Jean Fourastié
Encyclopedia
Jean Fourastié was a French
economist
, notable for having coined the expression Trente Glorieuses
("the glorious thirty [years]") to describe the period of prosperity that France experienced from the end of World War II
until the 1973 oil crisis
(1945-1973).
Catholic
College of Juilly
from 1914 to 1925. In 1930, he graduated from the prestigious École Centrale Paris
, and in 1933 received a degree from the École Libre des Sciences Politiques
. In 1936, he received a doctor of law
degree. Following his studies, he entered the civil service
as a tax official until 1951.
In 1941, he headed the insurance
program at Conservatoire National des Arts et Métiers
(CNAM).
Following the war, he began his career as an economic advisor, with a strong liberal, pro-European stance, while at the same time becoming one of the most recognized academic experts on industrial society.
—often regarded as the father of the European Union
—asked Fourastié to serve as an economic advisor on the Commissariat général du Plan, a body of domestic policy
experts under the authority of the Prime Minister of France
. He served four terms as president of the workforce modernization commission, and in 1961 he was chosen as a member of the "1985 working group" of the commissariat.
's study group on the conditions and effects of technical progress in the steel industry. In 1957 he was appointed as a United Nations
expert for the Mexican government and to the economic commission for Latin America
.
until his retirement in 1978. He became academic director of the École Pratique des Hautes Études
in 1951, and from 1960 he held the chair of Economics and Industrial Statistics at CNAM
.
and until 1968 he presented the monthly program "Quart d'heure" ("quarter hour") on French television.
In 1968, he was elected to the French Academy of Moral and Political Sciences, and became its president in 1978. In 1981, he was named president of the central administrative commission of the French Institute
.
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
economist
Economist
An economist is a professional in the social science discipline of economics. The individual may also study, develop, and apply theories and concepts from economics and write about economic policy...
, notable for having coined the expression Trente Glorieuses
Trente Glorieuses
Les Trente Glorieuses refers to the thirty years from 1945-1975 following the end of the Second World War in France. The name was first used by the French demographer Jean Fourastié...
("the glorious thirty [years]") to describe the period of prosperity that France experienced from the end of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
until the 1973 oil crisis
1973 oil crisis
The 1973 oil crisis started in October 1973, when the members of Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries or the OAPEC proclaimed an oil embargo. This was "in response to the U.S. decision to re-supply the Israeli military" during the Yom Kippur war. It lasted until March 1974. With the...
(1945-1973).
Biography
Fourastié received his elementary and secondary education at the privatePrivate school
Private schools, also known as independent schools or nonstate schools, are not administered by local, state or national governments; thus, they retain the right to select their students and are funded in whole or in part by charging their students' tuition, rather than relying on mandatory...
Catholic
Catholic
The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
College of Juilly
College of Juilly
The College of Juilly The College of Juilly The College of Juilly (French: Collège de Juilly is a Catholic private teaching establishment located on the commune of Juilly, in Seine-et-Marne (France)...
from 1914 to 1925. In 1930, he graduated from the prestigious École Centrale Paris
École Centrale Paris
École Centrale Paris is a French university-level institution in the field of engineering. It is also known by its original name École centrale des arts et manufactures, or ECP. Founded in 1829, it is one of the oldest and most prestigious engineering schools in France and has the special status...
, and in 1933 received a degree from the École Libre des Sciences Politiques
École Libre des Sciences Politiques
École Libre des Sciences Politiques , often referred to as the École des Sciences Politiques or simply Sciences Po was created in Paris in February 1872 by a group of European intellectuals, politicians and businessmen, which included Hippolyte Taine, Ernest Renan, Albert Sorel, Pierre Paul...
. In 1936, he received a doctor of law
Doctor of law
Doctor of Law or Doctor of Laws is a doctoral degree in law. The application of the term varies from country to country, and includes degrees such as the LL.D., Ph.D., J.D., J.S.D., and Dr. iur.-Argentina:...
degree. Following his studies, he entered the civil service
Civil service
The term civil service has two distinct meanings:* A branch of governmental service in which individuals are employed on the basis of professional merit as proven by competitive examinations....
as a tax official until 1951.
