Georges Palante Archive
Source: Ouest-Éclair August 7, 1925;
Translated: by Mitch Abidor for marxists.org;
CopyLeft: Creative Commons (Attribute & ShareAlike) marxists.org 2006.
The city of Saint-Brieuc was very moved yesterday by the news of the tragic death of M. Palante, professor of philosophy at the Lycée of Saint-Brieuc. M. Georges Palante committed suicide by shooting himself at his property in Hilion, where he customarily passed his vacations. M. Palante was a true original, whose figure was well known in Saint-Brieuc and Rennes. He was also a good man, a distinguished wit, and a savant of extraordinary erudition. Professor Palante, a convinced materialist – though without passion – published several works which drew much notice and made for him a name in the world of modern philosophy. The causes of his act of despair are unknown. But those who know this pessimistic philosopher, a tormented disciple of Schopenhauer; those who know that the sad contingencies of life could not, in such a spirit, be alleviated by any hope of the beyond, were not surprised by this regrettable suicide. Whatever the case, the university loses one of its most conscientious and distinguished members.