EXISTENTIALISM

WHAT IS EXISTENTIALISM?
Existentialism is a 20th Century philosophical mode of thinking which
is centered on the idea of human freedom & the responsibility to
create the essence of oneself. It celebrates human subjectivity i.e. the
human personal experience which defines what truth is in the level of
how it is lived & chosen by the individual against the notion of an
objective abstract truth. It celebrates life amidst ones
acknowledgment of its absurdities & usual paradoxes. The message it
brings is the utmost freedom on how to become who you are.
A 20th Century philosophy that is centered upon the analysis of human
existence specifically of individual human beings & regards human
existence as not exhaustively describable or understandable in an
'abstract' Idealistic or scientific terms. It stresses the freedom &
responsibility of the individual, the irreducible uniqueness of an ethical
& religious situation, and usually the isolation & subjective experiences
of an individual therein like anxiety, guilt, dread, anguish.
Existentialists:
Soren Kierkegaard
Fredrich Nietzsche
Jean Paul Sartre
 Precursorers:
are people who were involved or have created
something before others too early in time
Kierkegaard and Nietzsche are precursorers to
Sartre
their ideas lead to the creation of existentialism
Sartre looked up to them for ideas towards
existentialism
Soren Kierkegaard
considered to be the first existentialist
philosopher
his philosophical work deals with the problems of
how one lives as an individual (mostly displays the
importance of personal choice and commitment)
most of his work deals with the art of Christian
love
his psychological work explored the feelings and
emotions of humans when dealing with life
choices
distinction between objective and subjective
truth was a major aspect in his philosophy
Fredrich Nietzsche
was a German philosopher, essayist and cultural critic
his work was about truth, morality, power, history,
aesthetics, the meaning of existence and etc..
his work created a great influence on Western
philosophy and intellectual history
spoke mainly of "the death of God"
claims that human being must create his/her own
identity through self-realization not by relying on a
God or a soul
Published work:
"The Birth of Tragedy"
"Human, All too Human"
"Dawn"
Jean Paule Sartre
was a french philosopher and author of plays,
screenplays, biographies, novels and literary and
political criticism
his focus revolved around human freedom
his work explores the connections between ethics,
truth and ignorance
also explores the bad faith among men and women
who chose to rely on fate and destiny instead of
hard work
Main points of Existentialism
WE ARE BORN WITHOUT A PRE-DETERMINED NATURE
WE CAN ACT INDEPENDENTLY OF OUTSIDE FACTORS
WE CREATE OUR NATURE THROUGH OUR ACTIONS
(DECISIONS)
WE CREATE OUR VALUE SYSTEM THROUGH OUR
CHOICES
 4 Themes of Existentialism
INDIVIDUAL
The individual is a theme prevalent
in every existential philosopher as
pondering one’s own individual
existence is the core essence of the
movement.
BEING
Being is often an accompanied
attribute to the self and is
pondered alongside the self.
GOD
God is necessarily pondered in the
philosophies of existentialism
because of the enormous effect that
religion or God makes on a person’s
life’s meaning and significance
TRUTH
Truth which is often seen to be a
subjective phenomenon, is often
times recurring in the works of
existentialists.
 TWO BASIC CONCEPTS OF
EXISTENTIALISM

Existentialism is a
philosophical movement Existentialism is
that views human
existence as having a also an outlook, or
set of underlying themes a perspective, on
and characteristics, life that pursues
such as anxiety, dread, the question of the
freedom, awareness of meaning of life or
death, and
consciousness of the meaning of
existing. . existence
 TWO BRANCHES OF EXISTENTIALISM
ATHEISTIC
EXISTENTIALISM
Atheistic existentialism refers to an
existential way of excluding any
transcendental, metaphysical, or religious
beliefs from the philosophical thought. Still,
it can share the element of anguish and
defeat for human finitude and limitations
with religious existentialism (like what is
typically found in Kierkegaard's works).
Atheistic existentialism is an independent
type of existentialism, though, with little
relation to metaphysical existentialism
(mostly through phenomenology and
Heidegger's works) and even less with
religious existentialism. Instead, it is quite
similar to philosophical atheism.
AGNOSTIC
EXISTENTIALISM
Agnostic existentialism is a type
of existentialism which makes no
claim to know whether or not
there is a "greater picture";
rather, it simply asserts that the
greatest truth is that which the
individual chooses to act upon. It
feels that to know the greater
picture, whether there is one or
not, is impossible, or impossible so
far, or of little value. Like the
Christian existentialist, the
agnostic existentialist believes
existence is subjective.
Thank
You!