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Existentialism is a philosophical movement that is generally considered a study that pursues meaning in existence and seeks value for the existing individual. Existentialism, unlike other fields of philosophy, does not treat the individual as a concept, and values individual subjectivity over objectivity. As a result, questions regarding the meaning of life and subjective experience are seen as being of paramount importance, above all other scientific and philosophical pursuits. Existentialism often is associated with anxiety, dread, awareness of death, and freedom. Famous existentialists include Sartre, Nietzsche, Kierkegaard, Camus, and Heidegger.
Existentialism emphasizes action, freedom, and decision as fundamental to human existence and is fundamentally opposed to the rationalist tradition and to positivism. That is, it argues against definitions of human beings either as primarily rational, knowing beings who relate to reality primarily as an object of knowledge, or for whom action can or ought to be regulated by rational principles, or as beings who can be defined in terms of their behavior as it looks to or is studied by others. More generally it rejects all of the Western rationalist definitions of being in terms of a rational principle or essence or as the most general feature that all existing things share in common. Existentialism tends to view human beings as subjects in an indifferent, objective, often ambiguous, and "absurd" universe in which meaning is not provided by the natural order, but rather can be created, however provisionally and unstably, by human beings' actions and interpretations.
Although there are certain common tendencies among existentialist thinkers, there are major differences and disagreements among them, and not all of them even affiliate themselves with or accept the validity of the term "existentialism". In German, the phrase Existenzphilosophie (philosophy of existence) is also used.
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@sportsguy33 (Re: Friday column: http://bit.ly/3TElpC) You forgot democracy, existentialism and the menage-a-trois.
JackPrinya (Jack Ruenprapan) Sat, 07 Nov 2009 03:59:59 -0000
@sportsguy33 (Re: Friday column: http://bit.ly/3TElpC) You forgot democracy, existentialism and the menage-a-trois.
In the mood to watch Ship of Fools tonight... Love that film. So much honesty in it, from the social commentary to the existentialism.
DrawingBlanks (Dan McEwen) Sat, 07 Nov 2009 03:27:59 -0000
In the mood to watch Ship of Fools tonight... Love that film. So much honesty in it, from the social commentary to the existentialism.
drinking tea with @djmal24 while discussing philosophy and existentialism
stephanief54 (Stephanie Fallara) Fri, 06 Nov 2009 23:15:06 -0000
drinking tea with @djmal24 while discussing philosophy and existentialism
@katie_allen I was going to reread a definition of existentialism to see if it was a joke I didn't understand.
meat2veg (martin dewar) Fri, 06 Nov 2009 22:14:35 -0000
@katie_allen I was going to reread a definition of existentialism to see if it was a joke I didn't understand.
@katie_allen Re:existentialism. Is that a joke?
meat2veg (martin dewar) Fri, 06 Nov 2009 21:51:51 -0000
@katie_allen Re:existentialism. Is that a joke?
Existentialism XKCD style http://icio.us/s0xlmj
vayalilrahul (vayalilrahul) Fri, 06 Nov 2009 18:16:23 -0000
Existentialism XKCD style http://icio.us/s0xlmj
Existentialism: A Primer - Existentialist resources with notes and commentary on individual thinkers.
Meta Description: [ A primer on existential philosophy. ]
Research: Existentialism - A review of its themes and influences.
Meta Description: [ Existentialism, philosophical movement or tendency, emphasizing individual existence, freedom, and choice, that influenced many diverse writers in the... ]
An Existential Philosopher's Museum - Many themes explored from an existential perspective: love, sexology, spirituality, Unitarian Universalism, medical ethics, death. Over 500 rooms to explore.
Meta Description: [ A living existential philosopher explores: love, sexology, spirituality, medical ethics, & death. ]
Existentialism and Human Emotions - Illustrated guide to Sartre's book.
500
Friesian - Existentialism - Summary of existential thought.
My Little Corner of Existentialism - A personal summary.
Society for Phenomenology and Existential Philosophy - Professional organization supporting philosophy inspired by continental European traditions. Call for papers, events calendar, and organization information.
500
The Existentialist's Home - Links to essays on individual thinkers.
Meta Description: [ Existentialism - What does it Mean? ]
The Philosophy of Existentialism - Existentialism at Adventures in Philosophy, a section of The Radical Academy.
The Realm Of Existentialism - An introduction, with phenomenology and analysis of various schools of thought.
Thinkers in Existentialism - Synopsis of the major existential philosophers.
Webring of Existentialism - Internet index of colinking pages.
Meta Description: [ Existentialism Webring
Philosophy - Jean-Paul Sartre, Albert Camus, Soren Kierkegaard, Gabriel Marcel, Maurice Merleau-Ponty, Simone de Beauvoir, Karl Barth, Karl Jasper, Martin Buber, Paul Tillich, ]
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