Simone Weil (1909 – 1943) was a French philosopher, activist, and mystic whose writings explored justice, oppression, and spirituality. A critic of Marxism, she championed the working class while advocating for a deeply personal form of religious faith.
Born in Paris to an intellectual Jewish family, Weil excelled academically, studying philosophy at the École Normale Superieure. She became a teacher but repeatedly left to engage in activism, working in factories to experience labor firsthand. During the Spanish Civil War, she joined anarchist forces but was forced to withdraw after an injury.
Weil later developed a strong Christian mysticism, though she never formally converted. Her writings, including Gravity and Grace and The Need for Roots, addressed suffering, self-sacrifice, and human dignity. During World War II, she fled to London, working for the Free French but refusing to eat more than those suffering under Nazi occupation. Weakened by malnutrition, she died in 1943 at 34.
Her posthumous influence spans philosophy, theology, and political thought, inspiring generations with her radical commitment to justice and truth.