Existentialism Socratic Seminar Background Information: Philosophy is the study of general questions related to existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Questions that philosophers undertake can include: “What is real?” “Is it possible to know anything?” “Do humans have free will?” “What is the purpose of life?” and “Is there a best way to live?” The last two questions are ones the many philosophers have struggled with throughout the centuries. Over time, different philosophers have attempted to answer these questions, resulting in the creation of different traditions of philosophy—essentially shared ways of thinking about philosophical questions. One of these traditions is known as existentialism. At its core, existentialism seeks to address questions related to the meaning of life and the process of living. This tradition of philosophy was popularized in Europe and few existentialist philosophers are more famous than Albert Camus, who happens to be the author of our class novel, The Stranger. Due to Camus’ background as an existentialist, it is necessary for us to learn the basics of existentialism before tackling a novel that is inspired by existentialist ideas. Purpose of Socratic Seminar: The purpose of this Socratic Seminar is for you and your classmates to analyze the fundamentals of existentialism. More importantly, this seminar will introduce you and your classmates to key themes and ideas that will be confronted in the class novel, The Stranger. Key Questions for Socratic Seminar: 1. Which themes and ideas are the most important in understanding existentialism and why? 2. What would be the benefits and challenges of living an “existential life”? In other words, what would be the pros and cons of going through life with an existential outlook on existence? 3. Look at the list of sociopathic traits and then consider what you have read about existentialism. What would be the similarities and differences between somebody living an existentialist life and somebody who is a sociopath? Directions for Socratic Seminar: • Read the provided documents. • As you read, text code the document: o ______________ evidence that answers the first question o Place [ ] around evidence that answers the second question o evidence that answers the third question o Some evidence may overlap, meaning some evidence can be coded more than once. • After you have finished reading and text coding the article, complete the following: o Review ALL the evidence that you have underlined or bracketed o Choose the FIVE BEST quotes for question 1, the FIVE BEST quotes for question 2, and the FIVE BEST quotes for question 3. o Record these quotes on the last two pages of this packet WITH LINE NUMBERS— DO NOT JUST PROVIDE LINE NUMBERS—PROVIDE TEXTUAL EVIDENCE. o Finally, explain why you chose EACH quote. You should have AT LEAST TWO sentences of explanation/reasoning per quote. These explanations should discuss HOW the quotes apply to one of the three key questions. • Finally, if you still have questions about the text, use the back of this page to record any clarifying questions you want to ask your peers. Due Date: • Monday, October 28, 2019 THIS IS A MASTERY ASSIGNMENT Name: Date: Clarification Questions Question Stems: • I was confused by lines… • What does the author mean when he says…in lines… • Could somebody share how they interpreted lines… • I think the author means…in lines…but I’m not sure Question 1: Question 2: Question 3: Question 4: Question 5: 1 Document A: “Existentialism” Bolded Definitions 2 Document Note: The following is an excerpt from Douglas Burnham and George Papandreo’s 3 article, “Existentialism,” which was published on Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Both authors are 4 professors of philosophy at prestigious universities. 5 6 Existentialism 7 Existentialism is a catch-all term for those philosophers who consider the nature of the human 8 condition as a key philosophical problem and who share the view that this problem is best addressed 9 through ontology. Those philosophers considered existentialists are mostly from the continent of The study of 10 Europe, and date from the 19th and 20th centuries. being 11 12 1. Key Themes of Existentialism 13 Although a highly diverse tradition of thought, seven themes can be identified that provide some 14 sense of overall unity. Here, these themes will be briefly introduced; they can then provide us with an 15 intellectual framework. 16 b. Anxiety and Authenticity 17 A key theme of existentialism is that human existence is in some way 'on its own'; anxiety is the 18 recognition of this fact. Anxiety here has two important implications. First, most generally, many 19 existentialists tend to stress the significance of emotions or feelings, in so far as they were presumed 20 to have a relation to one's individual existence. Second, anxiety also stands for a form of existence 21 that is recognition of being on one’s own. What is meant by 'being on one’s own' varies among 22 philosophers. For example, it might mean the irrelevance of logical thought, moral values, or Unimportance 23 evidence, when it comes to making fundamental decisions concerning one's existence. Alternatively, 24 it might be a more specifically theological claim: the existence of a transcendent deity is not relevant God 25 in life decisions. Finally, being on one’s own might signify the uniqueness of human existence. 