p. 39
“
When Descartes said, "Conquer yourself rather than the world," what he meant was, at bottom, - the same - that we should act without hope. Marxists, to whom I have said thus have answered: "Your action is limited, obviously, by your death: but you can rely upon the help of others.
— Jean-Paul Sartre
What It Means
This is a placeholder explanation generated by the low-overhead model. It interprets "When Descartes said, "Conquer yourself rather than the world," what he meant was, at bottom, - the same - that we should act without hope. Marxists, to whom I have said thus have answered: "Your action is limited, obviously, by your death: but you can rely upon the help of others." in the context of "p. 39" to mean that wisdom is timeless.
Source: Wikiquote: "Jean-Paul Sartre" (Quotes, Existentialism Is a Humanism (1946): L'existentialisme est un humanisme (1946), an essay based on a lecture at Club Maintenant in Paris (29 October 1945); initially translated as Existentialism and Humanism by Philip Mairet (London: Methuen & Co Ltd, 1948); titled Existentialism Is a Humanism in Existentialism from Dostoyevsky to Sartre, ed. Walter Kaufmann (New York, Meridian Books Inc., 1956), pp. 287–311. )
The 'What it means' explanation text was generated by Google Gemini Flash (accessed January 18, 2026). https://gemini.google.com/app
Tags
About Jean-Paul Sartre
Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre (21 June 1905 – 15 April 1980), normally known simply as Jean-Paul Sartre, was a French existentialist philosopher, dramatist and screenwriter, novelist, and critic. He had an enduring personal relationship with fellow philosopher Simone de Beauvoir.
About Jean-Paul Sartre
Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre (21 June 1905 – 15 April 1980), normally known simply as Jean-Paul Sartre, was a French existentialist philosopher, dramatist and screenwriter, novelist, and critic. He had an enduring personal relationship with fellow philosopher Simone de Beauvoir.
View all quotes →