La fin du courage

Cynthia Fleury, an essential figure in contemporary philosophy, sharply addresses the critical issues of our time. Her reflections on courage and the power of critical thought resonate particularly in a world in search of meaning. We, as Au Contraire Productions considered the revival of La fin du Courage as an obvious project. To quote Cynthia Fleury, "We live in irreducible and powerless societies… mafias and democracies, where courage is no longer taught." We have the desire to play our part in making her clear, just, and undeniably necessary words heard and circulated.

To reveal all the nuances of this theatrical form freely inspired by an essay "without characters," we want to offer a format composed of different duos of actresses. This will allow variations and different interpretations of the two characters, these two ideal types confronting each other: the Author and the Journalist, two beings who meet, question each other (with humor and self-mockery), challenge each other on their shortcomings and flaws, touched by discouragement but who could find courage together.

These female duos will intersect and alternate, allowing their own interpretations and differences to resonate, while enriching Cynthia Fleury's intentions. As she reminds us, "there is no political courage without moral courage" and shows how philosophy can form a theory of courage that articulates the individual and the collective.

Cynthia Fleury, Professor of the Chair of "Humanities and Health" at the Conservatoire National des Arts et Métiers, is also an associate professor at the École des Mines (PSL/Mines-Paristech), and holds the Chair of Philosophy at the GHU Paris Psychiatry and Neurosciences. Her research focuses on the tools of democratic regulation and the principle of individuation in the context of a social state of law. She is the author of several works, including Dialoguer avec l'Orient (PUF, 2003), Les pathologies de la démocratie (Fayard, 2005; Livre de poche 2009), La fin du Courage (Fayard, 2010; Livre de poche, 2011), Les irremplaçables (Gallimard, 2015; Folio 2018), and Ci-gît l'amer. Guérir du ressentiment (Gallimard, 2020).

She has taught at the École Polytechnique and Sciences Po (Paris) for many years. She was the president of the NGO Europanova, which organizes the States General of Europe, and now serves as vice-president. Upon joining the CCNE (National Consultative Ethics Committee) in 2013, she became its youngest member. She is also a founding member of the European Network of Women Philosophers at UNESCO. As a psychoanalyst, she is the godmother of ICCARRE (protocol for intermittent treatment of AIDS) and has been a member of the emergency medico-psychological team at SAMU (CUMP-Necker). She is also a member of the ethics committee of the Institut Pasteur.