Are French philosophers at the origin of wokism?

[Julie4]

In the 1970s, several French philosopher met with a certain success in American academic circles, which the United States called "French Theory".

French Theory was particularly popular in American humanities departments from the 1980s onwards, where it contributed to the emergence of cultural studies, gender studies and postcolonial studies. French Theory has also had a strong influence on the arts and activism.

The main authors associated with this movement are, : Louis Althusser, Jean Baudrillard, Simone de Beauvoir, Hélène Cixous, Gilles Deleuze, Jacques Derrida, Michel Foucault, Félix Guattari, Luce Irigaray, Julia Kristeva, Jacques Lacan, Jean-François Lyotard, Jacques Rancière and Monique Wittig, and in the United States: Eve Kosofsky Sedgwick, Judith Butler, Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak, Stanley Fish, Edward Said, Richard Rorty, Fredric Jameson, Avital Ronell, Donna Haraway.

[Anonymous]

Yes @julie4 your people should stick to the things they are best at: art, incredible foods, crepes that are better than sex, and outrageous accents.

I have read your philosophers, others I’m familiar with. They all have a certain... godlessness and impiety to them. Perhaps this is due to your revolution. The ancien regime and the church, both pillars of French culture and thought, were completely shaken up.

Men like Rousseau, the Baron d’ Holbach, Voltaire (whom I do love so), Sartre... they all in their own ways question, deride, criticize, and even mock the institutions of society.

I don’t entirely begrudge Sartre for his godless existentialism; he had lived through WW2 and Vichy France—but I prefer Kierkegaard. Why? His faith.

There is a “everything is subjective” strain of thought that runs through much of French philosophy. This of course really takes off in the 60s with the post-modernists, guys like Derrida and Foucault.

I wouldn’t lay all of Wokism on the French, but unfortunately you all give it academic and intellectual legitimacy. If it’s just a bunch of smelly Russian Marxists people don’t take them that seriously in the West, but if it’s a bunch of French intellectuals smoking cigarettes and discussing ideas on a talk show, suddenly it becomes more palatable and sexier. I mean the French, you’re just so stylish and sophisticated and cosmopolitan!

🙄

[007kingifrit]

no, neo marxism (wokism) came from the frankfurt school in 1929 who sought to "merge sociologial and marxist principles" in what they called CRITICAL THEORY.

they were chased out of germany by another group of socialists and flet to america where in the 60s they adopted black activism to try and piggyback communism onto an American civil rights movement. This was known as CRITICAL RACE THEORY" the application of communist thinking to races as if they were classes. almost every member of the black civil rights movement was educated by a head of the frankfurt school. for example angel davis was taught by herbert marcusa.

[KostasKouvalis]

Considering their staunch Islamaphobic policies, dark/asshole humor, directness, strong ethnic and cultural pride and overall "Don't give a shit" attitude, I seriously doubt it.

The woke movement actually originated in the N**** community, and in fact the word comes directly from African-American vernacular and literally means, "alert to racial prejudice and discrimination". Beginning in the 2010s, it came to encompass a broader awareness of social inequalities such as racial injustice, sexism, and denial of LGBT rights.

Since then however, the definition has changed substantially to refer to anyone who is overly sensitive, gets offended on other people's behalf and worries about issues that don't effect their people.

So no, you Frenchies had nothing to do with it. It's all us.

[RavVid]

I had thought it was the Frankfurt school that gave us critical theory and was most to blame but I can see French theory has some liability.

At heart I think it is Karl Marx who is most of the problem. Define an oppressed class then a whole frame drops into place with pre built scripts.

[NaultD]

Anyone who can give a single fuck is wokism anymore.

Even Jesus christ was know to give a single of there fellow neighbor. Woke as fuck.

[exitseven]

no, it was invented by Obama , the AntiChrist.