Post-Classical Philosophy

Existentialism

Existentialism is characterized by a focus on ethical-anthropological problems, particularly emphasizing the uniqueness of the individual and the irreplaceability of their existence. The key category of this movement is existence, often contrasted with essence. While essence denotes the common human nature, existence represents the specific manifestation of an individual’s being, resulting from their own self-determination and the construction of a unique life path. Existentialists assert that humans are free beings, yet ultimately, this freedom translates into the necessity of making life choices in a world beyond their control.

The dramatic nature of the human situation is reflected in the categories of absurdity of existence, despair, loneliness, suffering, and death. This leads to a focus on ethical issues: freedom, choice, responsibility, and the search for the meaning of life, among others. The existentialists' engagement with other spheres of philosophy and culture—including epistemological, aesthetic, and religious realms—stems from a quest for answers to foundational ethical questions. Existentialism is recognized not only as a philosophical movement but also as a literary trend, as the exploration of moral dilemmas central to existentialist thought can also manifest in literary works.

The roots of existentialism can be traced back to the 19th century, particularly to the concepts of the Danish thinker Søren Kierkegaard (1813-1855). He critiqued the prevailing German idealism of his time, especially the ideas of G.W.F. Hegel, for its excessive focus on the pursuit of universality and neglect of the personal. Previous philosophy, notably Hegelian, often regarded humans primarily as thinking beings whose intellect can comprehend the objective laws of the world. Objective truth is universal, shared by all humanity, as it must be acknowledged by every rational being. However, humanity cannot be reduced to merely a bearer of universal, shared capabilities such as the capacity for thought, for each person is a unique individual who exists here and now. In making life decisions, an individual relies not only on objective truth but also on a subjective truth grounded in their unique inner experiences, which resist objectification.

Whereas Hegel viewed the historical process as the result of necessity and objective laws, Kierkegaard emphasized the role of individual choice. A person finds themselves in a situation of choice, often discovering that objective truth is insufficient for making decisions, thus preventing one from wholly relying on it. On one hand, individuals are free beings, not mere mechanisms for realizing absolute ideas or other general laws; on the other hand, they are condemned to constant self-determination and making life choices fraught with risk and uncertainty. As a religious thinker, Kierkegaard sought a way out of the existential predicament through a commitment to faith and a turn toward God.

A renewed interest in existentialism emerged in the 20th century, with its development in the works of German thinkers such as Martin Heidegger (1889-1976) and Karl Jaspers (1883-1969), alongside French philosophers like Gabriel Marcel (1889-1973), Jean-Paul Sartre (1905-1980), and Albert Camus (1913-1960).

Within existentialism, two primary directions are often distinguished: religious and atheistic. Kierkegaard belongs to the religious branch, while prominent figures of the 20th century in this tradition include Karl Jaspers, Martin Buber, and Gabriel Marcel. In religious existentialism, the quest for answers to life's existential questions is pursued through religious perspectives. God is viewed as the source of eternal existence, offering hope for overcoming the absurdity of this world. However, such hope rests on precarious ground; centuries of religious critique have shown that the question of God’s existence remains open, making faith in the divine potentially futile should God not exist. Consequently, several thinkers posited that individuals should not indulge in illusions by relying on belief in something transcendent, particularly God. Such views are characteristic of atheistic existentialism, with notable representatives including Sartre and Camus. They argue that individuals must rely solely on themselves to confront existential issues. In this approach, the challenges of human finitude and absurdity become particularly acute, unsoftened by hopes for the transcendent, while simultaneously, this variant of existentialism more consistently emphasizes the role of individual choice.

Let us delve deeper into the main representatives of these directions.

Karl Jaspers noted that the rationalist worldview is merely a rationalization of human spiritual aspirations. He emphasized the impossibility of objectifying the essence of humanity. Although the social sciences provide certain useful insights into human beings, their essential characteristics remain a mystery, inaccessible to understanding. At the existential level, individuals transcend established routines. Jaspers developed the concept of "limit situations"—cases associated with profound life upheavals, such as facing death or experiencing a sudden change in one's life path. In these situations, individuals confront the fragility and unreliability of their existence, their powerlessness before circumstances. Daily concerns lose their significance, revealing true existence shaped by one’s own individuality. Ultimately, the individual touches upon transcendence—what lies beyond their existence and the world. Jaspers associated transcendence with God.

Heidegger also highlighted the limitations of rational, scientific knowledge. Science aims to uncover the objective and universal, neglecting the individuality of the human experience. It only investigates what is present (the empirical world). However, beyond the present, there is also being, which manifests as the immediate reality of human existence, experienced directly rather than understood rationally. Human finitude and limitation prompted Heidegger to engage with the problem of time, a key theme in his philosophy. It is precisely this finitude that lends meaning to human existence. Another significant concept in Heidegger’s philosophy is "care," wherein the individual recognizes their finitude and simultaneously their freedom to choose, necessitating attention to the realization of their being's potential.

In Jean-Paul Sartre’s philosophy, the central problem is freedom. Humans are condemned to be free, perpetually faced with choices. Even when confronted with circumstances beyond their control, individuals can choose their attitude toward those circumstances and their mode of action. Human nature is not predetermined; rather, it is an indeterminate substance, an open project that forms itself through the process of decision-making and action. The ability to choose is the defining characteristic of humanity, distinguishing it from other natural objects. The world lacks inherent meaning, compelling individuals to ascribe meaning to it themselves. Sartre’s ideas are often critiqued for absolutizing freedom.

Albert Camus, like Sartre, was not only a philosopher but also a writer. For him, the crucial question was that of the meaning of human life. Humans are finite beings who, upon realizing their mortality, confront the absurdity of their own existence. In a modern secularized world, individuals cannot rely on God, leading them to recognize that ultimately their efforts may prove futile: is life worth living if one must inevitably die? A central philosophical concern for Camus was the problem of suicide—whether it is possible to find meaning in a senseless, absurd world. Sometimes, Camus’s philosophy is referred to as the philosophy of the absurd, as its leitmotif is the analysis of the human condition in an absurd world.