26 Related to anxiety is the concept of authenticity, which is let us say the existentialist spin on the 27 Greek notion of 'the good life'. As we shall see, the authentic being would be able to recognize and 28 affirm the nature of existence…The notion of authenticity is sometimes seen as connected to 29 individualism. Certainly, if authenticity involves 'being on one's own', then there would seem to be 30 some kind of value in celebrating and sustaining one's difference and independence from others. 31 However, many existentialists see individualism as a historical and cultural trend, or dubious political 32 value, rather than a necessary component of authentic existence. 33 c. Freedom 34 The next key theme is freedom. Freedom can usefully be linked to the concept of anxiety because a 35 person’s freedom is in part defined by the isolation of his or her decisions from any determination by 36 a deity…Likewise, freedom entails something like responsibility, for one’s own actions. There is 37 nothing else that acts through a person, or that shoulders a person’s responsibility. Thus, when a 38 person exists as an authentically free being, he or she assumes responsibility for his or her whole life. 39 40 d. Situatedness 41 The next common theme we shall call ‘situatedness’. Although one’s freedom is absolute, it always 42 takes place in a particular context. A person’s body and its characteristics, his or her circumstances in 43 a historical world, and his or her past, all weigh upon freedom. This is what makes freedom 44 meaningful… Human existence cannot be abstracted from its world because being-in-the-world is Separated 45 part of that existence. Freedom is situated socially: each of a person’s acts says something about how 46 he or she views others. A person’s freedom is situated with respect to the judgements of others. 47 48 e. Existence 49 Existentialism takes its name from the philosophical theme of 'existence.’ The existence with which Alive 50 we should be concerned here is not just any existent thing, but human existence. There is thus an 51 important difference between distinctively human existence and anything else. The existentialists 52 argue for the notion that the human being is all and only what that being does. A person’s existence 53 consists of forever bringing his or herself into being – and, correlatively, fleeing from the dead, inert Bolded 54 thing that is the totality of my past actions. For many existentialists, authentic existence requires a Definitions 55 certain tension to be recognized and lived through, but not resolved: this tension might be between 56 the animal and the rational or between facticity and transcendence. Physical world 57 and existence 58 f. Irrationality/Absurdity beyond the 59 Among the most famous ideas associated with existentialism is that of 'absurdity'. Human existence physical world 60 might be described as 'absurd' in one of the following senses. First, many existentialists argued that 61 nature as a whole has no design, no reason for existing. Although the natural world can apparently be 62 understood by physical science, this might be better thought of as 'description' than either 63 understanding or explanation. Thus, the achievements of the natural sciences also empty nature of 64 value and meaning. We cannot expect the scientifically described cosmos to answer our questions Universe 65 concerning value or meaning. A second meaning of the absurd is this: a person’s freedom will be 66 undetermined by knowledge or reason. When a person chooses to follow a law, he or she does so 67 simply because he or she has chosen to. Thus, a person’s choice to follow a law can appear absurd 68 and so too will all actions undertaken to follow the selected law. Third, human existence is doomed 69 to always destroy itself. 70 71 g. The Crowd 72 Existentialism generally also carries a social or political dimension. Insofar as he or she is authentic, 73 the freedom of the human being will show a certain 'resolution' or 'commitment', and this will 74 involve also the being of others. In other words, instead of being formed authentically in freedom 75 and anxiety, values are just accepted from others because ‘that is what everybody does.’ The theme 76 of the crowd poses a question also to the positive social or political dimension of existentialism: how 77 could a collective form of existence ever be anything other than inauthentic? 78 Document B: “Albert Camus: Existentialism and Absurdism” 79 Document Note: The following is an excerpt from Austin Cline’s article, “Albert Camus: 80 Existentialism and Absurdism,” which was published on Learn Religions on March 4, 2018.