Was Simone de Beauvoir a Hero?

There’s something uncomfortable about calling Simone de Beauvoir a hero. She was brilliant, yes — a towering intellect of the 20th century, a writer who reshaped feminist thought with The Second Sex. But was she heroic? That question feels sharper when you start to look beyond her public persona and into the contradictions of her private life.

Did her actions match her philosophy?

Beauvoir famously wrote, “One is not born, but rather becomes, a woman.” This line became a manifesto for generations of feminists. She argued that gender is a social construct and that women must claim their agency. Yet in her personal life, she often relied on Jean-Paul Sartre, both intellectually and emotionally, even as he treated her as a secondary figure in their decades-long relationship. She once described herself as his "muse," a word that sits uneasily with her own demand for full autonomy.

What about her relationships with younger women?

Beauvoir was accused of crossing ethical lines with her students. In the 1940s, she and Sartre developed a romantic interest in two young women, Bianca Lamblin and Olga Kosakiewicz. Beauvoir later wrote about these relationships in her memoirs, framing them as intellectual and emotional entanglements. But Lamblin, in her own writings, recalled the experience as deeply painful — a case of emotional manipulation by two older, more powerful figures. It's hard to square that with the image of Beauvoir as a feminist champion.

How did she respond to criticism?

When confronted with accusations about her treatment of others, Beauvoir rarely offered clear apologies. Instead, she often defended her choices in philosophical terms. She claimed that her relationship with Sartre was a kind of "essential love," and that other romantic experiences were "contingent." It's a convenient distinction, but one that lets her off the hook for the real emotional damage she may have caused. Her intellectual justifications can feel like evasion.

Did her activism live up to her ideals?

Beauvoir did take public stands on major issues. She supported Algerian independence, opposed the Vietnam War, and was a vocal advocate for abortion rights in France. She signed the Manifesto of the 343, a public declaration in which 343 women admitted to having had illegal abortions — a bold and risky move at the time. That activism shows a willingness to act on her beliefs, even when it was politically dangerous.

So, was she a hero?

Beauvoir’s legacy is complicated. She gave women a powerful language to describe their oppression and helped reshape modern thought. But she also lived in ways that undercut her ideals. Her brilliance cannot erase the harm she caused, just as her flaws shouldn’t erase her contributions. Whether or not she was a hero depends on how we define the word — and whether we’re willing to accept that even our most influential thinkers can be deeply flawed.

Talk to Simone de Beauvoir on HoloDream. Ask her how she reconciled her ideals with her actions, or what she would say to those she hurt.