Explanation of the Thought of Sartre, the "Greatest Intellectual Giant of the 20th Century".
今日は実存主義哲学を完成させた20世紀最も驚異的な知の巨人、ジャン＝ポール・シャルル・エマール・サルトルとその哲学について解説します。(English) Today I will explain Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre, the most incredible intellectual giant of the 20th century, who perfected existentialist philosophy and his philosophy.
[Complete Existentialist Philosophy] Explanation of the Thought of Sartre, the "Greatest Intellectual Giant of the 20th Century".
//Summary -Level-C2//
Jean-Paul Sartre, a prominent 20th-century intellectual, is renowned for his existentialist philosophy. His philosophy emphasises human freedom, hope, and the approach to life. Sartre's ideas significantly influenced French and Japanese politics, and his followers spanned all ages and genders. His existentialist philosophy, which he perfected, questions human existence, freedom, and the way to live a fulfilling life. Sartre's philosophy is also characterised by the "Engagement" concept, which encourages individuals to actively accept their otherness, transcend it, and liberate themselves. This concept has been widely accepted in social movements. Despite his philosophy's complexity, Sartre's ideas provide practical wisdom and techniques that can be applied in everyday life.
//Summary-Level-B2//
A renowned 20th-century philosopher, Jean-Paul Sartre is celebrated for his existentialist philosophy. His ideas revolve around human freedom, hope, and how we approach life. Sartre's philosophy is rooted in the belief that "existence precedes essence," meaning that humans exist before they find or create their purpose. He also posits that humans are "condemned to freedom," highlighting the duality of freedom as both liberating and burdensome. Sartre's philosophy encourages individuals to actively accept and challenge the existence of the other, a concept he termed "Engagement." This engagement is not limited to political participation but includes artistic activity and labour. His philosophy is a call to action for individuals to redefine themselves and their futures, despite societal judgments and expectations.
//Summary-Level-A2//
Jean-Paul Sartre, a renowned 20th-century philosopher, is known for his existentialist philosophy. He believed humans are born without purpose or meaning, a concept he referred to as "existence precedes essence". Sartre emphasised that humans have the freedom to define themselves, but this freedom is often hindered by societal expectations and the gaze of others, a phenomenon he termed "alienation". He proposed "Engagement" as a solution, actively accepting and challenging societal norms to create one's identity. Sartre's philosophy encourages individuals to embrace their freedom and live authentically.
1)
Today I will explain Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre, the most incredible intellectual giant of the 20th century, who perfected existentialist philosophy and his philosophy.
Do you know the philosopher Sartre?
He also came to Japan in 1966. At that time, Japan became a social phenomenon. And the translated books are also bestsellers, despite the super-esoteric foreign literature.
Sartre's philosophy is worthy of study by all humanity. If you don't know Sartre, today is your lucky day.
His philosophy has the power to change lives. This is because Sartre thought deeply about human freedom, hope and how to face life, and he was a person who lived that way himself.
2)
Is there a Sartre in you when you are in trouble? This will change your life.
I want to talk about Sartre's overview of what was great about Sartre.
A) What was the big deal?
B) Sartre's too-attractive human figure
C) The essence of Sartre's philosophy.
A) What was the big deal?
3)
First, I would like to discuss the big picture and the conclusion. As for how amazing Sartre was, in an era before the Internet or SNS, he continued to influence not only his home country of France but also Japan and the rest of the world, reigning until he died as the most influential person of the 20th century. That's how much his philosophy and personality had the magical power to attract people. That is the great thing about Sartre.
Sartre was an existentialist philosopher, teacher, novelist and playwright who lived up to that title until his death.
Sartre's ideas moved French and Japanese politics, and men and women of all ages followed his every move.
His philosophy is a profound search for human freedom, hope and how we approach life.
What is human existence? What is freedom? How should man live? The philosophy that deals with these issues is called existentialist philosophy.
4)
This way of thinking began with Kierkegaard as a counter-culture to Descartes, Kant and Hegel's rational pursuit of "what is the truth of the world" as "rationalist philosophy".
"What will happen if we continue to chase after the truth of the world that may one day be revealed?"
The philosophy of existentialism is that the more important question is: "How can an individual who is 'real' now live a happy life?
