# henri lefebvre ![[henrilefebvre1971.jpg|300]] lefebvre in 1971 born: 16 june 1901 hagetmau france died: 29 june 1991 (aged 90) navarrenx france education: university of paris (ma 1920; dre 1954) era: 20th-century philosophy region: western philosophy school: continental philosophy western marxism hegelian marxism doctoral students: jean baudrillard main interests: everyday life - dialectics - alienation - mystification - social space - urbanity - rurality - modernity - literature - history notable ideas: critique of everyday life - theory of moments - rhythmanalysis - right to the city - the production of social space henri lefebvre ( lə-fev-rə; french: ; 16 june 1901 - 29 june 1991) was a french marxist philosopher and sociologist best known for furthering the critique of everyday life for introducing the concepts of the right to the city and the production of social space and for ir work on dialectical materialism alienation and criticism of stalinism existentialism and structuralism. in ir prolific career lefebvre wrote more than sixty books and three hundred articles. ey founded or took part in the founding of several intellectual and academic journals such as philosophies la revue marxiste arguments socialisme ou barbarie and espaces et societes lefebvre was born in hagetmau landes france. ey studied philosophy at the university of paris (the sorbonne) graduating in 1920. by 1924 ey was working with paul nizan norbert guterman georges friedmann georges politzer and pierre morhange in the philosophies group seeking a "philosophical revolution." this brought them into contact with the surrealists dadaists and other groups before they moved towards the french communist party (pcf) lefebvre joined the pcf in 1928 and became one of the most prominent french marxist intellectuals during the second quarter of the 20th century before joining the french resistance. from 1944 to 1949 ey was the director of radiodiffusion française a french radio broadcaster in toulouse. among ir works was a highly influential anti-stalinist text on dialectics called dialectical materialism (1940.) seven years later lefebvre published ir first volume of the critique of everyday life. ir early work on method was applauded and borrowed centrally by the philosopher jean-paul sartre in critique of dialectical reason (1960.) during lefebvre's thirty-year stint with the pcf ey was chosen to publish critical attacks on opposed theorists especially existentialists like sartre and lefebvre's former colleague nizan only to intentionally get himself expelled from the party for ir own heterodox theoretical and political opinions in the late 1950s. ey then went from serving as a primary intellectual for the pcf to becoming one of france's most important critics of the pcf's politics (eg immediately the lack of an opinion on algeria and more generally the partial apologism for and continuation of stalinism) and intellectual thought (ie structuralism especially the work of louis althusser) in 1961 lefebvre became professor of sociology at the university of strasbourg before joining the faculty at the new university at nanterre in 1965. ey was one of the most respected professors and ey had influenced and analysed the may 1968 student revolt. lefebvre introduced the concept of the right to the city in ir 1968 book le droit à la ville (the publication of the book predates the may 1968 revolts which took place in many french cities.) following the publication of this book lefebvre wrote several influential works on cities urbanism and space including the production of space (1974) which became one of the most influential and heavily cited works of urban theory. by the 1970s lefebvre had also published some of the first critical statements on the work of post-structuralists especially michel foucault. during the following years ey was involved in the editorial group of arguments a new left magazine which largely served to enable the french public to familiarize themselves with central european revisionism lefebvre died in 1991. in ir obituary radical philosophy magazine honored ir long and complex career and influence > the most prolific of french marxist intellectuals died during the night of 28-29 june 1991 less than a fortnight after ir ninetieth birthday. during ir long career ir work has gone in and out of fashion several times and has influenced the development not only of philosophy but also of sociology geography political science and literary criticism # critique of everyday life one of lefebvre's most important contributions to social thought is the idea of the "critique of everyday life" which ey pioneered in the 1930s. lefebvre defined everyday life dialectically as the intersection of "illusion and truth power and helplessness; the intersection of the sector man controls and the sector ey does not control" and is where the perpetually transformative conflict occurs between diverse specific rhythms: the body's polyrhythmic bundles of natural rhythms physiological (natural) rhythms and social rhythms (lefebvre and regulier 1985: 73.) the everyday was in short the space in which all life occurred and between which all fragmented activities took place. it was the residual. while the theme presented itself in many works it was most notably outlined in ir eponymous three-volume study which came out in individual installments decades apart in 1947 1961 and 1981 lefebvre argued that everyday life was an underdeveloped sector compared to technology and production and moreover that in the mid 20th century capitalism changed such that everyday life was to be colonised. in this zone of everydayness (boredom) shared by everyone in society regardless of class or specialty autocritique of everyday realities of boredom vs. societal promises of free time and leisure could lead to people understanding and then revolutionizing