Political Humanities Faculty
Frederique Leichter-Flack's research interests lie at the crossroads between literature, history and political thought, with a special interest for nineteenth and twentieth century European and Russian Literature. As such, she tackles ethical issues in literature, whether in fiction or testimonial literature.
She received her academic training in Paris, where she was a fellow of the Ecole Normale Superieure. She graduated in philosophy, in history and in literature (1994), and took her PhD in comparative literature from the Sorbonne (2003). She also holds an ‘agregation de lettres modernes’ (1996) and an ‘Habilitation à diriger des recherches’ from the Sorbonne (2015).
Prior to joining Sciences Po, she taught comparative literature at Université de Paris Nanterre. She is also a member of CNRS Ethics Committee.
Her publications include La Complication de l’Existence. Essai sur Kafka, Platonov et Céline, Paris, Classiques Garnier ed., 2010, Le Laboratoire des cas de conscience, Paris, Alma ed., 2012 (A Laboratory for moral quandaries, Emile Perreau-Saussine Book Award 2013) and Qui vivra qui mourra. Quand on ne peut pas sauver tout le monde, Paris, Albin Michel ed., 2015 (Who shall live and who shall die. When everyone cannot be saved). Her current projects focus on the history of moral sensibility and emotions, particularly with regard to the social and cultural components of moral dilemmas, and on issues of prioritization and distributive justice in the field of medical humanities. She is also interested in the memorialization of tragic choices on the porous boundaries between history and fiction.
Leichter-Flack, Frédérique. 2020. "La perception tragique du tri : enjeux éthiques et effets d'une soudaine visibilité dans le débat public." In Pandémie 2020. Ethique, société, politique, ed. Emmanuel Hirsch, 81-88. Paris: Editions du Cerf.
Leichter-Flack, Frédérique. 2020. "Trier face à l’afflux des malades : critères de priorisation ou choix des sacrifiés ? La soudaine visibilité du « tri » dans le débat public et ses effets." Revue française d'éthique appliquée (RFEA) 2 (10): 16-18.