Marcel, Gabriel (1889-1973), was a French philosopher. He was an unsystematic thinker who presented his philosophy for the most part in three philosophical diaries: Metaphysical Journals (1927), Being and Having (1935), and Presence and Immortality (1959). His philosophy consists of reflections on concrete human experiences such as love and fidelity. He believed human experience can be understood only by directly participating in it. Therefore, he tried not merely to observe but to relive these experiences in the course of his reflections. His other works include Homo Viator (1944), an analysis of hope; and Man Against Society (1951), an examination of the effects of a technological society on the human personality.
Marcel was born on Dec. 7, 1889, in Paris. He became a Roman Catholic at 39. He is often classified as a Christian existentialist . Marcel died on Oct. 8, 1973.
