Your job for today, in the Library, is to create good notes the information below paying particular attention to the bolded terms. In many cases you will need to refer to the Internet beyond this blog entry.
In addition to that, you are to include in your notes the following:
Who are the main philosophers who adhere to these theories?
Can you find direct quotes linking them to these theories?
What links to your life and/or society in general are there (examples).
Three key terms in ontology are substance, individuals and universals. Substance refers to the essential reality of something that is independent, unchanging and can exist by itself. For example, in a monist reality (one substance) most philosophers cite God or Being as that substance. In a dualist reality (two substances or more) philosophers generally focus on bodies and minds.
Individuals are distinct, independent, singular entities (for example, you, a strawberry, a train) whereas universals are separate proprieties of an individual. For example, you are tall but your friend is taller. Tallness, then, is a universal since it can be in multiple places at one time and is used to differentiate individuals. Colour too can be a universal.
Before Proceeding, take a moment to create a list of 10 other universals. This will be helpful when you begin tackling the "mind/body" problem later in this activity.
3. Existentialism (or Me, Me, Me!)
Have you ever thought:
"How did I get into the world? Why was I not asked about it and why was I not informed of the rules and regulations, but just thrust into the ranks as if I had been bought by a peddling 'shanghaier' of human beings? How did I get involved in this big enterprise called actuality? Why should I be involved? Isn't it a matter of choice? And if I am compelled to be involved, where is the manager-I have something to say about this! Is there no manager? To whom shall I make my complaint?" (Young Man in Kierkegarrd's Repetition)
If so, you might be an existentialist! Existentialism centres on the idea that "existence precedes essence", which was captured byJean-Paul Sartre. However, existentialism itself was conceived a century earlier by noted philosophers Soren Kierkegaard and Freidrich Nietzsche. .
Summarizing existentialism is easy: the individual defines reality, often within a hostile and indifferent world. But, as you know from the earlier activities, reducing existentialism to a single sentence is only the tip of the philosophical iceberg.
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| Fred Nietzsche |
4. Nihilism
After all of that if you are feeling adrift and questioning life's purpose, fear not! In fact, fear nothing as Nietzsche might suggest...
Nihilism is the "belief" that life has no meaning whatsoever. A nihilist wouldn't argue that life doesn't exist, just that it has no purpose, meaning or universal values. Some might argue that Shakespeare's Macbeth was a nihilist when he lamented "Life's but a walking shadow, a poor player that struts and frets his hour upon the stage and then is heard no more; it is a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing." And further evidence of nihilism in literature can be found in post-1860s Russian literature (Turgenev's Fathers and Sons Dostoevsky's Crime and Punishment) and the Hollywood movies, The Big Lebowski and Fight Club.
But don't lose all hope. Even Nietzsche noted that "I praise, I do not reproach, [nihilism's] arrival. I believe it is one of the greatest crises, a moment of the deepest self-reflection of humanity. Whether man recovers from it, whether he becomes master of this crisis, is a question of his strength!".
Did You Know?Evidence of nihilism in modern day Hollywood films can be found in popular movies.
In director David Fincher's Fight Club, the film opens with a monotone narrative, as dreary as the life that Jack (the main character) lives. Jack has been taught everything the world tells him is necessary to achieve popular notions of happiness. He has a great job, an upscale apartment, sharp clothes, and an automobile. Yet Jack is not happy. In truth, deep down Jack is fading away and he is helpless to do anything about it. He cannot sleep properly, he doesn't eat, in fact Jack is just an empty shell going through the motions of life. His entire life he has been told by mainstream society what he needs to be happy. Why should he continue to accept these beliefs when they are actually killing him.
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Did You Know?Evidence of nihilism in modern day Hollywood films can be found in popular movies.
The Big Lebowski (1998) is a comedy film that examines a few days in the life of a burned out, unemployed slacker, known as the Dude, who is in the process of allowing life to drift by, when he is mistakenly identified as a millionaire with the same name (Jefferey Lebowski).
The Dude, who finds himself in the middle of an elaborate kidnapping plot, must repeatedly throughout the film face down a group German nihilists modelled after the band Kraftwerk: "We believe in no-zhing, Lebowski. No-zhing."
As the movie nears its end, The Dude sums up his situation and philosophy with the phrase, "The Dude abides".
In director David Fincher's Fight Club, the film opens with a monotone narrative, as dreary as the life that Jack (the main character) lives. Jack has been taught everything the world tells him is necessary to achieve popular notions of happiness. He has a great job, an upscale apartment, sharp clothes, and an automobile. Yet Jack is not happy. In truth, deep down Jack is fading away and he is helpless to do anything about it. He cannot sleep properly, he doesn't eat, in fact Jack is just an empty shell going through the motions of life. His entire life he has been told by mainstream society what he needs to be happy. Why should he continue to accept these beliefs when they are actually killing him.
Eventually Jack meets an interesting and twisted character named Tyler Durden, who helps Jack realize that everything is wrong with his life.
Through Tyler, Jack slowly develops Jack into a nihilist, until he rejects everything he has ever been taught about what is necessary to enjoy a successful and happy life. As you watch the film try to identify the many ways Jack comes to reject pop culture (You are not your job. You are not the money in your bank account. You are not the car you drive. You are not how much money is in your wallet. You are not your clothes). Jack comes to realize all of his possessions only make his life experience empty. Jack now loathes his former 'happy' life. The numbness he once felt with life turns to anger and excitement, which is channeled within "Fight Club", a secret place where confused men meet to do battle as pit fighters. Nihilism brings life to Jack and his band of characters within Fight Club. The obstacles that once plagued him are swept away; he achieves good sleep for the first time in years. Life does not become perfect for Jack, and there are many continuing trials, but by the film's end Jack sees new hope after living a nihilistic life. Consider a trip to your local video store and viewing these acclaimed motion pictures to see how the concept of a nihilistic approach to everyday modern life, is highly feasible.
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