Existentialism and Jean Paul Sartre

Existentialism is a philosophical theory that advocates the existence, freedom, and self-choice of the individual. It is created by Soren Aabye Kierkegaard during the late 19th century who is a 19th-century Danish philosopher.

The other priors of the existential theory are Jean-Paul Sartre and Friedrich Nietzsche. According to existentialists, people find and define their meaning in life as free beings. They assume that individuals should make their worth without tradition and rules. This theory deals with the search for meaning with free will, knowledge, self-awareness, and questioning life. Existentialists believe that humans can find the meaning of life with “authentic existence”. For authentic existence, humans should use their potential without getting in the domination of the social environment. Authenticity is a norm beyond the meanings, and it refers to autonomy.

Jean-Paul Sartre is a 20th-century French philosopher and playwright who pioneered existential philosophy. According to Sartre, there is no fixed human nature or essence of lonely human beings and so humans must choose their beings. Sartre’s philosophy of “existence precedes essence” describes that human beings create themselves on their own and their actions and choices form their essence. The first certain feature of human beings is their existence, not their essence. Humans have their roles, stereotyped behaviors, and definitions and these features form the social mask of the person. The hidden aspects of this mask create the “essence”. The real essence of the person is beyond this mask. Humans create their essence by deciding the meaning of their lives. The beginning of existence is human beings. Humans are responsible for themselves, and they are alone. No other circumstances or social rules can be responsible for humans. To sum up, “existence precedes essence,” tells that first man exists, and after that essence comes out. Man must choose what he will be. The main purpose of existentialism is to show people that they must be aware of their existence. Moreover, For Sartre, human beings are free, and they have existential freedom. When they are left to the world, they have free will and they can figure out and decide who they are. There are no excuses for finding their existence because they are free without any rules, social norms, or other people’s prejudices and definitions.