Simone Weil was a French philosopher, mystic, and activist active in the French Resistance during World War II. Born into a Jewish family in Paris, she had a fairly comfortable upbringing. She was distressed when her father had to leave the family for long periods after he was drafted into the army during World War I. She developed altruistic tendencies early on and grew up to be a pacifist at heart. At a young age, she decided to dedicate her life to uplifting the social conditions of the downtrodden and underprivileged. A brilliant student at school, she was a voracious reader with an insatiable appetite for knowledge. She studied under the tutelage of philosopher and pacifist Émile Chartier and furthered her education at the École Normale Supérieure. After completing her studies, she began her career as a teacher. She was a professed pacifist and was passionately involved in political activism. She participated in the French general strike of 1933 and protested against unemployment and wage cuts. She also had a deep interest in mysticism and was drawn to the Christian faith. A woman of frail health, she developed tuberculosis in 1943 and died at the young age of 34.