Jean-Paul Sartre and Existentialism

Jean-Paul Sartre: Atheist Existentialist

A prevalent view until the late 19th century (associated with Plato and Aristotle).
Posits that everything, including humans, possesses an essence that defines its nature.
An object's essence determines its function and identity.
Example: An axe's sharpness is its essence, enabling its function.
In humans, essence is considered a priori, implying a pre-determined purpose.
Fulfilling one's essence equates to being a good human, aligning with a pre-set function or purpose.

Sartre famously declared, "Existence precedes essence."
Humans are born without a pre-defined essence; they create their own essence through choices and actions.
This eliminates the notion of a pre-set path or purpose, challenging the traditional belief in a divinely ordained purpose.
Existentialism, while not always atheistic, denies the existence of a creator God who assigns specific purposes to humans.
Kierkegaard, for example, was a theist and an existentialist.

Authenticity, according to Sartre, requires acknowledging one's freedom and accepting its inherent responsibility.
An authentic life is a life of value, with meaning solely derived from human actions and choices.
Radical freedom and responsibility can be difficult to accept, leading to anguish.
Anguish arises from the recognition of the absurdity of existence.
Radical freedom reveals the inherent nothingness of human beings.
Humans often attempt to conceal their own absurdity.
Freedom to choose creates individual value systems, making individuals fully responsible for the consequences of their choices.

Anguish stems from the ease of relinquishing personal responsibility by allowing others to make choices.
Avoiding anguish involves living inauthentically.
Authenticity equates to good faith, which is accompanied by anguish.
Rejecting radical freedom and responsibility results in bad faith.

The Avoidance Response:
- Avoiding anguish by abstaining from choosing any options in life.
- Sartre argues that not choosing is, paradoxically, a choice itself.
The Serious-Minded Response:
- Adopting religious or moral objectivism to evade subjective decision-making.
- Believing in an objective source of value (e.g., God or goodness) external to individual decisions.
- Living life according to this external objective source.
- However, choosing to follow an objective source remains a subjective choice.
Bad Faith:
- Refusing to accept the realities of the human condition: the absurdity of life, lack of inherent meaning, and complete freedom and responsibility.
- Persisting in the belief that the world possesses meaning not attributed by humans (e.g., divinely ordained meaning).
- Living life according to a pre-set social role, denying subjectivity and freedom of choice.
- Objectifying oneself by organizing life around a role (e.g., a woman solely identifying as a mother).
- This eliminates genuine decision-making, as actions are dictated by the expected behaviors of the chosen role.
- Entails self-deception, as actions are determined by the requirements of the role.

Illustrates the complexities of freedom and bad faith.
Even a mechanical waiter retains freedom of choice (e.g., deciding how much parmesan to add).
Such conscious choices within a role exemplify living in good faith.
An authentic life involves freely choosing values and accepting full responsibility for them.

A young man must choose between going to war or staying with his mother.
There is no inherently "right" choice until he subjectively chooses one.
The value lies not in what is chosen, but in how it is chosen.
A choice made in good faith (without restraints) is valuable.
One can sincerely choose something, even if it is morally questionable.
The value of a choice is determined by whether it improves life.
Good faith, the act of choosing itself, is the most important human achievement.

First Nazi: Follows Hitler, proudly kills Jews → Good faith (takes responsibility, is free).
Second Nazi: Joins Hitler out of fear, dislikes killing, lacks pride → Bad faith (does not make his own choice).
Value and authenticity derive from free choice and ownership of actions, even when morally troubling.

Humans do not choose between pre-existing values; they create values.
Career choices, for example, are subjectively valuable because the individual chooses them.
"We" refers to each individual, not a collective group or society.
Individual choices do not necessarily contribute to the whole of humanity.
Values created through the proper exercise of freedom have a universal dimension.
Other human beings can understand these values if placed in a similar situation.
Even with subjective values, mutual understanding is possible because of shared humanity.
"In every purpose there is universality" – every purpose is comprehensible to every man.
Not every individual within the same category acts identically (e.g., not every cubist copies Picasso).