Existentialism is defined as a philosophy that emphasizes individual existence, freedom, and choice. It is the view that humans define their own meaning in life, and try to make rational decisions despite existing in an irrational universe. This school of philosophy has time and time again been explored in literature and film, as it is the answer to the defining question of the human experience: why am I here? The doctrine of existentialism is the core theme of the films Synecdoche, New York, written and directed by Charlie Kauffman, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, directed by Michel Gondry and written by Charlie Kauffman (who’s writing directed the direction and main theme of the film), the poem, Dover Beach, written by Matthew Arnold, and Franz Kafka’s literary classic and masterpiece, The Trial.
Our first text is Charlie Kauffman’s directorial debut, Synecdoche, New York. The postmodern melodrama attempts to depict every aspect of the human condition, therefore, making the film itself, a synecdoche of the human experience. For example, in the film, life and art are well and truly indistinguishable. All the events in the protagonist’s (playwright Caden Cotard) life become part of his impossibly large theatre piece. However, Caden’s inconceivable art comes with a revelation. As Caden continues to try, and ultimately fail to recreate his life and world in an impossible warehouse it becomes more and more prevalent that he can’t, and he never will. This is because real
Surrealism is a movement that built off of the burgeoning look into art, psychology, and the workings of the mind. Popularly associated with the works of Salvador Dali, Surrealist art takes imagery and ideology and creates correlation where there is none, creating new forms of art. In this essay I will look to explore the inception of the surrealist movement, including the Surrealist Manifesto, to stress the importance of these artists and their work in the 20th century and beyond. I also will look to films from our European Cinema course to express how films incorporate the influence of surrealism both intentionally and unintentionally.
To support this idea, Bordwell illustrates how art cinema motivates its narratives differently, through two principles: realism and authorial expressivity. Firstly he proposes the notion that art films reflect realism in their characters, space, and time. Psychologically complex characters are present in real worlds dealing with true-to-life situations. Art cinema is concerned with the characters ‘reaction’ to these situations, rather than their ‘action’. Thus it bares an element of psychological subjectivity as the characters survey the world they are in, which aids the realisation of the distress of
As defined in The American Heritage College Dictionary, existentialism emphasizes the uniqueness and isolation of the individual in a hostile or indifferent universe, regards existnece as unexplainable, and stresses free choice and responsibility for one's actions. Existentialism is personalized from other schools of thought by its embodiment of three important criterion; 1) the emphasis of the individual as the centerpoint of his domain; 2) an accentuation of human choice and freedom; and, 3) a critique of social norm and its aim for individuals to congregate as merely part of a herd. These three standards of action are present in all works defined as existential, and are absorbed in Achebe's Things Fall Apart.
Existentialism is a philosophy that puts emphasis on the existence of a person’s freedom or life. In a human point of view, it means to believe in oneself, not a group or religion. (33)
Existentialism is a Humanism by Jean-Paul Sartre, was published in 1945 at the height of Existentialism's cultural resurgence. As Sartre states in his opening line, his purpose is to “offer a defence of existentialism against some charges that have been brought against it.” (Sartre, 1945) At a time where Existentialism was heavily associated with wearing black and smoking (Fahlenbrach, 2012) Sartre felt the need to draw attention to its philosophical and more meaningful aspects, beyond it simply being a passing trend. Sartre outlines, “Man is nothing else but that which he makes of himself. That is the first principle of existentialism” (Sartre, 1945) This is rooted in what Sartre believes to be the basis of all Existential
Existentialism, a philosophical ideology conceptualized by Jean-Paul Sarte, encapsulates most thought processes where “the individual is obliged to make a choice as though he were choosing for all mankind” (Arnold, “Jean-Paul Sarte: Overview). Put simply, Sarte’s concept of existentialism is the thought process by which humans find themselves existing, and the analysis of their existence itself (Tulloch, Sartrian Existentialism). This analysis of existence found itself in many writings during the twentieth century, and acts a driving force in both Bishop’s “In the Waiting Room” and Lispector’s “The Daydreams of a Drunk Woman”.
The world is a simple place, but often at times, it seems more complicated than it really is. People exist in a world where others do not know about them because the world is so big. Existentialism is the belief that a person creates one’s self with the influence of external factors. However, more importantly, it is how a person is able to cope with these factors that allow a person to live their life. Existentialism is a key factor that is prominent throughout the story. The main characters in the book Brave New World by Aldous Huxley, are all influenced by outside factors that include a pregnancy substitute to make babies and pre-plan their futures, living in a controlled environment and by making the citizens live in a constant hallucination of “happiness”.
