Existentialism

?Existentialism

Existentialism is a philosophical theory or approach that revolves around the existence of an individual as a free and responsible agent. The essence of the theory is that the free and responsible individual determines their development through acts of will.?

S?ren Kierkegaard (1813-1855) is widely acknowledged to be the father of Existentialism. Soren had command over diverse and complex subjects like philosophy, religion, psychology, journalism, criticism, and satire.

Other key influences on existentialist theory include:

• Friedrich Nietzsche
• Dr. Karl Jaspers
• Dr. Martin Heidegger
• Jean-Paul Sartre
• Dr. Viktor Frankl
• Dr. Irvin Yalom

Existentialism is a philosophical belief we are each responsible for making our lives meaningful and purposeful.?

It further states that our purposes and meanings are not given to us by gods, teachers, states, or any other authority. We are responsible for what we are and the actions we perform.?

One of the foundational ideas of existentialism is that there is no inherent meaning to life hence it is the responsibility of an individual to create meaning in life and add a sense of purpose to it.?

Definition of Existentialism

Defining existentialism is difficult as these philosophers not only contradict each other, but individuals tend to contradict their own stated beliefs both in writings and in actions,

Those most often associated with existentialism failed to form a cohesive philosophical discipline based on existential theories.

Existentialism is too multi-form and mutable to be compressed into a line.

Will Durant

“Existentialism is not a philosophy but a label for several widely different revolts against traditional philosophy.”

Walter Kaufmann, 1975

“Though existentialism is a term applied loosely to a range of philosophies, there are unifying themes in the writings of the existentialists.”

? “The doctrine that existence takes precedence over essence and holds that man is free and responsible for his acts. This responsibility is the source of dread and anguish that encompasses mankind.”

Webster's New World Dictionary, 1979

? “A philosophy that emphasizes the uniqueness and isolation of the individual experience in a hostile or indifferent universe, regards human existence as unexplainable and stresses freedom of choice and responsibility for the consequences of one's acts.”

American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 1992

Central principles of Existentialism

Personal Freedom

Human freedom according to existentialism is based on phenomenological everyday life description. In confronting situations where we have to make a choice, we find ourselves facing an open range of possible action courses. Here nothing compels us to choose one course of action over the other.?

This is the perfect example of individual or personal freedom where we are free to choose the best possible or worse possible action course for ourselves.?

Individual responsibility?

Individual responsibility is emphasized as the essential and fundamental aspect of human existence.?

We can’t deny the validity of this idea but existentialists often fail to provide a coherent framework for determining who to blame in a wrongdoing society.?

Meaning of life

Existentialists believe that individuals create the essence and meaning of their lives.? Existentialism further asserts that life is not determined by any supernatural force or any worldly authority.

Everyone is free. The ethical directives are action, decision, and freedom.

It opposes positivism and rationalism.?

Authenticity

Authenticity is a crucial element of existential theory. Authenticity is being authentic and making choices in a way that is based on who you are regardless of external pressure. Existentialism states that there is no inherent state of meaning or human nature.?

So humans must decide their values and principles for themselves.?

Key points in Existentialism

• Individuals have to take responsibility for their actions and shape their destinies

• Focus on human responsibility and judgment in ethical matters

• The individual is the sole judge of his or her actions

• The key idea of human existence is somewhat “on its own.”

• Existentialism takes its name from the philosophical theme of "existence.”

• Absurdity is often associated with “Existentialism”

• “Nature has no design” and “Nature has no reason for existing” are famous existentialist thoughts

Substantive issues in Existentialism

Ontic structure of human existence?

Existentialist ontology emphasizes the importance of possibility in understanding human existence. This concept is not understood as the absence of contradiction or potentiality destined to become actuality but as the specific modality of the being of humans.?

Existence precedes essence, meaning that humans do not have a nature that determines their modes of being and acting, but rather as possibilities from which they may choose and project themselves.

Human existence is the anticipation, expectation, and projection of the future, with the future being its fundamental temporal dimension. As a possibility, existence is also transcendence, being beyond itself, as all of its constitutive possibilities organize it towards other beings and the world in its totality. Transcendence means moving towards something that is not one's existence, such as things and other humans.

Some existentialists view other entities as real or factual beings, with their existence being not a possible being but a real or factual being.?

Heidegger and Sartre contrast the presence of things in the world with the realization of their realizability, while Jaspers sees the world as an infinite horizon that encompasses each possible existence and cannot be encompassed by any one of them.

The dominant theme of existentialist doctrines is the contrast between possibility and reality or facticity, leading to the appearance of existence as the nothingness of Being, negating every reality of fact.?

This reduction of existence to Nothingness can lead to the lack of meaning or the quest for a more direct relationship with Being, beyond the constitutive possibilities of existence.

Manner and Style of Human Existence

Existentialism is a philosophical movement that focuses on the importance of Being in human existence.?

It differs from humanism, which places human destiny in the hands of humans, and cosmology, which emphasizes the priority of Being.?

Existentialism fluctuates between the concept of a destiny where one accepts what has already been chosen and radical freedom, where choices are offered in absolute indifference.?

From deterministic perspectives, the past determines the future and assimilates it to itself, while libertarian perspectives view the meaning of the past depending on the present project.?

