François Jullien's 'De l'intime' Challenges Western Myth of Love

In his latest essay 'De l'intime. Loin du bruyant amour', philosopher and sinologist François Jullien critiques the Western myth of love, arguing that 'indignation' has become a tool of ideological marketing. He proposes the concept of 'the intimate' as a more genuine basis for human connection. Jullien explores how the Latin word 'intimus' (innermost) contains a paradox: what is most hidden also enables the deepest union with another. He traces the history of the intimate from Saint Augustine's 'Confessions' to Rousseau, distinguishing it from Greek tragic tenderness and Christian agape. For Jullien, the intimate is not affective or sentimental but an ethical space that oscillates between eros and agape, sensuality and spirituality, without opposing them. It allows a 'living as two' that is adventurous and inventive, beyond the possessive 'I love you' that objectifies the other. The essay was published by Grasset and reviewed in artpress by Vincent Roy.