Existentialism is a philosophy dealing with man's aloneness in the universe. Either there is no God or else God stands apart from man, leaving him free will to make his own choices. From this basic idea of man being alone in an uncertain and purposeless world, many related ideas have developed. One great worry of existentialist writers is that life is becoming too complicated and too impersonal. People become more and more involved with their work, which is taking them away from their friends, family, and culture. However, these provide the only "meaning" that life could possibly have. One author prominently known for his work with existential ideas was Franz
Dover Beach intrigued me as soon as I read the title. I have a great love of beaches, so I feel a connection with the speaker as he or she stands on the cliffs of Dover, looking out at the sea and reflecting on life. Arnold successfully captures the mystical beauty of the ocean as it echoes human existence and the struggles of life. The moods of the speaker throughout the poem change dramatically as do the moods of the sea. The irregular, unordered rhyme is representative of these inharmonious moods and struggles. In this case, the speaker seems to be struggling with the relationship with his or her partner.
It is inevitable that death is all around us. By understanding this, one has the ultimate choice to continue on with their lives or remain in a state of bereavement. An inability to escape this grieving state inhibits one to move on and consequently these feelings dictate and govern our whole lives. This philosophy, existentialism, advocates that as humans we have the power to direct our own lives and pave our own paths. Author Banana Yoshimoto recognizes this ideal and illustrates the journey of how several young adults finally realize their place and meaning in the world despite their struggles. They all face a similar tragedy where their loved ones perished from their lives, and are ultimately challenged to overcome their
Perhaps the most telling symptom of existentialist philosophers is their ever-divergent theories on the fundamental characteristics of human life and their steadfast refusal to assign an explicit meaning or reason to our existence at all. Contrary to criticism which therefore labels the movement cynically nihilistic, existentialism justifies life with reasoning similar to that of Zen Buddhism. Specifically, the notions of hopelessness and absurdity can be gleaned from Buddhism in a manner helpful to the understanding of existentialist viewpoints on the same.
Theo Decker, the protagonist of the story was sent on a quest to find his individuality at a young age. He learned that life isn’t always fair but one can still write their own rules and make life the best for them. Existentialism can be seen throughout the book with many decisions that Theo makes are risky. Still, existentialism would not apply to the whole story.
Existentialism is a European philosophy that began in the mid-19th century but reached its peak in the 20th century. Existentialism became popular following the catastrophic years of World Wars and the Holocaust when many people began to question the traditional belief systems and ideas based on the terrifying events committed during the wars. Existentialism is a set of philosophical systems, which emphasize individual existence, freedom, choice, and personal responsibility. Pursuing this further, existentialism is the idea that human beings simply exist and choose their actions for themselves. To summarize, existentialism believes that people exist and live through their own behavior and perceptions and without any certainty about right or wrong. This is unlike those who believe that everything that occurs is fated or that there is a plan for life that one must follow and live based on it. The movie Forrest Gump (1994) directed by Robert Zemeckis is an existentialism movie because the movie shows the existentialism theme of freedom and choice as the main character Forrest Gump played by Tom Hanks was born without a purpose in life and he makes his own decisions throughout the movie for himself while facing many conflicts and, he was responsible for his action.
This semester we have studied five works that all communicate different themes and views of existentialism through each protagonist's point of view. From reading, watching, and analyzing each piece of work, we have come to know existentialists as having a very interesting outlook on life. Almost all the existentialists in the five works we studied believe in freedom of choice. That humans define their own meaning in life and try their best to make rational decisions in spite of existing in what they consider an “unreasonable universe”. The protagonists in each short story and movie we have watched, have similar qualities between each other and quite a few differences. The two pieces of work that will be focused on are, ‘The Wall’ by Jean-Paul Sartre and ‘The Guest’ by Albert Camus.
The existence and purpose of human live has always posed a question for society. To answer this question, philosophers ponder Existentialism. Existentialism is the philosophy that humans exist for no true purpose and that each individual changes essence in his or her lifetime by finding meaning in life through freewill, choice, and personal responsibility without certain knowledge of right and wrong. This theory gained popularity in the mid-1900s after WWII caused many people to lose hope in an ordered world and accept that no cosmic justice exists. According to this theory, no absolute rules govern humans’ lives. This theory appears throughout literature and offers a grim perspective on human existence. The Metamorphosis, written by