camus (absurdity)

8/7/2019 Camus (Absurdity)

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' E 'X . is k nt ia l ia r n I S b e fi t k no w n mol ' U s e th i ca l t h >e ! le ! il ijand so w epeesent 81 . ~a~~e G ~ dlleM heJ~. Those etb~cal tlu~~e!3~ .n~~~~rn.~swh~,t to do. ~o much ~. they~on.!h: '! l!cta framework w~tlnn w}u~~a ctio ns a re to h e v ie we d. T llte sele!;~~Gn f~ m C:anms, 1~,.f:r.1! Jm~us~'Mythof SlS'yphus.nThe _sernec t io f i from Sanre. is ~ro~n B~m~ ;~Nothingru!!Js" in which be p.resents one of t?efew '!l~phc~tlye1hiC


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490 .Albert C{!mu~Unk]:; inevitable. TIlJe meth.oc],dein.ed here aeknowledges theIeel ing that aUtrue knowledge is illlpOlSsibk So l e ly appearances,can he enumerated and the dUlll


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t ional , l' f O!f l ,e could o n W y sa;y jbiJ~ t once ;~~'I'\]I>~S d e ' . ' l i l ' , ' " : 1 ! ] ~ w o u l dbe saved. But, t~e$e men vie wj,tho:ne another In prodatming t : l l a tno;thiug iselear, all is ,cha;os, that aU man ba s 1 :9 h:i:s~ucid]'ty

essay leaves o~t a1!toget iher the lTIOt 'widJes,read ~p]~itl!i!llat.n]jtll~eof ol l! lt '@nlightel


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B ut ithe WQ~d d .o e s not~[ll.p]y 9.lmiy idJe!! of finalitYl it is, tnken ini ts s e ns e O'~ '~direc~~on~~:~tlS{ ! in ly va lue isto,ogrillpcMCiliL

At bat s~ghl. itc.eftl"inly see~s ~Si~ in. thill, wayno~~[lg,con~:i.adi~itiS' th e ,!I.bs~a.[!I\dSP ] ri t. T ilTha l; appa ren t modesty O'flhough~th~t ] i t l 1 i J ] t ! ! , itself to d e sCJ :' il li :~~ wha t II dec]ine! ! ito explablll ' I ~ E l i tw~le:ll~on~1 disc ipl inewhenoe : r \ 6 ; ! ! lU r n t ~@ : r i l i ! d o x ; ~ G a l l y a p [ i\ o fO l lmd .0nrffichm,eflt G'~ experienee ~ u ll d 1 ! h. 1lrotvi:rth 0$ the wodd in. ~ts PI:O-. Ibdty iliIel I1bsu:rd procedures, At~east; atjjFs~ sig ht F O ir m e J~ h~ d~of tho~~tt llmithis C< l OO as elsewhere, I:'IIWllIYS, a~lil!me two aspecl:$,one ptlycho]og1c8Iaud the other mdap~y8ic9l3 Tlh.erchy theyharbor hvo t:rUt~5. If tho the..e, 0& the~nt6nnon.al daims toiHusuate m e ]'; dy a p s, ye ~, Q] Q ,i oa [ altitude, by \ v h ~ c h . f e : ll JU t y isd["fi]~,ed i n so o 8 ,d . o i~ ib e i ll g eocp1ai~,ed~ llilolhing]]!) actOOPfilllitea i~from. the eryll=:Jpeet o f c :x pe de ~o ll. T ilte tn lh ~n vo lv ed tj he c1 'lf oil' e ac illi o f~h { I S l e aspetit19 is psyc l l i. alog i. e


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the l8:wl[!(FaUrac t lon w~uld no t he desb;Qyeilhu;t WQ li l:M simp]]'re;ma.]n wil~out any possible ap'pika:tion,'~ .I know tll8i~ I am facedwid ) a m etaph ysic O I conw~ati.on.. A~,uI if Mwan t to (Uooove ; r l ! lt epoint where thougff i l t leaves the i:J :a!thof evidence, I h ::l ;vf!;only tof .eTeadtJ~ep8ra1]e[ reawn~ng that Hussed vo ie es F eg arding - ~emind: ~~Hwe could e(m~eMp]al;e elearlythe exaet laws o,fpsy,chic 'proresses, l:hey would he: seen to he Hkewise ete:rnaJ and invari., a Mle t like the .basic la.l 'il!i of theorelica~[],atl i!l:ral science, Hencethey would he "Valid.even if theI6 lrere no psy,ehicpl"'IJ}eess. ~j Even~fthe mind we:re not its~aw,swould! he! I see jhen ~ba~ of a.p sy c h, olo g ic a~ tr ut lh H u5 .'3 ed a jm :s, to } l'i la .k ea N l ti o:n ain de , a fi e'fhalving denied. the intecgra t ing powei!: ofhuman reason, fue l e a [ : l Sh y this expedient to eternal .Reason.. .

