Existentialist View
Dr. James Frey
University of the People Introduction
Existentialism, is a philosophical movement or tendency, emphasizing individual existence, freedom, and choice (Pecorino, 2000). In other words it holds to the view that human beings are free agents and are responsible for their own meaning in life, it puts the human being in control of the outcomes of life’s situations. Also they hold to the view that there is no God and no other force operating just the human being itself. According to Sartre “existence precedes essence” which serves to introduce what is most distinctive of existentialism, namely, the idea that no general, non-formal account of what it means to be human can be given, since that meaning is decided in and through existing itself” (Stanford, 2015).
The existentialist strength lies in the fact that we know for sure that something exist because we are aware of its existence. It focuses on what we know for certain. This is true because I know that I exist because I exist. However, I find this theory very illogical and its weaknesses are as follows: Existentialism claims that “existence precede essence”. How can this be? How do we explain conception? A baby is alive from inside of its’ mother’s womb, it is alive even before it exist in this world. Also, how do you explain genetics, culture, all these factors plays an integral part in who we are as individual. Our existence is not independent of these characteristics it