EXISTENTIALISM Jean-Paul Sartre & Simone de Beauvoir

Introduction to Existentialism - i We will study two twentieth century Existentialists –Jean-Paul Sartre[ ] –Simone de Beauvoir [ ] These two philosophers were close friends and writing partners Their philosophical beliefs led both of them to work for social and political change

Introduction to Existentialism - ii Existentialism is one of the best known schools of philosophy –It began in Europe but quickly spread to the U.S.A. –It inspired many readers to become politically active

Introduction to Existentialism - iii Existentialism holds that all meaning is created by humans –the individual must therefore assume responsibility for who she is (her own meaning) what she will become (her goals or “fate”) all humanity (the meanings she ascribes to others) Her creation of meaning (what she and others claim is true of the world, ‘truth-claims’)

Introduction to Existentialism - iv Existentialism is concerned with –How to act under conditions of limited knowledge –The ways in which human consciousness creates meaning Existentialism is marked by –A critical analysis of epistemological, political, and social practices –An emphasis on human freedom and responsibility

Introduction to Existentialism - v Existentialism holds that the individual must assume responsibility for who she is what she will become all humanity the creation of meaning

Introduction to Existentialism - vi Existentialism has its roots in the 19th century in the works of –Soren Kierkegaard [ ] Christian Existentialist Developed the idea of “a leap of faith” –Friedrich Nietzsche [ ] Atheist Existentialist Developed the idea that human nature is paradoxical –We are rational beings (traditional philosophy) –We are also passional beings (creative, irrational)

Introduction to Existentialism - vii Soren Kierkegaard Was a Christian Existentialist He argued that Knowledge of God’s existence is beyond the limits of human knowledge Therefore, we can never know whether or not there is a God

Introduction to Existentialism - viii According to Kierkegaard Faith is fundamentally irrational It is a choice, a “leap of faith” It is not something that can be justified by reason or logic

Introduction to Existentialism - ix Friedrich Nietzsche Was an Atheist Existentialist He argued that Religion is a human invention Faith is a form of denial: it is ‘sub-human’

Introduction to Existentialism – x According to Nietzsche: God / Religion gives people an excuse to not take responsibility For their actions For the consequences of their actions Humans alone are responsible for everything they do The ‘over-man’ knows this

Introduction to Existentialism - xi Two 20 th century existentialists –Jean-Paul Sartre Most famous for his book Being and Nothingness Argued for the importance of ‘existential angst” –Simone de Beauvoir Does an existential analysis of Woman and Gender Her book The Second Sex is considered “a bible of the feminist movement”

Sartre – i Jean-Paul Sartre Is one of the most famous philosophers of the twentieth century Made “existentialism” a household word in his native France Is best known for his book Being and Nothingness

Sartre – ii In Being and Nothingness Sartre argues that To understand ourselves we must understand the reality of our death Death is the consequence of existing in time Time is always moving forward Therefore, every choice we make, once made, cannot be undone

Sartre – iii The significance of this is –Every choice is all important –Every choice is unique –Every choice is free and undetermined by the past The past no longer exists We choose in the present, a present which instantly dissolves Our choices are made in light of the future

Sartre – iv Finally, the recognition of the fleeting and unchangeable nature of our choices –Leads to anxiety or ‘existential dread’ –Reveals that we are totally responsible for the consequences of our choices, because Our past and our past choices do not determine us We are free in every moment to make new choices No one can be held responsible for our choices but ourselves

Existentialism and Humanism – i In Existentialism and Humanism, Sartre Tries to explain existentialism to non- philosophers Gives examples of how Existentialists view everyday occurrences Defends existentialism against certain charges & objections

Existentialism and Humanism – ii Important concepts and terms Existence precedes essence Traditional philosophers believe that there are eternal, unchanging, pre-existing essences In other words, the meanings or concepts we possess are learned Existentialists believe that essences can only come into being after the things that they describe have come into existence In other words, we create the meanings and concepts we possess, we don’t discover them pre-made and already existing in the world

Existentialism and Humanism – iii Immanence A mode of being in the world Facticity or Throwness Consciousness, simply being “man first of all exists, encounters himself, surges up in the world” Transcendence A mode of being in the world Self-overcoming Self-consciousness, becoming Active engagement in projects of meaning “[man] defines himself …he will be what he makes of himself”

Existentialism and Humanism - iv Subjectivity/Subjectivism The fact that all action and all thought originates The freedom of the human subject The fact that “man cannot pass beyond human subjectivity”

Existentialism and Humanism -v Choice Anguish: the mood in which one makes choices. The awareness of responsibility for one’s choices Abandonment: the awareness that there is no one who can tell one what the right or wrong choice is Despair: the recognition that I am only what I make of myself – there is no pre- existing “me” only the me that I create

