Castel was born in Saint-Pierre-Quilbignon, now part of Brest. He initially studied philosophy in the late 1950s. In the late 1960s, he met Pierre Bourdieu and began working with him in sociology.
Castel was born in Bab El Oued on 21 May 1933. He was the son of Lili Labassi, a singer-songwriter of Chaabi music. [1 ] He started his career as a musician, accompanying his father in Franco-Arabic songs.
Robert de Castel (d'Arras) (fl. 1272) was a trouvère active in and around Arras in the late thirteenth century. He is mentioned in the Congés of Baude Fastoul, written in 1272, which place him Arras at that date.
Robert Castel is director of studies at the École des Hautes Études en Sciences Sociales in Paris. His other books include Le Psychanalysme, l'Ordre Psychiatrique, and La Gestion des Risques.