| Albert Caraco | |
| Birth Date: | 8 July 1919 |
| Birth Place: | Istanbul, Ottoman Empire |
| Death Place: | Paris, France |
| Nationality: | French, Uruguayan |
| Region: | Western philosophy |
| Era: | 20th-century philosophy |
| School Tradition: | Continental philosophy, Philosophical pessimism, existentialism |
| Main Interests: | Nihilism, ethics, politics, art, aesthetics, religion, literature |
Albert Caraco (8 July 1919 – 7 September 1971) was a French-Uruguayan philosopher, writer, essayist and poet of Turkish Jewish descent. He is known for his two major works, Post Mortem (1968) and posthumously published Bréviaire du chaos (1982). He is often compared to the philosophers and writers such as Emil Cioran, Louis-Ferdinand Céline, Nicolás Gómez Dávila and Friedrich Nietzsche.[1]
Albert Caraco was born Istanbul on 8 July 1919 to a Jewish family.[2] His family relocated in Vienna, Prague and later in Berlin, before settling in Paris. He attended the Lycée Janson de Sailly and graduated from Ecole des Hautes Etudes Commerciales in 1939.[3] At the same year, Caraco and his family fled to South America due to Nazi threat and approaching World War II.[2] His family received Uruguayan citizenship and converted to Catholicism.[4] In early 1940s, Caraco published a series of poems and plays.[3]
In 1946, Caraco returned to Paris, where he spent the rest of his life. Inspired by monastic discipline, he devoted himself to writing, although he renounced his Catholic faith.[4] His mother's death in 1969, which was widely documented in his work, Post mortem, had a negative effect on his state. On 7 September 1971, following his father's death, he committed suicide. Most of his unreleased works were posthumously published by L'Age d'Homme publishing company.[4]
An article regarding Caraco's works and life, written by Louis Nucéra, was published on 4 May 1984 in Le Monde.[5]