Natasha M.

Quiones Jorge
Mrs. Erskine
English 111
28 October 2014
Making Sense Of A Senseless World
The sun is an orb that burns against the pale blue sky. Predictable and consistent, the fiery marble parallels the ever-so-human
necessity to define existence. These imperfect individuals scour the inner workings of their mind to hopefully elucidate their
unique purpose. They question the validity of their being against that of the natural universe and wonder what substantiates the
lives that have lived, will live, and are living. The mysteries they crave to unveil will remain disclosed for those possessing a
brain capable of processing lifes happenings and theses mysteries will be concurrently unavailable for the departed souls who
lack a stream of consciousness.

Emphasizing individual existence, freedom, and choice, existentialism is the philosophical view that claims humans possess the
power to define their own meaning in life by trying to make rational decisions despite living in an irrational universe. By
focusing on the absurdity of human existence and the feeling that there is no purposeful explanation at the core of existence,
existentialism certifies that there is no viable transcendent force in the universe and the only way to counter the nothingness that
logically ensues from such a secular assertion, is to discover meaning by embracing existence.

Because individuals are viewed as being free, they are deemed accountable for taking personal responsibility of themselves.
Since this burden of responsibility entails unavoidable angst, existentialism emphasizes action, freedom, and decision as being
pivotal rising above the essentially absurd condition of humanity otherwise characterized by suffering and inevitable death.

Similar to existentialism, nihilism enunciates that life is meaningless and thus all religious and moral principles are obsolete.
However, its important to note that existentialism proclaims that reality can only be defined the individual not social absolutes.
Hence, people make decisions based on what is meaningful to them, rather than what is rational.

Philosophers Sren Kierkegaard, Friedrich Nietzsche, Jean-Paul Sartre, Albert Camus, Franz Kafka, and many others established
the renowned school of thought identified as existentialism. They lived in the 19 th century and popularized the literary concepts
that revolved around dread, alienation, freedom, commitment, the absurd, boredom and nothingness.

Similar to the denominations that stemmed from Catholicism, existentialism birthed divergent interpretations. The primary
ideology accepted by all existentialists is how a human being is thrown into a concrete and otherwise unavoidable existence

that is unable to be thought away. Therefore existing precedes consciousness and becomes the ultimate reality. Simply put,
existence precedes essence, essence being the ascribed meaning to life, and can be summarized effectively by Sartre who states,
At first man is nothing. Only afterward will he be something, and he himself will have made what he will be. Views slightly
overlap and sway away from one another in more miniscule yet pertinent concepts. Kierkegaard viewed rationality as a tool used
to counter the fear they possessed of existing in the world. Sartre saw rationality as an attempt to impose structure on the
fundamentally irrational in order to reject the insecurity of life. Kierkegaard furthered the notion that individuals must decide
their own way without social objective standards. Its vital to remember that although each philosopher had their own take on
what existentialism consisted of, the core of the philosophy revolves around the freedom of choice in regards to believing or
rejecting a belief.

Existentialism originated following the melancholic world wars. The ruins and countless lives that were purposelessly lost
sparked the infamous movement that questioned the meaning behind what seemed meaningless.

While it may be difficult for some individuals to grasp the concept of existentialism, it may be easier to understand what it feels
like to suffer from an existential crisis. An existential crisis is the internal struggle that occurs following the loss of what one
considered being a central aspect to an individuals existence. For example, a professional football player considers himself as
defined by his profession; he is football. However, if this man suffered from an injury that rendered him unable to play, he would
become obsolete without what he previously found central to his identity.

Existentialism is a philosophical perspective adopted by a plethora of intellectual characters and renowned authors. By opening
up the door to a more modern approach to philosophy, existentialists influenced a new breed of thinkers and left room for more
philosophical approaches to develop in the western hemisphere.