ir everyday lives. this was essential to lefebvre because everyday life was where ey saw capitalism surviving and reproducing itself. without revolutionizing everyday life capitalism would continue to diminish the quality of everyday life and inhibit real self-expression. the critique of everyday life was crucial because it was for ir only through the development of the conditions of human life - rather than abstract control of productive forces - that humans could reach a concrete utopian existence lefebvre's work on everyday life was heavily influential in french theory particularly for the situationists as well as in politics (eg for the may 1968 student revolts.) the third volume has also recently influenced scholars writing about digital technology and information in the present day since it has a section dealing with this topic at length including analysis of the nora-minc report (1977); key aspects of information theory; and other general discussion of the "colonisation" of everyday life through information communication technologies as "devices" or "services" lefebvre dedicated a great deal of ir philosophical writings to understanding the importance of (the production of) space in what ey called the reproduction of social relations of production. this idea is the central argument in the book the survival of capitalism written as a sort of prelude to la production de l'espace (1974) (the production of space) lefebvre contends that there are different modes of production of space (ie spatialisation) from natural space ('absolute space') to more complex spaces and flows whose meaning is produced in a social way (ie social space.) lefebvre analyzes each historical mode as a three-part dialectic between everyday practices and perceptions (le perçu) representations or theories of space (le conçu) and the spatial imaginary of the time (le vecu) lefebvre's argument in the production of space is that space is a social product or a complex social construction (based on values and the social production of meanings) which affects spatial practices and perceptions. lefebvre argued that every society - and therefore every mode of production - produces a certain space its own space lefebvre's concept has been criticised: eg in the urban question manuel castells. many responses to castells are provided in the survival of capitalism and some such as andy merrifield argue that the acceptance of those critiques in the academic world would be a motive for lefebvre's effort in writing the long and theoretically dense the production of space. in "actually-existing success: economics aesthetics and the specificity of (still-)socialist urbanism-" michal murawski critiques lefebvre's dismissal of actually existing socialism by showing how socialist states produced differential space **+** 1925 "positions d'attaque et de defense du nouveau mysticisme" philosophies 5-6 (march.) pp. 471-506. (pt. 2 of the "philosophy of consciousness" (philosophie de la conscience) project on being consciousness and identity originally proposed as a des thesis to leon brunschvicg and eventually abandoned - lefebvre's des 1920 thesis was titled pascal et jansenius (pascal and jansenius).) **+** 1934 with norbert guterman morceaux choisis de karl marx paris: nrf (numerous reprintings) **+** 1936 with norbert guterman la conscience mystifiee paris: gallimard (new ed. paris: le sycomore 1979) **+** 1937 le nationalisme contre les nations (preface by paul nizan) paris: editions sociales internationales (reprinted paris: meridiens-klincksliek 1988 collection "analyse institutionnelle" presentation m. trebitsch postface henri lefebvre) **+** 1938 hitler au pouvoir bilan de cinq annees de fascisme en allemagne paris: bureau d'editions **+** 1938 with norbert guterman morceaux choisis de hegel paris: gallimard (3 reprintings 1938-1939; in the reprinted collection "idees" 2 vols. 1969) **+** 1938 with norbert guterman cahiers de lenine sur la dialectique de hegel paris: gallimard **+** 1939 nietzsche paris: editions sociales internationales **+** 1940 le materialisme dialectique paris: puf. trans. john sturrock dialectical materialism- jonathan cape ltd **+** 1942 le don juan du nord europe - revue mensuelle 28 april 1948 pp. 73-104 **+** 1946 l'existentialisme paris: editions du sagittaire **+** 1947 logique formelle logique dialectique vol. 1 of a la lumière du materialisme dialectique written in 1940-41 (2nd volume censored.) paris: editions sociales **+** 1947 descartes paris: editions hier et aujourd'hui **+** 1947 critique de la vie quotidienne l'arche trans. john moore critique of everyday life volume 1: introduction london: verso 1991 **+** 1948 le marxisme paris: puf **+** 1950 knowledge and social criticism philosophic thought in france and the usa albany n.y.: state university of new york press. pp. 281-300 (2nd ed. 1968) **+** 1958 problèmes actuels du marxisme paris: presses universitaires de france; 4th edition 1970 collection "initiation philosophique" **+** 1958 (w/ lucien goldmann claude roy tristan tzara) le romantisme revolutionnaire paris: la nef **+** 1961 critique de la vie quotidienne ii fondements d'une sociologie de la quotidiennete paris: l'arche trans. john moore critique of everyday life volume ii: foundations for a sociology of the everyday london: verso 2008 **+** 1962 introduction à la modernite paris. trans. john moore introduction to modernity: twelve preludes september 1959-may 1961 london: verso **+** 1963 la vallee de campan - etude de sociologie rurale paris: presses universitaires de france **+** 1965 metaphilosophie foreword by jean wahl paris: editions de minuit collection "arguments." trans. david fernbach and ed. stuart elden as metaphilosophy london: verso 2016 **+** 1965 la proclamation de la commune paris: gallimard collection "trente journees qui ont fait la france" **+** 