Word: panth
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: all
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
Given the Panthéon's function as the final repose for France's greatest heroes, it's perhaps not surprising that efforts are now afoot to relocate the ashes of writer and philosopher Albert Camus to a site beneath the 18th century Paris building's cupola. But rather than earning plaudits from intellectuals and ordinary French people alike, the move to honor the man some call France's most influential postwar thinker is sparking controversy. Some pundits and historians say that Camus' legacy is being exploited for political gain, while others argue that glorification of the philosopher...
...President Nicolas Sarkozy said last week that he wanted to add Camus to the giants of French history who are buried at the Panthéon - figures like Voltaire, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Victor Hugo, Emile Zola and Louis Pasteur - as a way of revering an author whose defense of the downtrodden and veneration of the individual over the oppressive forces of society earned him fame and respect around the globe. But the announcement outraged Camus' son, Jean, who saw a motivation of a different sort - an attempt by Sarkozy to "requisition" the legacy of a ferociously independent thinker...
...laying at the tomb of the unknown soldier under the Arc de Triomphe-attended by such fellow Socialists as former West German Chancellor Willy Brandt and Greek Actress and Parliamentarian Melina Mercouri-Mitterrand proceeded to the Left Bank and a new ceremony of his own: a pilgrimage to the Panthéon that provided a television spectacular that was even better orchestrated than Giscard's farewell...
...three main schools, the one that gave the prewar grand corps its literary flavor is the two-year Ecole Normale Supérieure. A stone's throw from the Panthéon, it was created by the French Revolution in 1794 to "teach morals and shape the hearts of young republicans for the practice of private and public virtue." Each year the school accepts about 80 men out of more than 600 candidates. The goal of normaliens, who study either science or literature, is not only a university degree but also the diploma called I'agrégation...
Science & Glory. More important than ever are alumni of the Ecole Polytechnique, another creation of the Revolution near the Panthéon, which maintains the military air given it by Napoleon (motto: "For fatherland, science and glory."). Commanded by a general, and obliged to serve for six years in the armed forces, the school's 600 students observe strict military discipline, wear cocked hats and swords on parade. A.W.O.L. students get a highly deterrent punishment-loss of the right to take an exam...