Tuesday, October 9, 2012 'POP'- "French Existentialism"
This morning I woke and the words, "French Existentialism" were presented to me. What does this mean? I didn't know... I have an idea what "existentialism" means and it may have to do with essential 'beingness'... our existence in this moment.... So I 'googled' "French Existentialism" to see what might 'pop' out at me ...
Not having the time or desire to explore all of the results, here are a few tidbits that popped out at me...
- "...the starting point ... must be the experiences of the individual... 'authenticity', is necessary to understand human existence..."
- "...'Authenticity', in the context of existentialism, is being true to one's own personality, spirit or character ..."
- "...the importance of personal experience and responsibility and the demands that they make on the individual, who is seen as a free agent ..."
- "...people are entirely free and thus responsible for what they make of themselves...."
So, what does "French Existentialism" bring to me this day?
I think we are all familiar with the ideas of freedom and responsibility... and it seems they are both related inextricably to our authenticity as "human beings"...
We exist... we are here... we are aware at some level of our "beingness"...
Self reflection and reflection in general is a big aspect of "who we are". We do not need to have advanced degrees in philosophy or theology or psychology to look at the subject of our inquiry... our own being, experience, the phenomena that is 'self'... with all its interactions and dynamics in this present moment... beyond the theories and beliefs and what others have said...
And my life experience tells me that sometimes we are aware in different ways than at other times. For instance, if we are identified with certain feeling states, such as frustration or fear, we tend to see the world through a different lens... and may even later say, "Oh, I wasn't being myself."
Which 'self' are we... Who is the observing self that notices when we are "out-of-sync" and "not ourselves"?
We are returning to the question of "Who am I?" Who is the 'authentic self' or the 'less-authentic self'?
What is the difference between responding and reacting?
What does freedom have to do with "who we are"?
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For Your Info:
A few names associated with "French and Existentialism"...
Gabriel Honore Marcel... is said to have coined the term "Existentialism" but did not use it for his own philosophy of existence... "Harmony, for Marcel, was to be sought through 'secondary reflection'... characterized by 'wonder and astonishment' and open to the 'presence' of other people and of God rather than merely to "information" about them..." Marcel converted to Catholicism while others where not as interested in organized religion telling people what to 'believe'... it seems a bit ironical that Marcel would turn to a form of religion that was intent upon telling others what to 'think' or 'believe'...
Jean-Paul Sartre, Albert Camus, Simone de Beauvoir
Others: Soren Kierkegaard, Friedrich Nietzsche, Fyodor Dostoyevsky, Martin Buber, Paul Tillich, Karl Jaspers ..."Kierkegaard's knight of faith and Nietzsche's Ubermensch are representative of people who exhibit Freedom..."
In Psychology... Otto Rank, Ludwig Binswanger, Viktor Frankl, Rollo May, Emmy van Deurzen...
