Jean Paul Sartre Philosophy

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What originally drew me to Jean-Paul Sartre was his ideas about freedom and choice. Over the year we have read many different philosophies, but up until recently most of them included some sort of God or force that can’t be proven. Since I don’t believe in any God, it was hard to pick out points that I agreed with, since most of the time, the philosophies were rooted in or used God as a given. As an atheist, Jean-Paul Sartre seemed like he was worth looking into. While there are other atheistic philosophers, Jean-Paul Sartre’s philosophy seemed to have few or close to no holes. His ideas about freedom, responsibility, and defining ourself seemed to be exactly what I was thinking or an extrapolation of it. These ideas have helped me better understand my actions as well as others. Additionally, they have encouraged me to pursue my passions. I. “Life has no meaning a priori. Life itself is nothing until it is lived, it is we who give it meaning, and value is nothing more than the meaning we give it” (Satre 51). Within this statement, Jean-Paul Sartre is making points about a number of things. He discusses freedom and choice, but also makes the point that we have the power to create ourselves because our acts define us and we freely choose our actions. In January this year, I was trying to reconcile why I shouldn’t be angry or upset with people following religions. It seemed like people were wasting their lives because they were devoting it to a nonexistent being and believed in a sting of lies. However, that lead me to thinking about what is truly a waste of time and what is not. A number of philosophers will say that doing one thing is better than another. I always thought that being educated was better than not b... ... middle of paper ... ...ur dreams and other places, but you cannot know what it contains or control what goes in it. I believe that you have no control over your actions. However, the point Sartre is trying to make the unconscious is that you cannot your “unconscious” as an excuse. I think it is an excuse, but nonetheless you are responsible for your actions due to it. I disagree with him on the existence of the unconscious, but agree that you are still responsible for your actions, whether they derive from your unconscious or not. Jean-Paul Sartre has allowed me to understand my actions as well as others and realize how much my life is undetermined. The initial draw to him was his idea about the meaning of life. It resonated with me and my beliefs. Since reading his works, I have gained a greater understanding of my direction for my future and the possibilities that it holds.

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