Objectives
Nietzsche
Key Terms
Existentialism
Authenticity
Übermensch
Dasein
Bad Faith
- Read and analyze descriptions of philosophical thought
- Demonstrate knowledge of the arguments in favor of and opposing contemporary ethical theories.
- Demonstrate an ability to discuss and reflect upon the application of the course material to various aspects of life.
- Evaluate the personal and social responsibilities of living in a diverse world.
I. Existentialism
- A. Basic Argument
- Concern is personal and individualized
- Not who is a virtuous person? Not what is my moral duty? Not how should I apply the principle of utility?
- But How do I live my life authentically? How can I be significant? How can my life have meaning?
- B. Key Concepts
- Individualism and subjectivity
- Freedom and responsibility
- Existence and essence
- Anguish and absurdity
- Authenticity
II. Kierkegaard
- The Crowd is Untruth
- Truth and authenticity are the highest pursuits
- A. The Evils of Conformity
- The greatest threat to this is conformity with the crowd
- Conformity to the crowd is inauthentic and immoral
- B. The Three Stages to becoming an authentic individual
- Aesthetic Stage - hedonistic, ultimately dissatisfying
- Ethical Stage - concerned with morality, ultimately dissatisfying
- Religious Stage - relationship between individual and divine
Heidegger
Are you Authentic?
8-bit Philosophy
III. Nietzsche
- Life is governed by a Will to Power
- Traditional values of compassion and pity are part of a slave morality designed to suppress the powerful
- The Übermensch sees through this falseness, creates his own values and imposes them upon others
- Jesus is the supreme example of the übermensch
- Modern thinking has removed our need of God - “God is dead.”
- Thus, the übermensch is necessary to lead humanity in His absence
IV. Heidegger
- Wrote Being and Time, exploring the nature of being
- Phenomenology, describing the data of consciousness without the distortions of preconceived ideas
- Profoundly complex
- Fundamental elements of Dasein: thrownness, projection, fallenness
Sartre
When we say that man chooses his own self, we mean that every one of us does likewise; but we also mean by that in making this choice he also chooses all men. In fact, in creating the man that we want to be, there is not a single one of our acts which does not at the same time create an image of man as we think he ought to be
Sartre
Do we enjoy being free?
8-bit Philosophy
V. Sartre
- Becoming an authentic individual is the ethical ideal we pursue
- We depend only on ourselves to determine right choices
- No absolute ethical code, no divine rule
- Accepting one’s responsibility for ultimate choice means one understands it takes place in a social context
- Acknowledges the moral responsibility to humanity
- Choosing to live a certain way implies consent for others to do the same
- Ethics are not our obligation to follow, but our obligation to create
- Acting in Bad Faith
- Not everyone desires this responsibility
- Those that hide from their freedom and responsibility are living inauthentically and act in Bad Faith
- They try to surrender their freedom to outside forces
- Lack courage to create themselves
VI. Camus
- We live an absurd existence in a universe devoid of intrinsic meaning
- Our choices are without purpose
- Our highest goal is to create meaning for our lives
- We do this through critical reflection and courageously free choices
- The Myth of Sisyphus illustrates this
Logic Week 13: Appeals to Emotion