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Philippe Desan

b. 1953

French academic

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About Philippe Desan

Born 1953. Philippe Desan is a French literary critic, university teacher, professor, philologist and romanist.

Philippe Desan is Howard L. Willett Professor of French and History of Culture at the University of Chicago. Originally from France, Desan is among the top Montaigne scholars alive today. He received his PhD from the University of California Davis, and has published widely on several topics pertaining to the literature and culture of the French Renaissance, often in relation to their economic, political and sociological context. At the University of Chicago, he has served as Master of the Humanities Collegiate Division and as Chair of the Department of Romance Languages and Literatures. He is the general editor of the Montaigne Studies. He has been awarded numerous honors for his scholarly work, including being named Knight of the Ordre des Palmes Académiques (1994) and awarded the Ordre National du Mérite (2004) and the Ordre des Arts et Lettres (2011). He has also received the Prix de l'Académie Française (for the Dictionnaire de Montaigne) in 2005, the Grand Prix de l'Académie Française for "le rayonnement de la langue et littérature française" in 2015 and the Prix de l'Académie des Sciences Morales et Politiques for his "Montaigne. Une biographie politique" in 2015.

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Important facts

Birth century
Nationality
Education
University of California, Davis
Positions held
President
Employers
University of Chicago
Awards
Pierre-Georges Castex Prize; Roland de Jouvenel Prize; Prix du Rayonnement de la langue et de la littérature françaises; Knight of the French Order of Academic Palms; Chevalier des Arts et des Lettres; Knight of the National Order of Merit

People in Philippe Desan's life

Named in this biography and alive at the same time

Contemporaries

People whose lives overlapped Philippe Desan's

Frequently asked questions

Who is Philippe Desan?

French academic

When was Philippe Desan born?

Philippe Desan was born on 16 May 1953 in Saint-Maur-des-Fossés.

What is Philippe Desan's occupation?

Philippe Desan is a literary critic, university teacher, professor, philologist and romanist.

What nationality is Philippe Desan?

Philippe Desan is French.

Sources & further reading

· Wikipedia: Philippe Desan

· Wikidata: Q7184805

· DBpedia: Philippe Desan

Cite this page

APA: Biography.guide. (2026). Philippe Desan. https://biography.guide/philippe-desan/

MLA: "Philippe Desan." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/philippe-desan/.

Chicago: "Philippe Desan." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/philippe-desan/.

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