Existentialism is a philosophy that
emphasizes that people have their own freedom, choices, and existence (Cahn,
2018). It clarifies that every human being is free to take make rational decisions
despite their existence in this irrational universe. Another core idea that is
made clear is that human beings define their own meanings of life, and no
restrictions can be imposed on them.
The main focus is on the existence of human
beings, followed by the feelings they have for the external world and how they
want to get involved in day-to-day activities. There is no proposed explanation
for why God actually sent us to this world, but the basic idea is that we have
been sent to this world to live our lives according to the rules and
regulations set by God or nature.
In the meantime, individuals have been set
free to make several decisions themselves and to choose certain things without
anyone’s help. Existentialism believes that people are totally free and that
they must take responsibility for the things they do every day. However, the
fact is that some things are beyond our reach, meaning they have been naturally
set or adjusted for us. For example, the blinking of eyes is not in our
control. Similarly, the way food is digested, or blood circulates in the body
is naturally programmed.
It means the freedom lies in things like how
and when we want to sleep, what type of job we want to do, and other similar
activities. Exercising our personal freedom or choices in the wrong way may
contribute to the destruction of this world by the whole. As a movement,
existentialism is used to describe people who claim that they are superficial.
References
Cahn, S. M. (2018). Exploring
Philosophy: An Introductory Anthology. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
