“Mother died today. Or perhaps it was yesterday, I don’t know.” Albert Camus is the father of absurdism. He defined the absurd as the futility of a
search for meaning in an incomprehensible universe, devoid of meaning. In other words, absurdism arises out of the
tension between our desire for order, meaning and happiness and, on the other hand, the
indifferent natural universe's refusal to provide that. “You will never live if you are looking
for the meaning of life.” Camus believed that once we accept that there
is no meaning, the conflict between a desire for meaning and not finding one is resolved. Or at least that is what Google says. In my understanding what Camus was pondering
is how a creature that is run on meaning can emerge (and survive) in a universe devoid
of that substance. Indeed, an absurd situation. Well, I believe the second presupposition
of his question (that meaning does not exist in the universe) is incorrect. However, I could argue belief all day long
and we would not get anywhere. So, let us grant Camus the argument that meaning
is only illusory, and man simply makes it up. In essence, a quite classical dig at belief. How does one create meaning out of thin air? How can one convince oneself – fool oneself
– to see meaning where there is none? Can you, for example, persuade yourself that
a boring class is interesting? Or that a minimum wage job that you hate is
essential to your life’s purpose? Are you even capable of convincing yourself
that you like pickles when you do not? Even if you were to be brainwashed into liking
pickles, would not something deep inside scream in rebellion? I suppose the previous sentence can be turned
around against me. It can be said that precisely, strange man
on YouTube, we have brainwashed ourselves as a species to find (to imagine) microscopic,
ant-like meaning in life but deep inside we hear the sober screams of despair! “Ultimately, man should not ask what the
meaning of his life is, but rather must recognize that it is he who is asked. In a word, each man is questioned by life;
and he can only answer to life by answering for his own life; to life he can only respond
by being responsible.” - Viktor Frankl chimes in. Albert was right that one should not search
for meaning in life, but he stopped short of an answer which Frankl found. Camus, as brilliant a man as he was, never
seemed to find a way out of his adolescent thinking. It seems that he stopped at the first question
– whether to live – and never made it past that. “There is only one really serious philosophical
problem, and that is suicide.” This fascinating statement, which I like greatly
to be fair, symbolizes perfectly what I mean when trying to understand Camus. This quote screams rebellious adolescent thinking. “The only way to deal with an unfree world
is to become so absolutely free that your very existence is an act of rebellion” Perhaps
that is why his work resonates best with teenagers and young adults (he did with me as well). If you will excuse my absolutist statement;
the universe is completely devoid of meaning “only” for those who have not taken enough
responsibility for and in their life. Meaning shines forth; it is not to be created
or imagined. Meaning grips you suddenly and unexpectedly;
it is your horrifying task to now follow it. It is not you who needs to ask for the meaning
of life, rather you must answer. I do not wish to moralize or lecture you individuals
watching this video on how to live and I hope it does not come across as that. I only mean to counter Camus’ argument on
meaning. Anyway, I would like to take a necessary detour
and share my own experience with absurdism. I was enthralled with “The Myth of Sisyphus”
and trying to incorporate acceptance of the absurd had an unexpectedly relieving effect. For a while. Look, Camus’ observation about the absurdity
of human life looked at from the universe’s scale is eye-opening and largely correct. However, perhaps a human is not meant to constantly
evaluate things from the universe’s eyes but rather his own? Of course, everything is folly from that far! How do you yourself perceive the existence
of ants with your own eyes versus using a magnifying glass? Nevertheless, for argument’s sake let us
keep going. Camus’ answer to the problem of meaning
(if we disregard suicide) is to embrace the absurd. To stop trying to find meaning or purpose;
accept fate; embody Don Juan and experience all that is possible. After all, what else is there of life than
experiencing as much as possible? For some time, I accepted the absurd and tried
to live according to this experience everything philosophy. It went along with my own worldview well anyway. Until I read Irvin Yalom’s “Becoming Myself”
- a book that does not have anything to do with absurdism – and suddenly, everything
came crashing down. Yalom’s book is his autobiography; the memoirs
of a psychiatrist. In summary, Yalom lived an unfathomably productive
and successful life. It seemed to me that he experienced all that
a person – not to mention a psychologist - could hope for and I, a psychology student,
myself, related fully. However, as I finished the book a vacuum appeared. So, what if Yalom experienced everything? At the end of the book, he is 90-something
years old, and still, he faces death that seemingly will erase everything. So again, what of his experiences? They are now just sentences in a book. This is when the shallowness of absurdism
hit me. Boiling existence down to mere living for
living’s sake – that is the illusion. That is the fooling of oneself. It is the philosophy of adolescent, ego-centric,
hedonistic rebellion (and no wonder Camus used Don Juan as a symbol for it). It is the abandonment of responsibility; precisely
the opposite way to finding meaning. Yalom’s meaning in life was not his vast
experiences and memories; those will fade with him. His meaning (if it is not too conceited of
me to speak for him) is the huge family he fostered. It is the countless people that he bolstered
whether during his consultations or through his books and lectures. It is the imprint that he left on psychology
through his persistent and diligent work that now enlightens someone like me 50 years later. There is your meaning of life. You will not find it in yourself, meaning
is what is beyond your vain existence. Psychologically and symbolically this understanding
symbolizes the transition from adolescence into adulthood. Again, a transition which I do not believe
Camus made. Look, this essay - although I did not set
out to do so - turned out to be quite harsh on Camus. My criticism is not meant to discredit his
work, especially his novels. If anything, with the framework I put him
in, his novels stand as a brilliant encapsulation of a certain psychological developmental stage. My essay aside, his novels shine light on
a fundamental human problem and that is more than most authors are capable of. He himself was not as one-sided as I probably
have painted him here. You can find quotes of his that would contradict
my thoughts here. Camus was actively and genuinely wrestling
with the problem of meaning and shared the process. And that is what makes him great. Furthermore, it should not be expected of
a short video to encompass all of Camus’ work and even more so the whole of absurdism. My goal with writing these essays is to firstly
honestly try and answer questions for myself (for example, a question of why something
seems off with absurdism) and secondly - by sharing the results - to provide worthwhile
entertainment for you. In essence, I am doing the same as Camus did. With everything said, I believe everyone should
read Camus for themselves. Make your own conclusions. Happy rebelling.
