What is...

[Burbot]

What is Existentialism? I hae yet to find a religion, or philisophy that conforms to my views of the world, universe and beyond... THanks for and help, and please try not to fill it up with technical jargon...

Thank You...

Peace be with You

[TheHammerSpeaks]

I'm a little surprised that no one has responded to this thread yet. Perhaps it's because existentialism is so difficult to define. Each existential philosopher puts his own unique spin on the basic concepts. There are atheist, Christian, and, in one case, Jewish varieties. Notable existentialists include Kiekegaard (my personal favourite), Nietzsche (another favourite), Buber, Sartre (overrated), Jaspers, Marcel (another favouite), and many, many others.


Most existentialists put a heavy emphasis on free will (except for Nietzsche, who was a determinist) and the terrifying amount of freedom human beings have. Life is pointless, and it is up to us to give it meaning. Hence, concepts such as angst and dread are discussed at length. Phenomenology is a closely related philosophy. But any summary I give would be insufficient. If you want to really get a grasp of existentialism, I'd read Fear and Trembling by Kierkegaard, followed by Twilight of the Idols, by Nietzsche. Both are very short and shouldn't take you too long to get through.

[Stalkz]

I PM'd him some information. So word. Someone responded :)

[chickenchoker]

You should post your knowledge for all to see. He may not have been the only one wondering.


cc

[moonbeam]

i am wondering. help?:-)

[Diamond Gord]

Try Here;
http://www.tameri.com/csw/exist/

[thumontico]

My belief of what existentialism is...

Existentialism is rationality. The majority of the world believes in religion and God because they fear. The existentialist realizes the lack of logic involved in such a belief and releases his mind from this mental bondage of conformity.

The existentialist tends to perpetuate his individualism. Realizing the morals and ethics of man should be considered obsolete, the righteous existentialist will create a set of subjective personal morals and ethics by which he lives authentically.

Whether seen as 'good' or 'evil' in the eyes of society, individualism is essential. Conformity is not necessarily a lack of individualism, however, I find it is in most cases.

Acknowledge that you live through other's perceptions and more importantly one must realize that this does not dictate one's actions. Emphasize subjectivity. It is bliss.

You are responsible for your actions. You are a being that makes its own choices.

Realize there exists no determinism. What you are today has no baring on what you will be tomorrow, necessarily.

Sorry, no afterlife, better luck next time (or not). Possibly that is easier to understand when you take a step back and consider whether such a concept would be rational. You have this one life to live, do what you want with it.

Live, its all you can do.

Consider how much you will care when you become unconscious indefinitely.

[boringtree]

yep, i believe its basically something that happens when thoughts, feelings an emotions become somewhat liberated from the clutch of instinctual thought.
as we all know, all life is driven by a basic package of survival tools.. reproduction, health.. all that stuff. this essentially has a larger bearing on our personallity than some might like to think.
for example, the concept of god and life after death is only respected by humans because we have come along so far in evolution that our instincts now require us to worry about our survival even after we are dead. this could be applied to every aspact of human thought and when you do so it doesnt leave a very pretty picture.

an so i believe that existentialism could be defined as a thought process that is working outside the regular chain of presripted genetic idealisms.

[thumontico]

the concept of god and life after death is only respected by humans because we have come along so far in evolution that our instincts now require us to worry about our survival even after we are dead.
Interesting point.

[TomDijon]

ahahahahaha all your muddled up words do is add something to existentialism, but don't you get it? that's not existential, that's something more, exactly what existentialism is NOT about. you want to know what existentialism is? look around you... that is existentialism...

[thumontico]

My belief of what existentialism is...
That is what existentialism is for me.

I am not certain that Doestoevsky was actually an existentialist.

Kierkegaard admitted he chose to be faithful to a Christian God despite the lack of logic involved.

Nietzsche said something like "Kierkegaard succeeded in that he lived his life authentically." and he did. So he should be commended for that.

I do not know much about the others you listed.

[thumontico]

Doestoevsky was not an existentialist. There is a difference between what one believes and what characters of his writings believe.

[boringtree]

Doestoevsky was not an existentialist. There is a difference between what one believes and what characters of his writings believe.i disagree, hugely. i would definetly consider doestoevsky an existential novelist. didnt he use his own problems with gambling, debt, and the rest as the basis of his writings?

[thumontico]

I don't know why you would think I would be upset.

Or that other people would have direct baring on my belief.

Any person, existentialist or not, that believes in God is an illogical and irrational minded person.

Good day, bandwagon karl.

[boringtree]

"Any person, existentialist or not, that believes in God is an illogical and irrational minded person"

people who believe there is no higher power or entity are also illogical and irrationally minded. logic and rationality require some form of begining and conclusion in order for things to make sense. 2+2=4. you cannot take the center of a question and assume thats the answer.

both sides have there own pitholes

[forest_pixie84]

I've checked out existensalism before, and i think the thing with it is, it's core belief is everything is pointless. Asking "why are we here?" i think you'd have to actually ask the creator to get stable answer on that one. And since we get no verbal answer reguarding how, then there just isn't an answer, so no point. If your having trouble finding a religion that suits you, why not just not pick one at all. If you call yourself one, you seperate yourself from others, a lot of people will imediatly form some sort of off view of you, based on steriotypes or whatnot, due to the name you've chosen for your beliefs (your religion). ( for me, That just more trouble than i'm willing to deal with) I haven't heard of (well yet anyway) any religion that says, you will suffer unless you call your beliefs by it's name.

Peace & Love

[boringtree]

off topic but, i have never asked myself for an overall meaning. it doesnt concern me in the slightest wether humans have eveolved for a reason, to reach a goal or point of understanding. i could never understand why this rattled people so much

[forest_pixie84]

okay monkey shit, i'll check again, but keep in mind, before i even gave my oppinion, i said "i think..." i don't study it exstinsively. I don't really care

[thumontico]

karl youre a jackass

and theres nothing wrong with nihilism

[forest_pixie84]

karl's probably got some problems to deal with. He copes by lashing out on unsuspecting pixies.

[thumontico]

the acceptance of reality

[thumontico]

they don't accept it - they don't care about it -there is a differince - t
They may not care as a result of acceptance of reality and do not need to make up stories to fit their beliefs.

[ColonelForbin44]

[QUOTE=TheHammerSpeaks]Notable existentialists include Kiekegaard (my personal favourite), Nietzsche (another favourite), Buber, Sartre (overrated), Jaspers, Marcel (another favouite), and many, many others.
QUOTE]
Don't forget Albert Camus (my favorite)! One of the most profound writers i've ever read. Just read The Stranger, that will give you a good feeling for existentialism. Damn Camus was a genious.

[thumontico]

What is it that you have against Nietzsche?