EXISTENTIALISM FOR DUMMIES -- Part Two -- Christopher Panza, PHD.And Gregory Dale.

EXISTENTIALISM FOR DUMMIES
Christopher Panza, PHD.
And Gregory Dale.

Introduction.
Existentialism is the philosophy of existence, of the nature of human existence, its value, and its meaning. Because questions about existence have very little interest when people exist as rotting corpses, existentialism is really the philosophy that studies what it is to be alive. It isn’t defined so much by any unified answer to this question, but by the way in which it rejects traditional answers to questions concerning the meaning and value of human life, and the way that it insists that such questions are real and that the lack of any real answer is a problem.
Existentialists, both theist and atheist, reject not only traditional religious systems that attempt to systematically provide pat answers, but also the possibility of any ultimate answers. They insist that even if a God and a heaven exist, the meaning of this life and how you should live will always be open questions, requiring decisions you must face as an individual. Because existentialism considers the questions to be important, it seeks a way of living with the fact that no answers will be forthcoming.

The French existentialist Albert Camus says the fundamental question of philosophy is that of suicide, of whether life is worth living. Although not all the existentialists approach the question from this exact vantage point, it illustrates a widely held theme, while traditional religious and ethical systems ask, “How should I live?” the existentialist’s more fundamental question is, “How can I live?” If life is meaningless, if the inherited stories aren’t valid, how can you even approach the question of how you should live? How can human beings hungry for meaning live and flourish without giving in to despair when no meaning is provided to them?

Part 1: Introducing Existentialism.

In this part, we give you a short historical introduction to existentialism and its major thinkers. Discover who they were and why they were so important to its development.

Part 2: The Fundamental Problem: God Is Dead.
In many respects existentialism is a response to a collection of problems that confront you as you try to live a fulfilling and meaningful life. The chapters in this part deal with recognizing and defining these problems. We examine Nietzsche’s statement that God is dead (a statement that’s about far more than just God!) as the fundamental statement of the challenges you face. We investigate how God was killed, who’s to blame, and what it really means. People feel horrible about this statement and what it means, so we discuss those feelings. Have a good cry if you want, but it isn’t necessary. Finally, we discuss what kind of world you face now that God has turned up deceased and why the problem this statement represents exists not just for atheists, but for believers as well.

Part 3: Living a Meaningful Life in a Meaningless World.
If the existentialists just moped and cried over everything, they’d never have been invited to any parties. Much of the existentialists’ work was devoted to finding ways of living, and even flourishing, in a world with the problems we describe in Part 2;. Part 3 is a collection of these methods, insights, and solutions. Consider it our description of their how-to guide to healthy and satisfying living.

Part 4: The Enduring Impact of Existentialism.
In this part we examine the impact existentialism has had on philosophy and psychology. We examine why the impact on psychology has been so profound, why its impact on academic philosophy hasn’t been altogether great, and what this means for its overall legacy and significance.

Part 5: The Part of Tens.
Every For Dummies book has a Part of Tens, and we wouldn’t dream of leaving it out of this one. For ours, we decided to focus on what makes existentialism so accessible and relevant, namely, the way it finds its way (intentionally or unintentionally) into nonphilosophical, popular work. So we list ten terrific books and ten great films that deal with existential themes.

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