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In 1984-1985, a series called “Peugeot Chronicles” was published in Actes de la recherche en sciences sociales by the sociologist Michel Pialoux and Christian Corouge, a specialized worker and CGT union member of the Peugeot factory in Sochaux. This article analyzes the reasons for which these chronicles were interrupted and the structural problems that may plague collaborations between workers and intellectuals. His encounter with the movie makers from the Medvedkine group in the early 1970s has led Christian Corouge to develop an ambivalent relationship to culture: signs of respect for official culture coexist with a rejection of an everyday culture condescending toward working class practices. The analysis of turning points in his trajectory and of some recent interviews sheds light on the tensions characteristic of the engagement (and disengagement) of a union member torn between the positive outcomes deriving from the appreciation of his cultural and political capital and the preservation of his social and professional position.