At the age of eighty, one of the most influential intellectuals of the 20th century agreed to give an interview, his first in nearly thirty years. "An event," cheered Le Figaro. In conversation with bestselling author Didier Eribon, Claude Lévi-Strauss reflects on the milestones of his life and work - early readings of Freud and Marx, his escape to New York, friendships with André Breton and Max Ernst, his critique of colonialism and Cartesianism, and his ongoing struggle for radical humanism. It becomes clear time and again that historical events have influenced Lévi-Strauss's fate just as much as he has shaped the thinking of our era. However, personal reflections are also prominent in these conversations. He vividly recounts his love for music, painting, flowers, and why he, the great ethnologist, is passionate about art and the beauty of life.