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Existentialism

Existentialism is a philosophical view that emphasizes individual existence, freedom, and choice. It originated in the 19th century and has three major themes: the importance of individual existence and determining one's own meaning in life, the absurdity and lack of inherent meaning in the world, and individual freedom of choice and responsibility. Influential existentialist philosophers like Sartre and Camus spread these ideas through literature and plays in the 20th century. Existentialism has influenced art, literature, psychology, and some university philosophy departments, expressing the view that life only has meaning determined by individuals and society.

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154 views

Existentialism

Existentialism is a philosophical view that emphasizes individual existence, freedom, and choice. It originated in the 19th century and has three major themes: the importance of individual existence and determining one's own meaning in life, the absurdity and lack of inherent meaning in the world, and individual freedom of choice and responsibility. Influential existentialist philosophers like Sartre and Camus spread these ideas through literature and plays in the 20th century. Existentialism has influenced art, literature, psychology, and some university philosophy departments, expressing the view that life only has meaning determined by individuals and society.

Uploaded by

Khan Zahidul Islam Rubel
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Holloran 1

Jack Holloran
Mr. Watson
English IV 5th Period
23 April 2015
The Philosophical View of Existentialism
Existentialism is a philosophical view that has existed since the late 19 th
century in literature, film, and theatre. This particular philosophy emphasizes
individual existence, freedom, and choice. It also holds an individual’s existence as
their pre-eminent truth and reality. Existentialism has three major themes which
stress the importance of the individual, meaning and absurdity, and the freedom of
choice. Philosophers from over one hundred years ago wrote about new beliefs
saying that there is nothing that controls an individual’s existence except for
themselves with the responsibility and freedom they hold. Existentialism is still
around today and has had a strong impact on society since the idea was founded. It
is the search and journey for true self and true personal meaning in life (Irvine).

The earliest existentialistic beliefs appeared in Christian and Buddhist


writings as far back as the 17 th century (Litt). French philosopher and
mathematician Blaise Pascal believed that without god, life would be meaningless
and boring which later became a key point in the existentialistic view of life. Many
consider the father of existentialism to be Soren Kierkegaard who was a Danish
philosopher and writer a century later. Though he never used the term
existentialism, he believed that each individual is solely responsible for giving
meaning to their own life by living free spirited and with passion. Though
Kieregaard had a big impact on existentialism, it wasn’t until the following years
after World War II that it started to become more popular. The most influential
existentialists of this time period were Jean-Paul Sartre and Albert Camus
(Mastin). Both wrote bestselling novels as well as theatrical texts and plays about
existentialism. Sartre believed that there is no explanation of how or why we exist
and that the human condition is a paradox. He once said, “There are no innocent
victims in war”. By this, he means that we must act in good faith to acknowledge
our freedom. His work is considered to be the first works in “modern”
existentialism. With the work of Sartre and many more philosophers to come after
him, existentialism became widely known and its themes are still recognized in
literature, film, and plays today.

Existentialism has three major themes that support its beliefs. The first of
these themes is based on the importance of the individual. The main question in
this case is what does it mean to exist as a human being? This theme’s answer
varies between philosophers and writers since all of their ideas are slightly
Holloran 2

different. Though most believe it should be left up to the individual to decide from
the freedoms they have. The second major theme deals with meaning and
absurdity. This means we give no logical purpose or sense to life and there is no
meaning in the world except the meaning we give it ourselves (Burnham). What
this theme is trying to express is that anything can happen to anyone. Whether it be
something good or bad, it could potentially send them into direct confrontation
with the absurd. “The absurd” is an idea has been prominent in literature
throughout history. The act of suicide also relates to the ideas of the absurd as well.
It has been said that the possibility of suicide makes all humans existentialists. The
third and final major theme of existentialism is an individual’s freedom of choice.
There are no forces that determine the person someone becomes or the action they
take. This means that an individual has complete freedom to be the person they
want to be. With this freedom, however, comes a great amount of responsibility.
An individual must learn to accept this freedom by making responsible and rational
decisions to push themselves forward in life. These three major ideas form together
to make what is known as the modern existentialistic view.

Existentialism grew popular during hard years following the Great


Depression and World War II. It has influenced the making of film, theatre and
literature, and shows a different philosophical look at life (Litt). Existentialism had
a major impact on visual arts during the expressionism movement in Germany at
the beginning of the 20th century. Many artists of expressionism showed forms of
existentialism in their works since they were closely related. In recent times, it has
had the largest impact on psychologists. Though it isn’t a popular way of thought
today, many psychologists believe that having an existentialist approach when
helping their patients will make them have a better feeling of complete freedom.
Existential psychology allows for an individual to choose for themselves freely and
find meaning in their lives through their own eyes. . Existentialism has been
previously viewed as a form of psychoanalysis due to the fact that most people
believing that it is abnormal and incorrect (Mastin). The existentialist perspective
has also contributed to the departments of certain universities such as Duquesne,
Seattle, and the University of Dallas (Burnham). These three universities are
interestingly enough all catholic colleges. Though existentialism isn’t as
widespread today as it once was in the past, it has most definitely influenced
certain ideas and believes in our culture. The greatest effect it has had on our
overall society is that it expresses the already latent view that life is worth living
because it only has meaning to society and the individual itself (Kohn).
Since the late 19th century, existentialism has been a part of society all the
way through the modern era. This type of philosophical view has three major
themes that show what it stands for. These themes include the importance of the
Holloran 3

individual, meaning and absurdity, and the freedom of choice. It emphasizes


individual existence, freedom, and using that freedom to make the right choices.
Existentialism is the search and journey for true self and true personal meaning in
life (Irvine). Early philosophers and writers such as Jean-Paul Sartre and Albert
Camus spread the ideas of existentialism through bestselling novels, plays and
theatrical texts. They were very influential with their works and are part of the
reason why it is viewed the way it is today. Existentialism has had a definite
impact on the way many writers and psychologists view things and is still being
recognized today.

Works Cited
Burnham, Douglas. "Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy." Internet Encyclopedia
of Philosophy. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Apr. 2015
"Existentialism." AllAboutPhilosophy.org. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Apr. 2015.
Irvine, Andrew. "Existentialism." Existentialism. N.p., 1998. Web. 24 Apr. 2015.
Kohn, Alfie. "Existentialism Here and Now." Alfie Kohn. N.p., 02 July 1984.
Web. 24 Apr. 2015.
Litt, Sheldon. "The Impact of Existential Philosophy on Modern Psychology."
N.p., May 1999. Web. 23Apr. 2015.
Holloran 4

Mastin, Luke. "Existentialism - By Branch / Doctrine - The Basics of Philosophy."


Existentialism - The Basics of Philosophy. N.p., 2008. Web. 24 Apr. 2015.

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