Existentialism
Tradition · 19th-20th century, developed mainly in Germany, France, and Denmark · Philosophy, stage 2: Map the schools
Existentialism is the loose tradition of philosophers who start from the concrete situation of an individual human existence rather than from abstract systems or a fixed human nature. Its central slogan, that existence precedes essence, means a person is not born with a built-in purpose; they exist first and define themselves through their choices afterward. Søren Kierkegaard is usually named as its religious forerunner, and Nietzsche's attack on inherited values shaped it heavily, though neither used the term. The tradition became a self-aware movement in mid-twentieth-century France through Jean-Paul Sartre and Simone de Beauvoir, who gave it its clearest statement and tied it explicitly to freedom, responsibility, and anxiety.
What it claims
- Existence precedes essence: humans have no fixed nature given in advance.
- Individuals are radically free and therefore responsible for what they make of themselves.
- This freedom produces anxiety, since there is no external authority to fall back on.
- Authentic living means owning your choices instead of hiding behind roles or social expectations.
- General theories of human nature miss what matters about individual existence.
Key ideas
People
Sources
- Existentialism Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
- Jean-Paul Sartre Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
- Søren Kierkegaard Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
