At Foucault News, Clare O’Farrell asks for information – What fountain pen did Foucault write with?

Editor: I have recently developed an interest in fountain pens and was wondering if anybody knew what brand of fountain pen Foucault used? He may have used a biro (like Ian Fleming) but most writers at the time he was writing would have used fountain pens. 

From the biographies and from those currently working in the archives we know he wrote by hand and that his writing is no easy matter to decypher. He had a secretary who was expert in decyphering his writing and typing up his work for publication.

For those of you curious about the writing instruments used by other philosophers and Martin Heidegger in particular, there is an interesting discussion on the Fountain Pen Network concerning Heidegger’s writing instruments and a most informative article by Richard Polt titled ‘Heidegger’s Typewriter’ published in 2022. (With thanks to Stuart Elden for both these references.) 

If you have any information, feel free to leave a comment on this post or to email me directly.