Existentialism: origins, concepts, and debates

Definition and purpose of existentialism

Existentialism is a family of philosophical views that examines the human individual’s struggle to live authentically in the face of the apparent absurdity or incomprehensibility of existence. It focuses on meaning, purpose, and value, and highlights experiences and attitudes such as existential crises, angst, courage, and freedom. Although existentialist thinkers differ in many details, they share an emphasis on the human subject and on confronting concrete lived experience rather than abstract, overly systematic philosophy. The purpose of existentialism is to clarify how people can determine their own lives and meanings through freedom, responsibility, and deliberate choice. A central tenet is that personal freedom and individual responsibility are essential to self-discovery and to shaping life’s meaning. Existentialism is often associated with 19th- and 20th-century European philosophers (e.g., Kierkegaard, Nietzsche, Heidegger, Sartre, de Beauvoir, Jaspers, Marcel, and others), and it became especially prominent in the mid-20th century through figures such as Sartre, whose framing emphasized that existence precedes essence and that individuals define themselves through what they do and choose.

0/2 modes complete

Etymology and coinage of the term

0/2 modes complete