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Reopening the Concept of the Intellectual: Before and After 1968

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1. Sartre and the Classic Intellectual What makes someone an intellectual? In A Plea for Intellectuals , Sartre approaches this question by examining the social position from which intellectual intervention becomes possible. The intellectual does not begin as a distinct profession. He emerges from among what Sartre calls the “technicians of practical knowledge”: scientists, teachers, engineers, doctors, lawyers, and others whose work depends on specialized knowledge. Their expertise is directed toward particular tasks, yet it is grounded in methods and forms of knowledge that claim universal validity. The intellectual appears when this relationship between the universal and the particular becomes a problem for the technician himself. Sartre’s example of the scientist working on atomic warfare makes the distinction clear. A scientist who contributes to the development of nuclear weapons remains, in Sartre’s terms, a technician as long as he confines himself to the technical task. Wh...
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When Knowledge Becomes the Question: Intellectual Authority after 1968

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1. The Intellectual and the Universal What gives an intellectual the authority to criticize society? The question becomes easier to approach if we begin with a particular conception of intellectual work: the educated person whose specialized knowledge brings him into contact with questions that extend beyond his immediate field  (Sartre, 1972).  The intellectual occupies a position between specialized knowledge and public life because the practice of a particular profession can reveal problems with wider social significance. Sartre offers a particularly useful formulation of this position. He begins with what he calls the “technicians of practical knowledge”: professors, researchers, engineers, doctors, writers, and others whose professional work involves specialized forms of knowledge. Such a person does not become an intellectual simply by doing this work. The transformation occurs when the practice itself reveals a contradiction between the universal character of the kn...
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Manufacturing Reputation: No Conspiracy Theory

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Arrangement in Grey and Black No. 1, James Abbott McNeill Whistler. Source: Wikipedia 1. The Authority of the Speaker In Bean: The Ultimate Disaster Movie , Mr. Bean is invited to the United States because he has been mistaken for an eminent British art expert. Asked to speak about Whistler’s Arrangement in Grey and Black No. 1 , better known as Whistler’s Mother , he offers what sounds like an observation of extraordinary simplicity: the painting is impressive partly because it is large, since if it were small, hardly anyone would be able to see it: “Well, firstly, it's quite big, which is excellent. Because if it was really small, you know, microscopic, then hardly anybody would be able to see it, which would be a tremendous shame.” The audience listens and applauds. The joke depends on a simple fact: they believe they are listening to a distinguished authority. Had the same remark come from an unknown visitor, the reaction would almost certainly have been different. What...
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