Of all the books by Bernard-Henri Lévy, his Le Siècle de Sartre (Grasset) enjoys the most resounding critical success. In commemoration of the twentieth anniversary of the death of Jean-Paul Sartre, Bernard-Henri Lévy is invited by Le Groupe d’Études Sartriennes to present the opening address of the colloquium it organises for the occasion.

At the same time, he founds L’Institut d’Etudes Levinassiennes with Benny Lévy and Alain Finkielkraut. His mother dies on August 15, 2000.