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Existence precedes essence
- Sartre argued that a central proposition of existentialism is that existence precedes essence, which is to say that individuals shape themselves by existing and cannot be perceived through preconceived and a priori categories, an "essence".
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We'll soon see how this is relevant to Sartre's existentialism. In Being and Nothingness, Sartre drew on the philosophy laid out by Husserl but developed it further. He defined human consciousness as being a nothingness in the sense of no-thingness, and placed it in opposition to being, that is thing-ness. It is in keeping with this definition ...
- Key Themes of Existentialism
- Key Existentialist Philosophers
- The Influence of Existentialism
- References and Further Reading
Although a highly diverse tradition of thought, seven themes can be identified that provide some sense of overall unity. Here, these themes will be briefly introduced; they can then provide us with an intellectual framework within which to discuss exemplary figures within the history of existentialism.
a. Søren Kierkegaard (1813-1855) as an Existentialist Philosopher
Kierkegaardwas many things: philosopher, religious writer, satirist, psychologist, journalist, literary critic and generally considered the ‘father’ of existentialism. Being born (in Copenhagen) to a wealthy family enabled him to devote his life to the pursuits of his intellectual interests as well as to distancing himself from the ‘everyday man’ of his times. Kierkegaard’s most important works are pseudonymous, written under fictional names, often very obviously fictional. The issue of pseud...
b. Friedrich Nietzsche (1844-1900) as an Existentialist Philosopher
“I know my lot. Some day my name will be linked to the memory of something monstrous, of a crisis as yet unprecedented on earth…” (Nietzsche 2007:88). Remarkably, what in 1888 sounded like megalomania came some years later to be realized. The name ‘Nietzsche’ has been linked with an array of historical events, philosophical concepts and widespread popular legends. Above all, Nietzsche has managed somehow to associate his name with the turmoil of a crisis. For a while this crisis was linked to...
c. Martin Heidegger (1889-1976) as an Existentialist Philosopher
Heideggerexercised an unparalleled influence on modern thought. Without knowledge of his work recent developments in modern European philosophy (Sartre, Gadamer, Arendt, Marcuse, Derrida, Foucault et al.) simply do not make sense. He remains notorious for his involvement with National Socialism in the 1930s. Outside European philosophy, Heidegger is only occasionally taken seriously, and is sometimes actually ridiculed (famously the Oxford philosopher A.J. Ayer called him a ‘charlatan’). In 1...
a. The Arts and Psychology
In the field of visual arts existentialism exercised an enormous influence, most obviously on the movement of Expressionism. Expressionism began in Germany at the beginning of the 20th century. With its emphasis on subjective experience, Angst and intense emotionality, German expressionism sought to go beyond the naiveté of realist representation and to deal with the anguish of the modern man (exemplified in the terrible experiences of WWI). Many of the artists of Expressionism read Nietzsche...
b. Philosophy
As a whole, existentialism has had relatively little direct influence within philosophy. In Germany, existentialism (and especially Heidegger) was criticised for being obscure, abstract or even mystical in nature. This criticism was made especially by Adorno in The Jargon of Authenticity, and in Dog Years, novelist Gunter Grass gives a Voltaire-like, savage satire of Heidegger. The criticism was echoed by many in the analytic tradition. Heidegger and the existentialist were also taken to task...
a. General Introductions
1. Warnock Mary. Existentialism(Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1970) 2. Barrett William. Irrational Man: A Study in Existential Philosophy(New York: Anchor House, 1990) 3. Cooper E. David. Existentialism(Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell, 1999) 4. Reynolds Jack. Understanding Existentialism(Stocksfield: Acumen, 2006) 5. Earnshaw Steven. Existentialism: A Guide for the Perplexed (London: Continuum, 2006)
b. Anthologies
1. Kauffman Walter. Existentialism from Dostoevsky to Sartre(New York: Penguin, 1975) 2. Paul S. MacDonald. The Existentialist Reader –An Anthology of Key Texts(Edinburgh: Edinburg University Press, 2000) 3. Solomon C. Robert.Existentialism(USA: Oxford University Press, 2004)
c. Primary Bibliography
1. Beauvoir de Simone. The Ethics of Ambiguity(New York: Citadel Press, 1976) 2. Beauvoir de Simone. The Second Sex(London: Jonathan Cape, 2009) 3. Camus Albert. The Myth of Sisyphus(London: Penguin, 2000) 4. Camus Albert. The Rebel(London: Penguin, 2000b) 5. Camus Albert. The Fall, (London: Penguin, 2006) 6. Heidegger Martin, Introduction to Metaphysics(New Heaven & London: Yale University Press,2000) 7. Heidegger Martin. Letter on Humanism: in Heidegger Martin. Basic Writings, (London: Rout...
- Existence. Precedes Essence Our acts create our essence. Humanity alone exists; objects simply are (for example, they do not exist per se). Animals and vegetables occupy an intermediary position.
- Freedom. Man's situation is an unhappy one: what is good? and what is evil? Since there is no way of separating them, man is condemned to a life of freedom in which he must choose.
- Responsibility. Man must be committed, engaged. He has a responsibility before other citizens for his actions. By acting, he creates a certain essence for society ("by choosing for oneself, man chooses for all men"); any action which one takes affects the rest of humanity.
- "The others" Other people are a torture for two reasons: they are capable of denying one's existence and one's freedom by treating one as an object; for example, if you do a cowardly act, and another person calls you a coward, this cuts off the possibility of your doing something heroic or courageous; it stereotypes you as a coward, and this causes anguish.
Existentialism is a form of philosophical inquiry that explores the issue of human existence. [1] [2] Existentialist philosophers explore questions related to the meaning, purpose, and value of human existence. Common concepts in existentialist thought include existential crisis, dread, and anxiety in the face of an absurd world and free will ...
Apr 22, 2004 · He is commonly considered the father of Existentialist philosophy, whose writings set the tone for intellectual life in the decade immediately following the Second World War.
Sartrean existentialism, then, is an ontology that entails an exigent, unrelenting and burdensome deontology, or ethics, whose premises are grounded in empirical good sense, and whose complements derive from it logically and persuasively.
Jean-Paul Sartre – Existentialism Is a Humanism | Introduction to Philosophy: Hymowech. Our point of departure is, indeed, the subjectivity of the individual, and that for strictly philosophic reasons.
