout à fait intéressantes et il est tout à fait d'accord pour en publier d'abord une dizaine (ou un peu davantage) dans les T. M. [Temps Modernes]"
s.d. (ca 1950), 21x27cm, 1 page 1/2 sur un feuillet.
Unpublished, handwritten, signed letter: “Sartre a trouvé les lettres tout à fait intéressantes et il est tout à fait d'accord pour en publier d'abord une dizaine (ou un peu davantage) dans les T. M. [Temps Modernes]” “Sartre found the letters quite interesting and he fully agrees to publish first a dozen (or a few more) in the T. M. [Temps Modernes]”
s.d(ca 1950), 21 x 27 cm, 1 and a 1/2 pages on a leaf
Handwritten signed letter from Simone de Beauvoir addressed to an unknown female correspondent. One and a half pages on a leaf. Two perforations in the left margin, folds from having been sent and some tiny tears at the top not affecting the text.
Significant unpublished letter testifying to Simon de Beauvoir's involvement in Temps modernes and the concerns of the participants of this journal in the aftermath of the Second World War. This letter attests to the intense preparation work for the articles, in this case the project of a publication concerning Fritz von Unruh, an important figure of pacifism.
Fritz von Unruh was an officer during the First World War and published Opfergang (1916), the first German work on the war to have been translated into French, under the title Verdun, by Jacques Benoist-Méchin in 1923. A pacifist, the author joined the “Eisernen Front” in 1931 to fight again the rise of nationalist parties, led by the NSDAP. An Anti-Nazi, he left Germany in 1933, was stripped of his German nationality in 1939 and the same year was sent to a detention camp in France before taking refuge in the United States, he returned to his native country only in 1948.
“Sartre a trouvé les lettres tout à fait intéressantes et il est tout à fait d'accord pour en publier d'abord une dizaine (ou un peu davantage) dans les T. M. [Temps Modernes]” “Sartre found the letters quite interesting and he fully agrees to publish first a dozen (or a few more) in the T. M. [Temps Modernes]”
The famous “letters” are those received by Fritz von Unruh after his speech entitled “An die Deutschen” [To the Germans] on 18 May 1948, at the Church of Saint Paul in Frankfurt, to celebrate the centenary of the German Assembly in the presence of federal and allied authorities. “Dans ce discours, von Unruh, exilé aux États-Unis pendant la guerre, dénonce la responsabilité allemande mais rejette également le communisme, tout comme la présence et les stratégies géopolitiques des Alliés occidentaux en Allemagne.” “In this speech, von Unruh, exiled to the United States during the war, denounces German responsibility but also rejects communism, as well as the presence and geopolitical strategies of the Western Allies in Germany” (Stève Bessac-Vaure. “L'Allemagne dans Les Temps modernes (1951-1956)”, 2013) This broadcasted speech had a huge impact and von Unruh immediately received thousands of letters in response to this intervention.
The editorial board of Temps modernes, concerned about the political resurgence of Nazism in the aftermath of the Second World War, seems very interested in the publication of the letters and Beauvoir as the leader states: “Il faudrait une petite introduction et le discours d'Unruh. [...] Il n'y a donc, puisque vous vous chargez vous même de la traduction, qu'à m'envoyer 11 rue de la Bûcherie V<sup>e</sup>, la traduction du premier lot de lettres avec introduction et discours et je vous écrirai immédiatement pour vous dire si nous en souhaitons un second lot et si l'idée du livre est retenue.” “It would take a small introduction and Unruh's speech. [...] So, since you take charge of the translation yourself, just send me, 11 rue de la Bûcherie V<sup>e</sup>, the translation of the first batch of letters with the introduction and speech and I will write to you immediately to tell you if we want a second batch and if the idea of the book is retained.” Going beyond the scope of the publication in review, the two women already seem to consider transforming the articles to be published into a work in its own right: “Pour le livre, la division n'est pas toujours aussi facile...” “For the book, division is not always as easy...”
In the end, eighteen letters will be retained by Beauvoir and Sartre and they will be collected under the title “Lettres d'Allemands à Fritz von Unruh” “Letters from Germans to Fritz von Unruh” in issues 67 and 68 of Temps modernes from May and June 1951. However, we have not found any trace of a publication of a book.
Rare, unpublished letter recalling Simone de Beauvoir's significant commitment to writing Temps modernes.
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