20th-century French philosophers

Jules Vuillemin (; French: [vɥijmɛ̃]; 15 February 1920 – 16 January 2001) was a French philosopher, Professor of Philosophy of Knowledge at the prestigious Collège de France, in Paris, from 1962 to 1990, succeeding Maurice Merleau-Ponty, and Professor emeritus from 1991 to 2001. He was an Invited Professor at the Institute for Advanced Study, in Princeton, New Jersey (1968).
At the Collège de France, Vuillemin introduced analytical philosophy to France. Vuillemin’s thought had a major influence on Jacques Bouveresse's works. Vuillemin himself vindicated the legacy of Martial Gueroult.
A friend of Michel Foucault, he supported his election at the Collège de France, and was also close to Michel Serres.

Dominique Lecourt (French: [ləkuʁ]; 5 February 1944 – 1 May 2022) was a French philosopher. He is known in the Anglophone world primarily for his work developing a materialist interpretation of the philosophy of science of Gaston Bachelard.

Jean Grenier (6 February 1898 – 5 March 1971, Dreux-Venouillet, Eure-et-Loir) was a French philosopher and writer. He taught for a time in Algiers, where he became a significant influence on the young Albert Camus.

André Comte-Sponville (born 12 March 1952) is a French philosopher.

Léon Brunschvicg (French: [leɔ̃ bʁœ̃svik]; 10 November 1869 – 18 January 1944) was a French Idealist philosopher. He co-founded the Revue de métaphysique et de morale with Xavier Léon and Élie Halévy in 1893.

Ferdinand Alquié (French: [alkje] ; 18 December 1906 – 28 February 1985) was a French philosopher and member of the Académie des Sciences Morales et Politiques from 1978.
In the years 1931 to 1945 he was a professor in various provincial and Parisian lycees, and later at the University of Montpellier and Sorbonne where he worked until he retired in 1979.

Henri Atlan (born 27 December 1931) is a French biophysicist and philosopher.

Gilbert Durand (1 May 1921 – 7 December 2012) was a French academic known for his work on the imaginary, symbolic anthropology and mythology.According to Durand, Imagination and Reason can be complementary. He defended the status of the image, traditionally devalued in Western thought, particularly in French philosophy. He advocated a multidisciplinary approach.
He distinguished between two regimes: the diurnal and the nocturnal, to classify symbols and archetypes.

Daniel Bensaïd (25 March 1946 – 12 January 2010) was a philosopher and a leader of the Trotskyist movement in France. He became a leading figure in the student revolt of 1968, while studying at the University of Paris X: Nanterre.

Élisabeth Badinter (née Bleustein-Blanchet; born 5 March 1944) is a French philosopher, author and historian.
She is best known for her philosophical treatises on feminism and women's role in society. She is an advocate of liberal feminism and women migrant workers' rights in France. Badinter is described as having a commitment to Enlightenment rationalism and universalism. She advocates for a "moderate feminism". A 2010 Marianne news magazine poll named her France's "most influential intellectual", primarily on the basis of her books on women's rights and motherhood.Badinter is the largest shareholder of Publicis Groupe, a multinational advertising and public relations company, and the chairwoman of its supervisory board. She received these shares in an inheritance from her father, Marcel Bleustein-Blanchet, who founded the company. According to Forbes, she is one of the wealthiest French citizens with a fortune of around US$ 1.8 billion in 2012.