Michel Onfray obtained a PhD in philosophy in 1986 at the University of Caen. He teaches in the final year at the technical school of Caen, then resigns from the National Education in 2002. He considers that the teaching of philosophy is limited to the transmission of a history of the official philosophy and conforms to the social order, instead of aiming to learn to philosophize.

Partisan of a collective education that he wants libertarian and free, Michel Onfray founds in 2002 the Popular University of Caen, to teach a "counter-history" of philosophy. The first year of this university is devoted to "Pre-Christian Archipelago". He shows all the richness of this time which was not limited to the philosophy of Plato, dear to Christians, with such thinkers Democritus, Antiphon, Aristippus, Diogenes the cynic, Epicurus, Lucretia, in which he finds an alternative to spiritualism .

Michel Onfray is the author of many books where he develops a theory of hedonism. He proposes to reconcile man with his body, a sensual machine, and to build an ethic based on aesthetics. For him, philosophy is like an art of living, of living better, which makes it possible to get rid of one's illusions.

Michel Onfray considers that there is no philosophy without the benefit of sociology, science and humanities: "A philosopher thinks according to the tools of knowledge that he has, otherwise he thinks outside reality". His philosophy is that of a rebel, admirer of Nietzsche, atheist and close to the libertarian movement. He advocates a revolt against the conformism and dogmatism that generate social conservatism.