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The Sartre Bookshelf

Existence precedes essence.

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Being and Nothingness

Sartre’s 1943 magnum opus develops being-in-itself, being-for-itself, bad faith, and radical freedom. It is a foundational text of French existentialism in the Husserl–Heidegger lineage.

Editorial fit for its place in this reading order

Save this long, technically demanding summit for last. The Barnes translation is the classic, affordable, widely stocked edition featured here.

Original text-based jacket for Being and Nothingness
Author
Jean-Paul Sartre · translated by Hazel E. Barnes
Edition
Washington Square Press / Pocket Books, 1993 reissue · approximately 864 pages
ASIN
0671867806
Level
Primary source · hardest
Kindle
B07GNV22WM (Sarah Richmond translation)

Check the product page for current availability, format, translator, and seller terms.

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What this book does

A more accurate but pricier modern retranslation by Sarah Richmond also exists. The Kindle ASIN listed here is that newer translation, not the Hazel E. Barnes text; check the edition and translator before buying.

Why it belongs at step 5

Save this long, technically demanding summit for last. The Barnes translation is the classic, affordable, widely stocked edition featured here.

EDITORIAL NOTEThis review is grounded in the supplied bibliographic and content notes. It makes no claim of first-hand reading or timed completion.
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Edition and buying notes

Washington Square Press / Pocket Books, 1993 reissue · approximately 864 pages. A more accurate but pricier modern retranslation by Sarah Richmond also exists. The Kindle ASIN listed here is that newer translation, not the Hazel E. Barnes text; check the edition and translator before buying.

RETURN TO THE START

At the Existentialist Café — This is the welcoming first step: learn the story and meet the people before taking on the arguments. It is a context book by Sarah Bakewell, not a work by Sartre.

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