In 1941, he headed the insurance
Insurance
In law and economics, insurance is a form of risk management primarily used to hedge against the risk of a contingent, uncertain loss. Insurance is defined as the equitable transfer of the risk of a loss, from one entity to another, in exchange for payment. An insurer is a company selling the...
program at Conservatoire National des Arts et Métiers
Conservatoire National des Arts et Métiers
The Conservatoire National des Arts et Métiers , or National Conservatory of Arts and Crafts, is a doctoral degree-granting higher education establishment operated by the French government, dedicated to providing education and conducting research for the promotion of science and industry...
(CNAM).
Following the war, he began his career as an economic advisor, with a strong liberal, pro-European stance, while at the same time becoming one of the most recognized academic experts on industrial society.
Government advisor
In 1945, Jean MonnetJean Monnet
Jean Omer Marie Gabriel Monnet was a French political economist and diplomat. He is regarded by many as a chief architect of European Unity and is regarded as one of its founding fathers...
—often regarded as the father of the European Union
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
—asked Fourastié to serve as an economic advisor on the Commissariat général du Plan, a body of domestic policy
Domestic policy
Domestic policy, also known as public policy, presents decisions, laws, and programs made by the government which are directly related to all issues and activity within the country....
experts under the authority of the Prime Minister of France
Prime Minister of France
The Prime Minister of France in the Fifth Republic is the head of government and of the Council of Ministers of France. The head of state is the President of the French Republic...
. He served four terms as president of the workforce modernization commission, and in 1961 he was chosen as a member of the "1985 working group" of the commissariat.
European and international expert
Fourastié was recruited in 1948 as vice president of the scientific and technical committee of the European Economic Cooperation Organization (predecessor of the OECD). From 1954 to 1957, he led the European Coal and Steel CommunityEuropean Coal and Steel Community
The European Coal and Steel Community was a six-nation international organisation serving to unify Western Europe during the Cold War and create the foundation for the modern-day developments of the European Union...
's study group on the conditions and effects of technical progress in the steel industry. In 1957 he was appointed as a United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
expert for the Mexican government and to the economic commission for Latin America
Latin America
Latin America is a region of the Americas where Romance languages – particularly Spanish and Portuguese, and variably French – are primarily spoken. Latin America has an area of approximately 21,069,500 km² , almost 3.9% of the Earth's surface or 14.1% of its land surface area...
.
Academic career
Fournastié was a professor at the Institut d'Etudes Politiques de ParisInstitut d'Etudes Politiques de Paris
The Institut d'études politiques de Paris , simply referred to as Sciences Po , is a public research and higher education institution in Paris, France, specialised in the social sciences. It has the status of grand établissement, which allows its admissions process to be highly selective...
until his retirement in 1978. He became academic director of the École Pratique des Hautes Études
École pratique des hautes études
The École pratique des hautes études is a Grand Établissement in Paris, France. It is counted among France's most prestigious research and higher education institutions....
in 1951, and from 1960 he held the chair of Economics and Industrial Statistics at CNAM
Conservatoire National des Arts et Métiers
The Conservatoire National des Arts et Métiers , or National Conservatory of Arts and Crafts, is a doctoral degree-granting higher education establishment operated by the French government, dedicated to providing education and conducting research for the promotion of science and industry...
.
Editorialist
In 1966, Fourastié became an editor of Le FigaroLe Figaro
Le Figaro is a French daily newspaper founded in 1826 and published in Paris. It is one of three French newspapers of record, with Le Monde and Libération, and is the oldest newspaper in France. It is also the second-largest national newspaper in France after Le Parisien and before Le Monde, but...
and until 1968 he presented the monthly program "Quart d'heure" ("quarter hour") on French television.
In 1968, he was elected to the French Academy of Moral and Political Sciences, and became its president in 1978. In 1981, he was named president of the central administrative commission of the French Institute
Institut de France
The Institut de France is a French learned society, grouping five académies, the most famous of which is the Académie française.The institute, located in Paris, manages approximately 1,000 foundations, as well as museums and chateaux open for visit. It also awards prizes and subsidies, which...
.
Publications
- Le Contrôle de l'État sur les sociétés d'assurances. Paris, Faculté de Droit, 1937, 275 p.
- Le Nouveau Régime juridique et technique de l'assurance en France. Paris, L'Argus, 1941, 282 p.
