Prix de la critique

Prix de la critique
Name	Prix de la critique
Awarded for	Excellence in literary criticism
Presenter	Syndicat de la Critique
Country	France
First awarded	19XX

Prix de la critique is a French literary prize recognizing outstanding work in literary criticism, awarded annually by the Syndicat de la Critique. Established in the 20th century amid debates involving institutions such as the Académie française, the prize became associated with publications like Le Monde, Libération, Le Figaro, La Croix, and Les Inrockuptibles. Over decades it has intersected with figures and entities including the Collège de France, Bibliothèque nationale de France, Centre Pompidou, Maison de la Poésie, and Bibliothèque publique d'information.

History

The award emerged during a cultural milieu shaped by events such as the May 1968 protests, the postwar debates around the Nouvelle Critique and structuralism involving scholars at the École des hautes études en sciences sociales, the Sorbonne, and the Collège de France. Early administrators included personalities from Le Monde, Le Figaro, L'Express, Les Nouvelles Littéraires, and La Nouvelle Revue Française, while recipients and nominees referenced authors associated with Gallimard, Seuil, Grasset, Flammarion, Stock, and Fayard. Institutional landmarks influencing the prize include the Académie Goncourt, the Prix Goncourt, the Prix Renaudot, the Prix Femina, and the Prix Medicis, and debates often invoked critics linked to Roland Barthes, Michel Foucault, Maurice Blanchot, Georges Poulet, and Paul Ricœur.

Eligibility and Criteria

Eligible works typically include books, essays, monographs, and collections of criticism published by mainstream houses such as Gallimard, Seuil, Grasset, Flammarion, and Actes Sud, as well as periodical criticism in outlets like Le Monde, Libération, Le Figaro, Les Inrockuptibles, and La Quinzaine Littéraire. Considerations draw on traditions associated with the Académie française, the Collège de France, the École Normale Supérieure, the Bibliothèque nationale de France, and university presses at Sorbonne Université and Université Paris-Sorbonne. Criteria reference prior laureates connected to positions at CNRS, EHESS, ENS, and the Institut national d'histoire de l'art, and often reflect conversations involving editors at NRF, Plon, and Albin Michel.

Selection Process

A jury convened by the Syndicat de la Critique, composed of critics from Le Monde, Libération, Le Figaro, Télérama, Les Inrockuptibles, and academic figures from Sorbonne Université, EHESS, and Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne, evaluates submissions. The process mirrors selection practices seen at the Prix Goncourt, the Prix Renaudot, and the Académie Française, with longlists and shortlists announced in venues such as the Bibliothèque nationale de France, Maison de la Poésie, Centre Pompidou, and Festival d'Avignon. Decisions have occasionally involved trustees and observers from institutions like the Institut Français, British Council, Goethe-Institut, and Centre national du livre.

Winners and Notable Laureates

Laureates have included critics and scholars associated with Roland Barthes, Michel Foucault, Jacques Derrida, Maurice Blanchot, Paul Ricœur, Pierre Bourdieu, Julia Kristeva, Alain Finkielkraut, Georges Steiner, and Harold Bloom, as well as contemporary figures publishing with Gallimard, Seuil, Grasset, Actes Sud, and Flammarion. Recipients often hold posts at Collège de France, École Normale Supérieure, CNRS, Université de Paris, Sorbonne Université, and EHESS, and have contributed to periodicals like Le Monde, Le Figaro, Libération, Télérama, and Les Inrockuptibles. Some awardees later received recognition from the Académie Française, the Prix Goncourt, the Prix Renaudot, the Prix Médicis, and international institutions such as the British Academy, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and the Guggenheim Foundation.

Impact and Reception

The prize has influenced careers of critics who became professors at the Collège de France, Sorbonne Université, EHESS, and Université Paris-Sorbonne, and it has affected editorial choices at Gallimard, Seuil, Grasset, and Flammarion. Media coverage in Le Monde, Libération, Le Figaro, France Culture, France Inter, and Arte has shaped public debates, while scholarly discussion in journals like Critique, Esprit, Autrepart, and Revue des Deux Mondes connects the prize to broader movements related to structuralism, post-structuralism, deconstruction, and hermeneutics associated with figures such as Roland Barthes, Michel Foucault, Jacques Derrida, and Paul Ricœur. Cultural institutions including the Bibliothèque nationale de France, Centre Pompidou, Maison de la Poésie, and Institut Français have staged events responding to laureates' works.

Related Awards and Distinctions

Comparable distinctions include the Prix Goncourt, Prix Renaudot, Prix Médicis, Prix Femina, Prix Interallié, Prix Maurice-Edgar Coindreau, Grand Prix de Littérature Paul Morand, Grand prix de l'Académie française, and prizes administered by organizations such as the Académie Française, the British Academy, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the Guggenheim Foundation, and the Fondation Prince Pierre de Monaco. Overlaps occur with honors granted by university presses, CNRS fellowships, the Institut Universitaire de France, and awards adjudicated by editorial boards at Gallimard, Seuil, Fayard, Grasset, and Flammarion.

Category:French literary awards