Educarsi al pensiero critico con la letteratura. L’esemplarità pedagogica de Le parole di Jean-Paul Sartre

Abstract

The Words is considered a cardinal work for several reasons: either regarding Sartre’s opus, or his intellectual biography or, in wider terms, the European Literature of the Twentieth Century. On the contrary, its pedagogical exemplary meaning is less considered, even if it links up both crucial issues of individual experience of education (family relationships, school, books) and different levels of interpretation, which make the story existentially significant for the reader. In particular, the three levels of “analytical-descriptive exercise”, “searching-knowing exercise” and “reflective-questioning exercise” can be considered as many keys which make Sartre’s autobiographical novel an exemplary opportunity of education. In this sense, the novel becomes a significant experience for the taking-shape reader not only as self-knowledge but also as education to critical mindset.