I would like to thank here all those who accompanied this work as it took shape.
This means especially those without whose acquaintance it would not have been possible: Daniel Dobbels, Virginie Pelletier, and Jean-Benoît Puech. My warmest thanks also go to Monique Antelme, Jacques Derrida, Roger Laporte, Francis Marmande, and Michel Surya. As well as to Dionys Mascolo, whose generous attentiveness contributed to the early direction of the project.
I wish to thank, for the interviews they granted me and sometimes for making private archives available: Jean Bazaine, Mr. and Mrs. Georges Bérardan, Jean-Pierre Boyer, Michel Deguy, Louis-René des Forêts, Jacques Dupin, Francine Fardoulis-Lagrange, Mr. and Mrs. François Forêt, Mrs Pierre Gauthey, Mr. and Mrs. Jean Herbinet, Leslie Kaplan, Vadim Kozovoï, Michaël Levinas, Xavier de Lignac, Pierre Madaule, Maurice Nadeau, Jean-Luc Nancy, Bernard Noël, Louis Ollivier, Jean Piel, François Poirié, Pierre Prévost, Jean Rollin, Claude Roy, Jean Suquet, Pierre-Antoine Villemaine.
I thank Bernard Desportes and all contributors to the issue that Ralentir Travaux dedicated to Maurice Blanchot (Winter 1997), as well as Hugo Santiago, Andès Jarach, and all those who took part in the film Maurice Blanchot produced by INA (Institut National de l’Audiovisuel) and broadcast on France 3 (1998).
I thank as well, for their assistance, David Amar, David Amar, Aliette Armel, Raymond Bellour, Philippe Blanc, Claude Burgelin, Didier Cahen, Hubert Déssolin, the Curate of Simard, Guislain Drot, Gérard Dufresne, the Baron of Marais, Claude Elly, Marina Galletti, Christophe Halsberghe, Leslie Hill, Michaël Holland, Viviane Jabès-Crasson, Charles Juliet,
Patrick Kéchichian, Pierre Pachet, Sylvie Patron, Claire Paulhan, Liliane Phan and Gallimard, Dominique Rabaté, Pierre-Paul Ryga, Tatsuo Satomi, Emmanuel Tibloux, and Pierre Vilar.
I would also like to thank, in particular, Geneviève and Marie-Christine Drot and Sabah Rahmani, with whom the bibliographies and (especially) the index were compiled.