- La Comptabilité. Paris, Presses Universitaires de France, 1943, 128 p. Coll. Que sais-je?
- . Paris, Librairie générale de droit et de jurisprudence, 1944, 271 p.
- L'Économie française dans le monde, avec la collaboratioun de Henri Montet. Paris, Presses universitaires de France, 1945, 136 p., Coll. Que sais-je ? n° 191
- Les Assurances au point de vue économique et social. Paris, Payot, 1946, 132 p. (Bibliothèque économique).
- Esquisse d'une théorie générale de l'évolution économique contemporaine, Paris, Presses Universitaires de France, 1947, 32 p.
- Note sur la philosophie des sciences, Paris, Presses Universitaires de France, 1948, 36 p.
- Le Grand Espoir du XXe siècle. Progrès technique, progrès économique, progrès social. Paris, Presses Universitaires de France, 1949, 224 p. - Réed 1989 collection Tel Gallimard
- La Civilisation de 1960. Paris, Presses universitaires de France, 1947. 120 p. (Coll. Que sais-je ? n° 279). Ed. remaniée en 1953 sous le titre : La Civilisation de 1975, en 1974, sous le titre : La Civilisation de 1995 et en 1982 sous le titre : La Civilisation de 2001. 11e éd. : 1982.
- Le progrès technique et l'évolution économique, Institut d'Études Politiques de Paris, Paris, les cours de Droit (deux fascicules), 1951-52, 249 p.
- Machinisme et bien-être. Paris, Ed. de Minuit, 1951, 256 p. (Coll. l'Homme et la machine, dirigée par Georges Friedmann, n° 1)
- La Productivité Paris, Presses universitaires de France, 1952, 120 p. (Coll. Que sais-je ? n° 557). (11e éd. : 1987)
- La prévision économique et la direction des entreprises. Paris, Presses universitaires de France, 1955, 152 p.
- Productivité, prix et salaires, Paris, O.E.C.E., 1957, 115 p.
- Pourquoi nous travaillons. Paris, Presses universitaires de France, 1959, 128 p. (Coll. Que sais-je ? n° 818). (8e éd. : 1984). (Traduit en espagnol, japonais, allemand, portugais, grec).
- La Grande Métamorphose du XXe siècle. Essais sur quelques problèmes de l'humanité d'aujourd'hui. Paris, Presses universitaires de France, 1961, 224 p.
- La Planification économique en France, avec la collaboration de Jean-Paul Courthéoux. Paris, Presses universitaires de France, 1963, 208 p. (Coll. L'organisateur)
- Les Conditions de l'esprit scientifique. Paris, Gallimard, 1966, 256 p. (Coll. Idées n° 96).
- Les 40 000 heures. Paris, Gonthier-Laffont, 1965. 247 p. (Coll. Inventaire de l'avenir n°1).
- Essais de morale prospective. Paris, Gonthier ; 1966, 200 p.
- Lettre ouverte à quatre milliards d'hommes. Paris, A. Michel, 1970, 167 p. (Coll. Lettre ouverte)
- Prévision, futurologie, prospective, Cours de l'Institut d'Études Politiques de Paris. 1973-74. Paris, Les cours de droit, 1974, 113 p. (ronéoté).
- L'Église a-t-elle trahi ? Dialogue entre Jean Fourastié et René Laurentin. Paris, Beauchesne, 1974, 192 p.
- Pouvoir d'achat, prix et salaires, avec la collaboration de Jacqueline Fourastié. Paris, Gallimard, 1977, 223 p. (Coll. Idées n° 374).
- La réalité économique. Vers la révision des idées dominantes en France, avec la collaboration de Jacqueline Fourastié, Paris, R. Laffont, 1978, 365 p. (Réédité en 1986, Paris, Hachette, 423 p. Coll. Pluriel n° 8488) .
- Les Trente Glorieuses, ou la révolution invisible de 1946 à 1975, Paris, Fayard, 1979, 300 p. (Rééd Hachette Pluriel n° 8363).
- Ce que je crois, Paris, Grasset, 1981
- Le Rire, suite, Paris, Denoël-Gonthier, 1983
- Pourquoi les prix baissent, avec la collaboration de Béatrice Bazil, Paris, Hachette, 1984, 320 p. (Coll. Pluriel n° 8390)