 | |
| Author | |
|---|---|
| Original title | Ennemis publics |
| Language | French |
Publication date | 2008 |
| Publication place | France |
Published in English | 11 January 2011 |
| Pages | 332 |
| ISBN | 978-2-08-121834-5 |
Public Enemies: Dueling Writers Take on Each Other and the World (French : Ennemis publics) is a collection of letters between the French writers Bernard-Henri Lévy and Michel Houellebecq, published in 2008. It was published in English by Random House on 11 January 2011. [1]
The philosopher Bernard-Henri Lévy, known for his liberal activism, and the novelist Michel Houellebecq, known for his social satire, exchanged letters for six months in 2008. Subjects include the Israeli–Palestinian conflict, where both support Israel but Houellebecq rejects the value of ethnic identity whereas Lévy describes himself as "a Jew who fights". [1] On the subject of wars in Africa and the rise of Islamism, Lévy accuses Houellebecq of apathy and Houellebecq argues for personal freedom over civic duty, describing exaggerated engagement with humanity as a greater danger. [1]
Kirkus Reviews called the book engaging but said its allusions to French culture and topical issues can be confusing for international readers. [1] Publishers Weekly said the two writers have large egos and continuously return to themselves as subjects of their discussions, but there is "an undeniable pleasure in being privy to this conversation between these two outsize personalities". [2] Ian Buruma of The New York Times said the book can be read as "a comic novel, a brilliant satire on the vanity of writers", due to Houellebecq's well-attested dark sense of humour and Lévy's "wonderful parody of philosophizing, that is, saying something quite banal in a very complicated way". [3] Buruma concluded: "But I’m afraid to say that none of this is meant to be read as a comic novel. It is all in deadly earnest. As the people Houellebecq has always supported like to say: 'Oy vey!'" [3]
Michel Houellebecq is a French author of novels, poems and essays, as well as an occasional actor, filmmaker and singer. His first book was a biographical essay on the horror writer H. P. Lovecraft. Houellebecq published his first novel, Whatever, in 1994. His next novel, Atomised, published in 1998, brought him international fame as well as controversy. Platform followed in 2001. He has published several books of poetry, including The Art of Struggle in 1996.
The New York Review of Books is a semi-monthly magazine with articles on literature, culture, economics, science and current affairs. Published in New York City, it is inspired by the idea that the discussion of important books is an indispensable literary activity. Esquire called it "the premier literary-intellectual magazine in the English language." In 1970, writer Tom Wolfe described it as "the chief theoretical organ of Radical Chic".
Bernard-Henri Georges Lévy is a French public intellectual. Often referred to in France simply as BHL, he was one of the leaders of the "Nouveaux Philosophes" movement in 1976. His opinions, political activism and publications have also been the subject of several controversies over the years.
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Rama Ayalon is an Israeli French-to-Hebrew translator. She has translated more than 100 books of classic and contemporary literature in the fields of prose, philosophy, and psychoanalysis. Her translations include important philosophical works such as Pensées by Blaise Pascal and Totalité et infini by Emmanuel Lévinas. Among the prose authors she has translated are Michel Houellebecq, Georges Simenon, Marguerite Duras, Guy de Maupassant, Romain Gary, Milan Kundera, Delphine de Vigan, and Leïla Slimani.
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