Bussed',,!!, theme of dlJe",co:nc["-ete ul! l jve[ 'se~ ' cannot thei l l SUt-pr]se me. 1 .~.am toldthar all esSenC6Sa:re non fOlma] hlitlhBitsomea["-e lTI8Je:rial, that ~he6rst are the object 0 1 logic ~[ld [hesecond of seienee, ,th is 1 8 merely a question of defini t ion. Theabst~ae~, I am told, indicates but O i pa:rt~ without , e ons is t e :l 1 c ,y initsel'f, 01 aeencrere univeraal. Bu~ the wavering a l l r e : 8 ! d y notedallows me ~o :throw ]i~ht on the eonfusien of dwese bnr.ms. f'ort ha ~mO ly m e an l:ha.~the concre te ob j e c t of my aUention. this sky"the reHeclion of d'D.af. wa te r on this coat, ,:done preser ve thepres6ge of tile real thaJ~my inte:re-sl: la lQ]arns inthe woeld, And illshall [lot Jeny itBIl~that may mean a1so l l i < l ' l : thiseoat itseU [suniverse], .has its-particular and sMff ie ien t esseIl!r:e,he~ongs to :thewC i :d d o forms. ] th e n r ea li se thetmerdy the order of [h e pro-cess ion has. been changed; This world haaeeaaed to have itste.f.locliolilin a h ighe r universe, h ut th e heaven of forms~s figuredin the hos t of images of this earth, 11:]S changes aQ~hi[!jg f o rme .. R : < I , t b e r than el1comnle:r.illg here a taste for the concrete, tbemeanh lg o f the human oond]t~on, I :find an ]ntd~ecll:i.aUsnlJJ-iHlli.c i enUy I!lnbdd1ed. to. gene'nlbe the eoncrete :itself.

I t]s~'ulile ~o he amazed b y tihe O1!pparen l paradox {hat leadsthong]])t , to. H : s o w n neg

lI"l1Sta;srea5o~ was ah~e~o:l>QO~hethe melancholy of PI.qt.imrs,]t provides modern !ll [1J .gu]sh~he means o-fC:8!lmlng i tseH in thefamiliar setting of (heetemaL The abSl!U-d.inind has Jess luck,Fo r it the world is ~eithelr so rational nor so inat]on:a!l. It ]sunreasonable and on]y that. Wi~h HUSSE:f[ (he reason e"!lif:IlUul.Uyh as no Um~t:s


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49 8l~m~h;sinoe~t i s p oweT '1eBS toc.a]m its angoish.. Kie:d~egaaJ'din.de"pe:lldendy asserts that; a .S[ f ig]e ~imi:t is ,e~10ugh tmneg3~e Itha~~ngui:s:lTh.Bl)[tllhe ahsurd does not go so ],a:r.fOW]~tb:1lI~]im:it 1Sdirectedl sole]y 8!!~ th e reason's ambitiO[lS. Thetlheme 0 1 1 tl~e irrs-~~ona]~as it is co :nce iv ,ed by the exis1te:rutia~s.,is reason becomingoorrrEusedla:nd e s e a ] J ]n g lly neg:aJ6ng itseH. 1\ e OjIbs!.n:d is h~dd' r1 l3RSOnnot ing l ts [ ]m rJ ]t 's .

(In]y attlThe end 0] this difficult p~th does the absurd.ml3JIlr e cogn i z e his true mQ[l:ves.Upon comparing bi~rn[].er ex:igenc.eand V 'l'ha.~is then offered nim~ he 5udden]y f e e ] s be is g;oing~oturn away. In the Ill ll .iverseof Husserl l"e~\ 'of]dheeomes clearand that longing for 'ff

camus (absurdity)

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