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Jean-Pierre Vernant | |
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.jpg) Vernant in 2006 | |
| Born | (1914-01-04)January 4, 1914 Provins, France |
| Died | January 9, 2007(2007-01-09) (aged 93) Sèvres, France |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Anthropologist, historian |
Jean-Pierre Vernant (French:[vɛʁnɑ̃]; January 4, 1914 – January 9, 2007) was a Frenchresistant,historian andanthropologist, specialist inancient Greece. Influenced byClaude Lévi-Strauss, Vernant developed astructuralist approach to Greekmyth,tragedy, and society which would itself be influential among classical scholars.[1] He was an honorary professor at theCollège de France.
Born inProvins, France, Vernant at first studied philosophy, receiving hisagrégation in this field in 1937.
A member of the Young Communists (Jeunes Communistes), Vernant joined theFrench Resistance during World War II and was a member ofLibération-sud (founded byEmmanuel d'Astier). He later commanded theFrench Forces of the Interior (FFI) inHaute-Garonne under the pseudonym of "Colonel Berthier." He was aCompanion of the Liberation. After the war, he remained a member of theFrench Communist Party until 1969.
He entered theCentre national de la recherche scientifique (CNRS) in 1948 and, under the influence ofLouis Gernet, turned to the study of ancient Greek anthropology. Ten years later, he became director of studies at theÉcole des hautes études en sciences sociales (EHESS). In 1971 he was professor in theUniversity of São Paulo.[2] This visit was also an act of protest that he made withFrançois Châtelet against thebrazilian military government (dictatorship).
He was a member of the French sponsorship committee for theDecade for the Promotion of a Culture of Peace and Non-Violence for the Children of the World. He supported the funding organisationNon-Violence XXI.
He was awarded the CNRS gold medal in 1984. In 2002, he received an honorary doctorate at theUniversity of Crete.
Vernant died a few days after his 93rd birthday inSèvres.
After his death, his name was given to a French highschool in Sèvres, le "Lycée Jean-Pierre Vernant".
The structuralist approach pioneered by Vernant has been influential on a wide range of classical scholars. More specifically, Vernant's reading of the myth ofPrometheus was an important influence on philosopherBernard Stiegler's book,Technics and Time, 1: The Fault of Epimetheus.
Vernant's approach has been heavily criticized, particularly among Italian philologists, even by those of Marxist tendencies. He has been accused of a fundamentallyahistorical approach, allegedly going as far as to manipulate his sources by describing them in categories which do not apply (polysemy and ambiguity).[3]
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