EXISTENTIALISMIntroduction to the novel The Stranger by Albert Camus

QUICK WRITE 1

Is it better to live a life full of joy, pain, sorrow, happiness – highs & lows…

OR …to live a life without emotions and purpose – no pain, no joy…

QUICK WRITE 2

Agree or Disagree: There is no real meaning in life. People only make their own meaning so that they can exist each day with some sort of purpose.

For example: One might say religion exists to give people meaning so that they can go on each day and feel their life is not pointless.

QUICK WRITE 3 What would happen if (or describe a day in the life of) someone who…

Doesn’t believe there is a purpose in life…there is no point

Doesn’t believe in religion, god, or any higher power

Doesn’t love, sees no beauty, and has no real emotions

Doesn’t follow society’s norms

Doesn’t worry about consequences

Doesn’t think anything really matters

EXISTENTIALISM DEFINITION

A philosophical movement that embraces diverse doctrines, BUT centers The idea that people are free but ultimately responsible for their choices without knowing if those choices are right/wrong, good/bad…

dictionary.search.yahoo.com

n. noun

1. 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.

An Attempt to Explain Existentialism, by Vincent Luihttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M9XzoEiqSFw

Kids’ Existentialismhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kvz0CjtwH2k

CONCEPTS OF EXISTENTIALISM The only certainty is death

All “meaning” is man-made

Karma does not exist

The universe is meaningless and absurd

Does not believe in abstract principles like love and beauty

MORE EXISTENTIAL CONCEPTS

Truth is subjective; reality is subjective

The universe is ruled by randomness

Everything that happens is chance

Free will exists; fate does not

KIERKEGAARD (1813-1855)

Believed life was an impossible choice between two conflicting attitudes:

Aesthetic-immediate experience Vs. Ethical-ideals "...the thing is to find a truth which is true for me, to find the idea for which I can live and die" - Journals 1835

MORE EXISTENTIAL CONCEPTS No self-identity

Individual shapes own destiny and gives meaning to his existence, not only for himself, but as it will be judged by others

FRIEDRICH NIETZSCHE(1844-1900)

Tragic pessimism defines life

The individual will oppose itself to the moral conformity of the majority

Proclaimed the death of God and rejected the entire Judeo-Christian moral tradition

“In the consciousness of the truth he has perceived, man now sees everywhere only the awfulness or the absurdity of existence . . . and loathing seizes him.” --Friedrich Nietzsche

MORE EXISTENTIAL CONCEPTS

Man is personally and solely responsible for what he does and what he is

Every person has the power and the ability to change at ANY time in life

Individual actions are unpredictable

It doesn’t matter what you think…

it only matters what you do

MARTIN HEIDEGGER( 1889-1976)

Humanity lives in an incomprehensible, Indifferent/uncaring world

Human beings will never understand why we are here

Each individual must choose a goal and follow it with passionate conviction, aware of the certainty of death and the ultimate meaningless of life.

“If I take death into my life, acknowledge it, and face it squarely, I will free myself from the anxiety of death and the pettiness of life - and only then will I be free to become myself.” - Heidegger

MORE EXISTENTIAL CONCEPTS Believed in taking a leap of faith into a Christian life.

Believed this Christian faith would be the only thing to save an individual from despair.

JEAN-PAUL SARTRE(1905-1980)

Emphasize human freedom, choice and responsibility

Humans require a rational basis for their lives but are unable to achieve this, thus life is a futile passion

“To be is to do.” - Existential motto

“There is no reality except in action.” – Sartre

“In life man commits himself and draws his own portrait, outside of which there is nothing. No doubt this thought may seem harsh to someone who has not made a success of his life. But on the other hand, it helps people to understand that reality alone counts, and that dreams, expectations and hopes only serve to define a man as a broken dream, aborted hopes, and futile expectations.” - Sartre

MORE EXISTENTIAL CONCEPTS

Free will allows individuals to change

Even a refusal to choose is a choice

Few decisions are without negative consequences

Universe does NOT provide moral rules; they are constructed by humans and intended to promote responsibility for actionsTherefore, NO ONE should attempt to impose rules of conduct on anyone!

EXISTENTIALISTS DON’T BELIEVE IN

L ove B e au ty H o n or

A b s tra c t P rin c ip les

THE ABSURDIST THEORY

The universe has no rational direction or scheme.

It is meaningless and absurd.

full meaning of The Stranger.

Given: Life is meaningless.

Given: If we accept or acknowledge this, we risk falling into despair and depression.

Thus:

We create meaning for ourselves throughout our lives.

But:

We know this meaning we have created is meaningless, as we are the ones feeding ourselves on illusion, to keep from going insane at the reality of the meaninglessness of human existence.

Therefore:

We live ABSURD existences as we have created false meaning for ourselves, knowing this, and fooling ourselves.

So:

The trick is to accept the meaninglessness of life, but create meaning for us so life is NOT meaningless – and this is, in effect, absurd.

IRONYExistentialists cannot even agree on a definition of existentialism because it is an absurd idea.

WRAP-UP Write at least one thing about existentialism that you agree with. Explain.

Write at least two things that you disagree with. Explain.

Steve Martin:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lFWA1A9XFi8