From a destinarian perspective, a choice is offered between understanding and not understanding one's nothingness. Existentialism fluctuates between Being and Nothingness, with the atheistic version focusing on the individual's efforts to be God, and the cosmological version arguing that Being intervenes to redeem one from Nothingness.

Problems in Existentialism philosophy

Humanity and human relationships

Existentialist philosophy addresses the individual's situation in the world and their ultimate significance.?

It eliminates the traditional distinction between mind and body, focusing on the body as a lived-through experience and an integral part of human existence. Consciousness, according to Sartre, is constant openness towards the world and a transcendent relationship with the inner self.?

Heidegger renounced the term consciousness, preferring Dasein, which is always particular and individual. All modes of being arise from the relationship between the self and the world, with concern being the fundamental aspect.

Concern demonstrates that humans are "thrown into the world" and must exist among other beings to protect themselves.?

Inauthentic existence, according to Heidegger, is day-to-day and anonymous, with chatter, idle curiosity, and equivocation.?

Anonymous existence is a simple "being together" with others, not a true coexistence.

Existentialists agree on the difficulty of communication, particularly in intersubjective relationships.?

Jaspers emphasizes the relationship between truth and communication, suggesting that avoiding fanaticism and dogmatism and embracing relativism and skepticism can lead to deeper intersubjective communication.?

Sartre, however, denies authentic communication, arguing that consciousness nullifies the other person as another and that sexuality fluctuates between sadism and masochism, making intersubjective relationships impossible.

The human situation in the world

Heidegger's intersubjective relationship is rooted in dread, which leads individuals to choose death as their only unconditioned and insurmountable possibility. This emotional tonality accompanies understanding the possibility of death, which isolates individuals and offers the possibility of remaining faithful to the common destiny of all humans. This fidelity includes the historicity of existence, which involves the repetition of tradition and the desire for the future.

The antithesis between possibility and reality is the key point of existentialism. Existence is interpreted in terms of possibilities that constitute humans as such, while reality is a for-itself, a world, and transcendence that is insurmountable and oppressive.?

The contradiction between these two perspectives becomes clear when the same reality is interpreted in terms of possibility.

Coherent existentialism should avoid the constant mortal leap between Being and Nothingness, avoid confusing the problematic character of existence with the fall into factuality, and avoid confusing the finitude of possibilities with resignation to the situation.?

Science offers an extensive and coherent use of the concept of the possible in key notions, such as indeterminacy, chance, probability, field, model, project, structure, and conditionality.

Some steps in this direction were taken by Abbagnano and Merleau-Ponty, who argued that considerations of probability are rooted in the being of humans, as they are situated in the world and invested with the ambiguity of events. human situation in the world

Problems in Existential Theology

Existentialism has a theological dimension, with Heidegger rejecting the label of atheism and denying divinity's essential qualities.?

Jaspers emphasizes the religious character of faith in transcendence, as it allows humans to withdraw from the world and reconnect with the beyond.?

Jaspers developed a theology of history, referring to an axial age between the 8th and 2nd centuries BCE, where great religions and philosophers emerged, leading to humans becoming aware of their limits.

Bultmann, a theologian of the demythologization of Christianity, argues that inauthentic existence is tied to the past and the world, while authentic existence is open to the future and the nonworld.?

Authentic existence is not the self-projection of humans in the world but the self-projection of humans in love and obedience to God. Existentialists recognize the gap between human existence and Being, either acknowledging it as the demonic or acknowledging its hidden participation through faith.?

Kierkegaard distinguished three stages of existence: aesthetic, ethical, and religious. Heidegger and Jaspers identified these stages as inauthenticity and authenticity, respectively.?

Art, however, was not recognized as an autonomous stage by modern existentialists. It was seen as a way of reshaping the world beyond its factual forms, revealing its negative and troublesome characteristics.

Social and historical projections of existentialism

Existentialism, a metaphysical or theological dimension, emphasizes the role of humans in history and the individual's responsibility to transform society and the world they inhabit.?

It moved towards Marxism, which shares the diagnosis of existence as the primordial and ineradicable relationship of humans with nature and society.?

Sartre attempted to synthesize existentialism and Marxism by modifying the notion of "project" and utilizing dialectic as understood by Marx. The project of existence consists of conditioning by objective possibilities, identifying with the material conditions of existence.?

Dialectical reason becomes the true protagonist of history and the interior freedom of individuals who participate in history.

A historical project of human life that tries to remove characteristics of inauthenticity or alienation from existence loses its risky and problematic character and awareness of the conditions and modalities of its realization.?

This is also lost in the "transcendental project" of a new society, elaborated by Herbert Marcuse, which entrusted its realization to an impersonal and contemplative Reason, which invites the "great refusal" of contemporary society.

Despite its development, existentialism has furnished philosophy and contemporary culture with conceptual tools such as "problematicity," "chance," "condition," "choice," "freedom," and "project."?

It is essential to grant the possibility of its ontological status and allow for calculated risks and prudent trust in the world.

Characteristics of Existentialism

Existentialism emphasises individuals' authenticity and the individual's role in the world.

?It emerged after Charles Darwin's discovery that humans are biological evolution products, leading to a materialistic world and the loss of inherent meaning. Existentialism argues that humans must create meaning in the world, often through artistic or altruistic means.?

This perspective views existence as absurd, with no apparent purpose. The cure for this is being truthful and authentic with oneself, allowing the critical eye to embark on a journey of self-realization and becoming one's own God.