Existentialism and Humanism – vi Examples that Illustrate these Ideas The paper-knife Illustrates existence precedes essence Sartre’s student Illustrates anguish and abandonment The Jesuit Illustrates despair

Existentialism and Humanism – vii The five criticisms of Existentialism that Sartre rejects It leads to despair and inaction It is a bourgeois philosophy It emphasizes only what is bad in human nature It ignores the solidarity of humankind It denies the seriousness of human affairs

Beauvoir – i Simone de Beauvoir was also famous in her time –Beauvoir received her Ph.D. in Philosophy –In addition to publishing works of philosophy, Beauvoir also published many novels and essays –She won France’s premier literary prize for one of her “existential novels” –She wrote the first major work of Feminist Philosophy, The Second Sex

Beauvoir – ii In all of her work one can see the influence of the existentialist belief in total freedom and total responsibility Her literary characters are often placed into situations where they must choose but have no way of knowing what the ‘right’ choice is These choices are thus accompanied by “existential dread” These novels serve as illustrations of what it might be like to live as an Existentialist

The Second Sex – i The Second Sex was first published in 1949, In France The Kinsey Report on male sexuality came out, in America, shortly after this An American publisher, seeing the title of Beauvoir’s book, thought it was a kind of Kinsey Report for Women She therefore hired a Zoology professor to translate it

The Second Sex– ii This professor, H.M. Parshley –Was an expert on human reproduction –Had translated other academic works in French into English Parshley soon realized the error –This was a work of philosophy, not biology –He asked the publisher to hire a philosopher to do the translation

The Second Sex–iii The publisher, Knopf (Alfred A. and Blanche Knopf) said NO –Parshley then taught himself philosophy –As a result of his lack of training, there are many errors and omissions in his translation Including frequent reversals of the terms “immanence” and “transcendence” As much as 50% has been cut from some chapters –To this day (2006) the publisher will not allow a new translation and will not sell the rights to any other publisher

The Second Sex– iv The English-language translation was published in 1952 It was one of the first studies of the concept “woman” that was –Systematic: it was a thorough analysis of the concept of “woman” –Historical: it surveyed attitudes toward and restrictions on women from pre-historic times to the present –Philosophical: it sought to understand what being a “woman” means to women and men

The Second Sex – v The book is divided into two volumes Volume One: “Facts and Myths” –Summarizes male accounts of femininity Volume Two: “Women’s Life Today” –Summarizes female accounts of femininity

The Second Sex – vi All views are analyzed and critiqued in terms of –Their support for or denial or women’s freedom (Transcendence) –The degree to which meanings or beliefs about “woman” are assumed to be natural (rather than created) –The degree to which women are held responsible for the denial of women’s freedom

The Second Sex – vii In the “Conclusion” (our reading) Beauvoir –Restates the philosophical position from which the views she described were critiqued (that of “Existentialist Ethics”) –Summarizes the conclusions she reached throughout her text –Argues that both men and women suffer from the lack of recognition of women’s transcendence –Argues that men fail to grasp that they are not only transcendent but also immanent beings (they have bodies, hormones, etc.) –Calls on women to take responsibility for changing women’s secondary status in society

The Second Sex - viii Important concepts and claims in the reading: –Many men (in 1949) still fail to see women as their equals –Humanity is not a given reality but an ongoing historical development –There is no “eternal feminine” or “eternal masculine” –We decide the meaning of “woman” and “man”: these meanings are always changing, they are “historical developments”

The Second Sex - ix Women had immanence / their inferior position imposed on them as a feminine essence –Therfore … Women desire both –To be recognized as free (transcendent) –To escape responsibility for their condition (to dwell in the immanence which they have been told is their essence) All beings suffer a desire to dwell in immanence and escape responsibility

The Second Sex - x Because women possess transcendence –they must free themselves A free being cannot be made free Only women can free women –A free being must take full charge of, and responsibility for her freedom in order to be recognized as free

The Second Sex - xi Men have a lot to gain from women’s freedom –The liberation of women appears as a threat to man –He has never known any different so he cannot see what advantages there are for him in her liberation Men have acted in bad faith by claiming that woman’s (supposed) inferiority is natural They have denied their role in making women appear to be inferior to men (for the Existentialist all meaning is created not found)

The Second Sex - xii The “facts” of male and female biology are no different in so far as –Both men and women are affected by hormones –Both men and women possess minds or consciousness The meaning of these “facts” of biology is up to us –To decide –To change at any moment –To create through our actions and choices

The Second Sex - xiii Beauvoir argues that –No person is free unless recognized as free by other free beings As long as women are not free, men are not free –Freedom is not a state of being, it is a way of acting –Being free requires treating oneself as free –To be free one must Recognize the importance of one’s choices, and Take responsibility for the consequences of these choices