| Guest Lecturer: Dr. Xavier Monasterio, dept. of philosophy
Topic: THE EXISTENTIALISM OF JEAN PAUL SARTRE
Readings: a few pages from Sartre's "Existentialism is a Humanism;"
One page from Victor Frankl's Man's Search for Meaning
Theme: Sartre's definition of the person through the phrase "existence
precedes essence."
Summary:
During much of his philosophical career
Sartre insisted that every person is radically responsible for everything
the person does, because a person always has the inner freedom to choose,
even when under duress or compulsion. Ever to attribute the cause of one's
choices to anything except one's inner freedom is to live in "bad faith."
A person is free to choose anything - to be energetic or lazy, honest or
dishonest. The person who recognizes the truth of this always lives in
some anguish, carrying the burden of freedom, accepting full responsibility
for every choice and action, including whatever the person is ashamed of
or guilty about. Even if God existed, the person would still have full
responsibility for her or his choices. Because God does not exist, however,
there is no valid source of values or morals to guide a person's choice.
There is only human ability to be responsible for our choices, including
the choice of our values.
In the 1970's, however, when Sartre looked
back on his own earlier insistence on radical freedom, he called this aspect
of his thought a serious mistake. He had come to believe that the conditions
of life can deprive a person of full freedom. Thus the Marxist claim that
economic conditions mold human consciousness and choices made sense to
him.
FOR NEXT CLASS:
View the film Pixote. Dr. Percio Castro will conduct the
class
For Thursday's class:
Read both the excerpt from
Jonah Blank, The Arrow of the Blue-Skinned God,and
the Bhagavad-Gita. (See
the handout sheet for some guidance in reading the latter.) |