Have you ever wondered why bad people often
seem to get away with their actions, and, likewise, good people are often faced with
terrible hardships? Have you ever suspected that the meaning we
attribute to life, or certain aspects of it, may just be an illusion - in other words:
a man-made creation only to make the mystery of existence more bearable? Is there a Godly plan behind all of this? Is there an afterlife, and is our time here
in this world just a preparation for it? Or could it be that life is utterly meaningless,
that the universe is irrational and indifferent to us, and that humanity is nothing more than
a cosmic joke? French-Algerian philosopher Albert Camus believed
that life has no inherent meaning and is, therefore, absurd. In a way, this might be a reason for despair,
that can lead us to end our own lives. But Camus stated that a meaningless universe
is actually an opportunity to free ourselves from the shackles of hope and experience existence
more fully. The Danish philosopher Kierkegaard longed
for a purpose that he could live and die for. Also, he struggled with the fact that a great
deal of existence cannot be rationally explained, and therefore, we have to find something outside
ourselves to hold on to; something that gives us clarity and guidance in the face of the
unknown. He found that religion is the answer and that
we should take a leap faith, by embracing this higher purpose as the ultimate meaning
of life, even though there’s no solid proof of its validity. Such an embrace may solve the problem and
end our existential angst, but it comes with a price. “Philosophical suicide,” is what Albert
Camus called the solution of faith. Camus had quite a different approach to the
uncertainty of existence. He acknowledged that reason has its limits
and that what goes beyond our understanding is indeed inscrutable. Moreover, he believed that life is meaningless
and that all forms of meaning that we give to it are nothing more than constructs of
the human mind. There’s no proof that the universe has a
meaning that transcends it. And if it has, we simply don’t know it as
we speak. As he states in his philosophical essay The
Myth of Sisyphus: I don’t know whether this world has a meaning
that transcends it. But I know that I do not know that meaning
and that it is impossible for me just now to know it. What can a meaning outside my condition mean
to me? I can understand only in human terms. End quote. Thus he concluded that the only honest observation
that we can make about the world is that it’s meaningless. There are no universal values, there’s no
divine plan, and everything happens randomly. Hence, life is absurd. But what did Camus mean with the absurd? Did he mean that we, humans, are absurd beings? Or that the world that surrounds us is absurd
in itself? Well, he meant neither. The predicament we face as humans is that
we are rational beings with a strong desire to create order and clarity, and give meaning
to life, while we are part of an irrational and indifferent universe. The response of such a universe to the human
cry for meaning is nothing more than silence. This confrontation is what Camus called the
Absurd. It’s the fact that we keep trying to make
something out of this universe, to understand the riddle, to give meaning to its ways, but
as soon as we think we grasped it, it slides through our fingers like water. The realization that we are a bunch of primates
living on a rock in an endless universe that is indifferent to us, and that after a hundred
years our lives will be forgotten, and that our planet won’t survive anyway because
sooner or later it will be swallowed by the Sun, could lead someone to despair. But there’s no proof that our existence
is otherwise. Also, when we look at the repetitiveness of
our lives, and this culturally accepted path that we’re all expected to take from birth
to the grave, we might start to wonder and think: what’s the point of all this? This is when one becomes aware of the absurdity
of it all, as Camus stated and I quote: Rising, streetcar, four hours in the office
or the factory, meal, streetcar, four hours of work, meal, sleep, and Monday Tuesday Wednesday
Thursday Friday and Saturday according to the same rhythm – this path is easily followed
most of the time. But one day the “why” arises and everything
begins in that weariness tinged with amazement.” End quote. So, why are we here? What’s the point? Trying to find rational explanations for these
questions in an irrational and indifferent world is absurd. And according to Camus, the Absurd cannot
be negated. This means that we can react to it in two
ways: we can live it or we escape from it. Many clever people have exploited this human
tendency to long for meaning, by creating ready-made answers to satisfy any philosophical
and existential question and use them as tools for control. These may come in the form of religion, but
there are also secular, substitutes that attribute meaning to existence. For example, the Nazi-belief in a master-race
that is destined to rule over all other races, or the sacralization of national identity,
which makes the act of serving one’s country an ultimate concern. Or the belief in Karma, which, isn’t always
valid, when we see that many bad people get away with their deeds and live happily, and
many good people are faced with misfortune. The problem with all these approaches is that
we set our rationality aside, and choose to believe in things that lack proof and rational
explanations or even go against our own experiences. Hence, Camus called this philosophical suicide,
which is just a way to elude the Absurd by replacing the uncertainty of existence with
a set of manmade beliefs. A more direct approach to escape the Absurd
is the act of physical suicide, which, according to Camus, is the only one really serious philosophical
problem. But the issue with this approach is that we
basically succumb to the Absurd, admitting that the confrontation with meaninglessness
and experiences of hopelessness is too much for us. Now, in order to not fall into one of these
traps, and live life despite its absurdity, we ought to ask ourselves the following question:
is a hopeless life in a universe without a meaning that transcends it necessarily wrong? According to Camus, it isn’t. In fact, a world without meaning is an opportunity
to let go of all illusions of meaning, so the harsh reality comes to the surface. And instead of despairing because of that,
we can choose to see the silver lining. When there’s no last judgment nor an afterlife, it means that we can focus completely on this life. When there are no transcendent morals and
values, it means that we can create our own. When our time on earth is limited, along with
our perception and knowledge of it, we might as well make the best of it, and have a nice,
hot, cup of coffee. Camus believed that we shouldn’t just accept
the Absurd: we should revolt against it. Because even though we’re powerless and
ignorant towards the greater picture, we do have control over our faculties. And the only way to be free in unfreedom is
through rebellion, by fully using the power that we have: that of thought and action. According to Camus, the Absurd Hero lives
life to the fullest in the face of the Absurd. Despite the invitation from death, he will
not end his own life, no matter if it’s philosophical or physical. And even if this means a life of despair,
he chooses despair. Living an Absurd life means indifference to
the future, the rejection of hope, and a lucid experience of what’s happening in the moment. I quote: Hence what he demands of himself is to live
solely with what he knows, to accommodate himself to what is and to bring in nothing
that is not certain. He is told that nothing is. But this at least is a certainty. And it is with this that he is concerned:
he wants to find out if it’s possible to live without appeal. End quote. Living without appeal means living in the
present moment with the full awareness of the Absurd and not wanting anything more from
a conceptual future. To imagine what it’s like to live without
appeal, Camus pointed to the Greek mythological figure Sisyphus, who was the founder and king
of Ephyra, and also quite a deceitful person. He made the mistake to challenge the Gods
and was punished for that and condemned to push a rock uphill, that rolled down every
time it neared the top, and to repeat this process for eternity. Sisyphus existence is so meaningless and hopeless,
that trying to give his repetitive action any meaning is totally absurd. And there’s key. Living without appeal means that it isn’t
necessary that our actions lead to something better in the future. The meaning lies in the act itself, which
is sufficient to be content in a hopeless life. The Gods based the punishment of Sisyphus
on the idea that there’s nothing more dreadful than endless and futile labor. But this simply depends on the position we
take towards that. So, what if we imagine Sisyphus happy? What if one finds joy in despair, and refuses
to bow for the misery that life throws at us. Because is there anything more rebellious
than to actually find joy in what’s supposed to be our punishment? Thank you for watching.
Love Enzelganger.
A really great explanation.