Sartre's existentialism is a humanistic philosophy that attempts to explain man's freedom and how he should live with the knowledge that this freedom exists. It is based upon the idea that "existence precedes essence", Sartre explains this by saying "it means, first of all, man exists, turns up, appears on the scene, and only afterwards, defines himself." In the text "Free will, self construction and Anguish", Sartre defends a number of claims bought against existentialism, and it is in this text that we are able to acknowledge inconsistencies and flaws in his argument. In this essay I will explain Sartre's position on how a person ought to live according to existentialism and the problems associated with these ideas. I will conclude with a brief summary explaining the limited extent in which existentialism is concise.
Sartre makes a number of claims to support his idea that "existence precedes essence" and as a result of this, man is "condemned to be free."
Resting place of Jean Paul Sartre and Simone de Be...
English: drawing for The New York Times
Jean-Paul Sartre (um 1950)It is fundamental for an atheist existentialist to adopt the idea that God does not exist to reach these conclusions Sartre has put before us. He gives little explanation for his idea that God is not in existence other than simply saying "...there is no God..." Once this has been established, Sartre goes on to highlight the problems this creates.
"There is no human nature since there is no God to conceive it... man is what he conceives himself to be..." Sartre appears to be assuming that it is thought that God defines human nature and the way we should act. He exposes human nature to subjectivity, by claiming that "man is nothing else but what he makes of himself." He points out that man must make choices, and thus it is the man himself who creates himself.