Paul Nizan

Paul-Yves Nizan was a philosopher and writer.

He studied in Paris where he befriended fellow student Jean-Paul Sartre at the Lycée Henri IV. He became a member of the French Communist Party, and much of his writing reflects his political beliefs, although he resigned from the party upon hearing of the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact in 1939. He died in the Battle of Dunkirk, fighting against the German army in World War II.

His works include the novels Antoine Bloye (1933), Le Cheval de Troie and La Conspiration (1938) and the essays "Les Chiens de garde" (1932) and "Aden Arabie" (1931), which introduced him to a new audience when republished in 1960 with a foreword by Sartre; in particular, the incipit "I was twenty, I won't let anyone say those are the best years of your life" (J’avais vingt ans. Je ne laisserai personne dire que c’est le plus bel âge de la vie.) became one of the most influential slogans of student protests during May '68.