Sartre on the Authentic Life. Jean-Paul Sartre Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre Jean-Paul Charles...

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Sartre on the Authentic Sartre on the Authentic Life Life

Transcript of Sartre on the Authentic Life. Jean-Paul Sartre Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre Jean-Paul Charles...

Page 1: Sartre on the Authentic Life. Jean-Paul Sartre Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre 1905-1980 AD 1905-1980 AD Founded Existentialism.

Sartre on the Authentic Sartre on the Authentic LifeLife

Page 2: Sartre on the Authentic Life. Jean-Paul Sartre Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre 1905-1980 AD 1905-1980 AD Founded Existentialism.

Jean-Paul SartreJean-Paul Sartre

Jean-Paul Charles Aymard SartreJean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre 1905-1980 AD1905-1980 AD Founded ExistentialismFounded Existentialism Many writingsMany writings

Being and Nothingness Being and Nothingness (1943)(1943) Existentialism is a HumanismExistentialism is a Humanism (1946) (1946) Nausea Nausea (1938) (1938)

Page 3: Sartre on the Authentic Life. Jean-Paul Sartre Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre 1905-1980 AD 1905-1980 AD Founded Existentialism.

ExistentialismExistentialism

facticity,facticity,

Being-in-itself, being-for-itselfBeing-in-itself, being-for-itself

transcendence, bad faithtranscendence, bad faith

Pre-reflective cogito, egoPre-reflective cogito, ego

Existence precedes essenceExistence precedes essenceWe are condemned to be freeWe are condemned to be free

Page 4: Sartre on the Authentic Life. Jean-Paul Sartre Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre 1905-1980 AD 1905-1980 AD Founded Existentialism.

Existence and EssenceExistence and Essence

All agree that Essence precedes All agree that Essence precedes ExistenceExistence PlatoPlato AristotleAristotle Functionalists about MindFunctionalists about Mind

Page 5: Sartre on the Authentic Life. Jean-Paul Sartre Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre 1905-1980 AD 1905-1980 AD Founded Existentialism.

Existence precedes Existence precedes EssenceEssence

What makes us us?What makes us us? Locke: the Prince and the CoblerLocke: the Prince and the Cobler

Swapping minds swaps identitySwapping minds swaps identity So the mind is our essenceSo the mind is our essence

Pens and chairsPens and chairs Non minded things are defined by Non minded things are defined by facticityfacticity: :

the set of all facts that are true of themthe set of all facts that are true of them Minded things are Minded things are transcendenttranscendent

Page 6: Sartre on the Authentic Life. Jean-Paul Sartre Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre 1905-1980 AD 1905-1980 AD Founded Existentialism.

Existence precedes Existence precedes EssenceEssence

What makes us us?What makes us us?

Pre-reflective CogitoPre-reflective Cogito

Reflective CogitoReflective Cogito

The reflective cogito operating on the pre-The reflective cogito operating on the pre-reflective cogito creates the reflective cogito creates the EgoEgo

Page 7: Sartre on the Authentic Life. Jean-Paul Sartre Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre 1905-1980 AD 1905-1980 AD Founded Existentialism.

Existence precedes Existence precedes EssenceEssence

What makes us us?What makes us us?

Our ego is the essence of usOur ego is the essence of us

ego follows from reflective cogito ego follows from reflective cogito

reflective cogito follows from pre-reflective reflective cogito follows from pre-reflective cogitocogito

pre-reflective cogito follows from our pre-reflective cogito follows from our existenceexistence

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Therefore essence follows existenceTherefore essence follows existence

Page 8: Sartre on the Authentic Life. Jean-Paul Sartre Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre 1905-1980 AD 1905-1980 AD Founded Existentialism.

BeingBeing

What makes us transcendental?What makes us transcendental? Pens and chairs have Pens and chairs have being-in-being-in-

themselvesthemselves Their existence is exhausted by their Their existence is exhausted by their

facticityfacticity Not so humansNot so humans

Humans have Humans have being-being-forfor-themselves-themselves Being-for-itself is produced by Being-for-itself is produced by nihilatingnihilating

being-in-itselfbeing-in-itself What the ?What the ?

Page 9: Sartre on the Authentic Life. Jean-Paul Sartre Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre 1905-1980 AD 1905-1980 AD Founded Existentialism.

NothingnessNothingness

Questions are possibleQuestions are possible Awareness includes negation of the Awareness includes negation of the

worldworld Puts limits on the way the world is – Puts limits on the way the world is –

implicitly accepts there are ways the implicitly accepts there are ways the world isn’tworld isn’t

Page 10: Sartre on the Authentic Life. Jean-Paul Sartre Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre 1905-1980 AD 1905-1980 AD Founded Existentialism.

NothingnessNothingness

Absences are possibleAbsences are possible Where’s Pierre?Where’s Pierre? Awareness includes negation of the Awareness includes negation of the

worldworld You anticipated a world that was not You anticipated a world that was not

the worldthe world

Page 11: Sartre on the Authentic Life. Jean-Paul Sartre Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre 1905-1980 AD 1905-1980 AD Founded Existentialism.

NothingnessNothingness

Awareness is the character of the for-itselfAwareness is the character of the for-itselfIn both questions and absences the In both questions and absences the awareness contains the negation of the worldawareness contains the negation of the worldThe negation of the world is beyond the facts The negation of the world is beyond the facts of the worldof the worldWhat is defined by facticity is bound by the What is defined by facticity is bound by the world as it isworld as it is

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------The for-itself transcends mere facticityThe for-itself transcends mere facticity

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FreedomFreedom

There are an infinity of possible nihilationsThere are an infinity of possible nihilations Each depends on our expectationsEach depends on our expectations Our expectations are independent of the in-Our expectations are independent of the in-

itselfitself Therefore nihilation is independent of the in-Therefore nihilation is independent of the in-

itselfitself Our actions depend on the choices we makeOur actions depend on the choices we make Therefore our actions are also freeTherefore our actions are also free

Sartre is a Compatibilist!Sartre is a Compatibilist!

Page 13: Sartre on the Authentic Life. Jean-Paul Sartre Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre 1905-1980 AD 1905-1980 AD Founded Existentialism.

ResponsibilityResponsibility

As humans we must have being-for-As humans we must have being-for-itselfitself

So we must transcend facticity and So we must transcend facticity and being-in-itselfbeing-in-itself

So we must have freedomSo we must have freedom ““We are condemned to be free”We are condemned to be free”

So we must chooseSo we must choose We alone are responsible for our We alone are responsible for our

situationsituation

Page 14: Sartre on the Authentic Life. Jean-Paul Sartre Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre 1905-1980 AD 1905-1980 AD Founded Existentialism.

ResponsibilityResponsibility

Who wants to be so responsible?Who wants to be so responsible? Don’t want to take responsibility?Don’t want to take responsibility? Too bad: you’re human and you’re stuck Too bad: you’re human and you’re stuck

with itwith it

Page 15: Sartre on the Authentic Life. Jean-Paul Sartre Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre 1905-1980 AD 1905-1980 AD Founded Existentialism.

ResponsibilityResponsibility

Failure to acknowledge Failure to acknowledge responsibility is an act of responsibility is an act of Bad FaithBad Faith Deny transcendenceDeny transcendence

Behave Behave as if as if you are bound by the world, you are bound by the world, or by your own previous historyor by your own previous history Including your own decisionsIncluding your own decisions

Deny facticityDeny facticity You are what you do and have decided to doYou are what you do and have decided to do

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AuthenticityAuthenticity

It’s up to each of us to choose who It’s up to each of us to choose who to beto be