I've been interested in Existentialism since my latest doubts about religion, although there's some reasons to be optimistic about a return of faith it's not going be certain as it was, anyway the main themes I've discerned are:-
- Acknowledging/Living with the finality of death
- Living deliberatively/making choices, knowing consequences, living with them
- Personal responsibility, although (and I'm thinking particularly of Satre when he was in his socialist/Marxist phase) not denying determinism either
The last two are closely related. Would anyone as interested in the topic concur? I've got to say that I think existentialism is most interesting when its at its most aphoristic or literary as opposed to straying into philosophising in a more direct way or psychologising either.
Is existentialism a source of consolation or strength? It seems to have been for Nietzsche or Camus (though dont know if either would have accepted the label of Existentialist) who seemed to advocate a tragic optimism (Nietzsche) or revolt against the absurdity of life (Camus) but it could also be construed as direy or dismal and depressing. What do you think?
- Acknowledging/Living with the finality of death
- Living deliberatively/making choices, knowing consequences, living with them
- Personal responsibility, although (and I'm thinking particularly of Satre when he was in his socialist/Marxist phase) not denying determinism either
The last two are closely related. Would anyone as interested in the topic concur? I've got to say that I think existentialism is most interesting when its at its most aphoristic or literary as opposed to straying into philosophising in a more direct way or psychologising either.
Is existentialism a source of consolation or strength? It seems to have been for Nietzsche or Camus (though dont know if either would have accepted the label of Existentialist) who seemed to advocate a tragic optimism (Nietzsche) or revolt against the absurdity of life (Camus) but it could also be construed as direy or dismal and depressing. What do you think?