1966 la sociologie de marx paris: puf. trans. norbert guterman sociology of marx new york: pantheon **+** 1968 le droit à la ville paris: anthropos (2nd ed.); paris: ed. du seuil collection "points." english translation in writings on cities 1996 **+** 1968 la vie quotidienne dans le monde moderne paris: gallimard collection "idees." trans. sacha rabinovitch as everyday life in the modern world. allen lane the penguin press 1971 **+** 1968 l'irruption de nanterre au sommet paris: syllepse 2nd ed. 1998. trans. alfred ehrenfeld- the explosion: from nanterre to the summit new york: monthly review press **+** 1970 la revolution urbaine paris: gallimard collection "idees." trans. robert bononno the urban revolution minneapolis: university of minnesota press 2003 **+** 1970 du rural à l'urbain paris: anthropos. first half trans. robert bononno in on the rural: economy sociology geography stuart elden and adam david morton eds. minneapolis: university of minnesota press **+** 1970 la fin de l'histoire paris: minuit **+** 1971 le manifeste differentialiste paris: gallimard collection "idees" **+** 1971 au-delà du structuralisme paris: anthropos **+** 1972 la pensee marxiste et la ville tournai and paris: casterman. trans. robert bononno marxist thought and the city minneapolis: university of minnesota press **+** 1973 le jeu de kostas axelos paris: fata morgana with pierre fougeyrollas **+** 1973 la survie du capitalisme; la re-production des rapports de production. partial trans. frank bryant as the survival of capitalism. london: allison and busby 1976. (the french book includes material originally in l'irruption translated in the explosion 1969.) **+** 1974 la production de l'espace paris: anthropos. trans. donald nicolson-smith the production of space oxford: blackwell 1991. *1991 **+** 1974 with leszek kołakowski evolution or revolution f. elders ed. reflexive water: the basic concerns of mankind london: souvenir. pp. 199-267 **+** 1975 hegel marx nietzsche ou le royaume des ombres paris: tournai casterman. collection "synthèses contemporaines." trans. david fernbach as hegel marx nietzsche or the realm of shadows london: verso 2020 **+** 1975 le temps des meprises: entretiens avec claude glayman paris: stock **+** 1978 with catherine regulier la revolution n'est plus ce qu'elle etait paris: editions libres-hallier (german trans. munich 1979) **+** 1976-78 de l'etat paris: uge four volumes collection "10/18" **+** 1980 une pensee devenue monde: faut-il abandonner marx? paris: fayard **+** 1980 la presence et l'absence paris: casterman **+** 1981 critique de la vie quotidienne iii. de la modernite au modernisme (pour une metaphilosophie du quotidien) paris: l'arche. trans. gregory elliott critique of everyday life volume iii: from modernity to modernism (towards a metaphilosophy of daily life) london: verso 2008 **+** 1985 with catherine regulier-lefebvre le projet rythmanalytique communications 41. pp. 191-199. included in rhythmanalysis 2004 **+** 1986 with serge renaudie and pierre guilbaud "international competition for the new belgrade urban structure improvement" in autogestion or henri lefebvre in new belgrade vancouver: fillip editions. 3-5-7 **+** 1988 toward a leftist cultural politics: remarks occasioned by the centenary of marx's death d. reifman trans. l.grossberg and c.nelson (eds.) marxism and the interpretation of culture urbana: university of illinois press; new york: macmillan. pp. 75-88 **+** 1990 du contrat de citoyennete paris: syllepse **+** 1991 with patricia latour and francis combes conversation avec henri lefebvre p. latour and f. combes eds. paris: messidor collection "libres propos" **+** 1992 with catherine regulier-lefebvre elements de rythmanalyse: introduction à la connaissance des rythmes preface by rene lorau paris: ed. syllepse collection "explorations et decouvertes." english translation: rhythmanalysis: space time and everyday life stuart elden gerald moore trans. continuum new york 2004 **+** 1996 writings on cities eleonore kofman and elizabeth lebas trans. and eds. oxford: basil blackwell. includes the right to the city and other essays **+** 2002 methodologie des sciences: un inedit paris: anthropos **+** 2003 key writings stuart elden elizabeth lebas eleonore kofman eds. london/new york: continuum **+** 2009 state space world: selected essays neil brenner stuart elden eds. gerald moore neil brenner stuart elden trans. minneapolis: university of minnesota press **+** 2014 toward an architecture of enjoyment. l. stanek ed. r. bononno trans. (minneapolis: university of minnesota press) the first publication in any language of the book written in 1973 **+** 2022 on the rural. economy sociology geography stuart elden adam david morton eds. robert bononno trans. (minneapolis: university of minnesota press) including the first half of ir book du rural à l'urbain (1970) and supplementary texts **+** stuart elden understanding henri lefebvre: theory and the possible london/new york: continuum 2004 **+** alan d. schrift twentieth-century french philosophy: key themes and thinkers blackwell publishing 2006 **+** andy merrifield henri lefebvre: a critical introduction (london: routledge 2006) **+** goonewardena k. kipfer s. milgrom r. & schmid c. eds. space difference everyday life: reading henri lefebvre. (new york: routledge 2008) **+** sue middleton henri lefebvre and education: space history theory (new york: routledge 2016) **+** andrzej zieleniec: space and social theory london 2007 p. 60-97 **+** derek r. ford education and the production of space: political pedagogy geography and urban revolution (new york: routledge 2017) **+** chris butler henri lefebvre: spatial politics everyday life and the right to the city (new york/london: routledge 2012) **+** shields r.-lefebvre love and struggle(new york/london: routledge 1998) // republic of bob