ABSTRACT
In 1968 Jean Baudrillard published his first book with Éditions Gallimard, called Le Système des objets. The date of publication happens to be one of the most infamous years in recent French history, with students and workers rising up in political protest on a grand scale.Yet, it is no surprise that Baudrillard’s book should coincide with such a date, because he is a thinker and writer who emerges from, and forms part of, several significant strands in contemporary French culture and theory. This chapter will examine in some detail the complicated network of philosophical influences upon Baudrillard’s work, describing the background of the man who emerges from an intellectually and politically exciting (as well as demanding) period.
