Reflection XIII: Final Countdown 

12/3/2019 
What is existentialism? My opinion on this branch of philosophy has altered dramatically 
throughout this course.To be perfectly honest, I can’t put a single definition of the term 
“existentialism.” Some people define it as “the existence of the individual person as a free 
and responsible agent,” others say that we don’t have true freedom and existentia;ism is 
realizing that life is meaningless. Even different existentialist philosophers have 
conflicting theories on life and the definition of existentialism. Some believe that we 
can only find meaning in life by giving it purpose. Others believe that this passion is 
nothing more than a false sense of being; none of it will truly matter in the end. You 
know what I believe? I believe they are all right in their own weird ways. There is no right 
or wrong when it comes to this study. Existentialism is an attitude; you can’t learn or 
study it, you find yourself in it. The second you take a step back, look at yourself, look at 
the world around you, and you find out that you don’t accept it, you adopt the existential 
attitude. Solomon claims that the average, non-philosophical, man is more in line with 
that of an ape than he is with deep thinkers such as Descarte or even Aristotle. 
I believe this school of thought is more popular and relevant in today’s society 
than it ever has been in the past. We have numerous media accounts that give the audience 
a chance to truly look at the grand spectrum of our lives and the lives of those around us. 
These new outlets are bringing about new generations of existentialists; whether they 
acknowledge it or not. The Joker fictional character is a perfect example of a popular media 
outlet bringing existentialism to the mainstream world. The Joker, has spent his life 
playing by the rules of society, only to be shunned as an outcast, no matter how hard he 
tried to fit in. One day, he reflected on his life, quite literally as he was looking in a 
mirror, and realized that it was all meaningless. He realized that life does not matter; 
what we do is not important in the grand scheme of the universe. He then starts pursuing 
his own passion, giving his life meaning, by making himself laugh or smile. “You’ll find 
that life is worthwhile if you just smile.” He somehow manages to adopt numerous 
different existential philosophers in the class; some weird hybrid of Nietzsche and 
Kierkegaard. The point I am trying to make is this; we encounter existential teachings in 
our everyday life. The difference between a man and an ubermensch is whether or not we 
truly are able to realize and question our being, Da-sein, the world around us, and create 
our own values; our own morality. So, to sum up the class, I personally define 
existentialism, or the existential attitude, as something that we all possess; the ability to 
truly look at ourselves and the world through lenses that are not conditioned by the 
outside world. We all have the ubermensch potential, it is just a matter of whether or not 
we realize it.