In the previous video, I also commented on the same existentialist philosopher, Nietzsche.
His philosophy also gives me the courage to live very much and provides us with a revelation of what life is.
Sartre is considered the most critical intellectual giant of the 20th century as the person who perfected this existentialist philosophy.
I have completed this philosophical thought on what every human must do to live a happy life.
What is human existence? What is freedom? How can I acquire it and make myself happy?
To all these questions, Sartre gives his answers, taking up and criticising the thoughts of previous philosophers.
5)
I think this is a subject we worry about every day.
A job you don't want to do every day, a person you don't want to be with, and yourself not getting what you want.
I'm so exhausted from all this that I don't have the energy to do anything new on my days off.
I want to do something but don't know the correct answer.
I'm afraid to step out of my comfort zone for stability. I don't know what to do with my life.
I want to know more about Sartre's philosophy. Let's learn together.
B) Sartre's too-attractive human figure
6)
Before I talk about Sartre's philosophy, I would like to explain what kind of person Sartre was.
There is a reason why I speak of this character.
Tons of books have been written about Sartre's philosophy. But very few people understand Sartre's philosophy.
Although it is a book, many books are written with misunderstandings and books that only scratch the surface. It is said that Sartre advocated the concept of "engagement" and called for political participation and that Sartre inspired young "nomads" and initiated student movements.
It is widely believed that Sartre was a communist.
7)
This misunderstanding is because we do not understand Sartre's life.
What was the context of Sartre's words?
What kind of life did Sartre lead, and in what environment did he create his philosophy?
If you leave these parts out, you miss an important message.
This is because Sartre's thoughts changed to some extent throughout his life, and he is divided into "early Sartre" and "postscript Sartre", and the topics he talks about are also comprehensive.
So if you look at each statement separately, you can't see the wood for the trees, and in the end, you don't know what he was trying to say.
8)
I want to give you Sartre's philosophy not as a superficial philosophical commentary but as practical wisdom and techniques that can be used today.
So let me begin with "his qualities" and "his background".
From now on, I will explain Sartre's nationality, attributes, manner of death, appearance, friendships, personality, growth environment, etc.
First, nationality. His real name is Jean-Paul Sartre. He is a Frenchman and a Parisian, born in Paris.
His attributes are those of a philosopher, but he was also a teacher, a novelist and a playwright. And above all, he always made his position clear and spread it, making him the world's number one "influencer".
9)
On the death of Sartre.
Sartre died on 15 April 1980 at the age of 74.
His wife spent the night with his body in the hospital, where he died.
When Sartre's body was taken from the hospital to the cemetery, 50,000 people gathered to bid him farewell.
A woman shouted when the undertaker asked family members to step forward as the coffin was removed from the hospital. "We're all family," she said.
How could so many people love him?
10)
Speaking of philosophers, it should be a pattern that in his later years, he became mentally ill and was sent to a mental hospital.
I'll explain later why so many people loved him so much.
Then there are his looks.
As far as Sartre's appearance is concerned, he was, by his admission, an ugly man. He was 153 cm tall, relatively short for a Frenchman, his fingers were scarce, and his hair thinned in his later years.
More characteristically, he was "extremely cross-eyed", having lost sight in his right eye at three.
I'll post a picture of him, but he was like this. This is Sartre. His right eye is turned entirely outwards.
11)
Sartre was not good-looking but lived a life of being admired and loved.
Women loved him, and beautiful women always surrounded him. That is what makes Sartre so interesting.
Then there is the question of friendship. All his life, women surrounded him. He always takes beautiful women with him, so in interviews, why are you with beautiful women?
Sartre replied that since he was ugly, it would be a problem if the woman with him was not beautiful.
12)
He was so attracted to women because he was brilliant and very persuasive.
And his wife is also brilliant and beautiful.
Sartre's wife is Simone de Beauvoir, a leading figure in the feminist movement who wrote "The Second Sex".
She said: "You are not born a woman; you become a woman."
His wife was also a philosopher - a couple of philosophers.
And Sartre and Beauvoir did not marry; they had a contractual relationship. It was a lifelong partnership contract. This is the French way.
Christianity is robust in France, and divorce is complicated.
Till death do us part, it works.
13)
The system of de facto marriage and PACS is now widely accepted in France without having to register. It is a system that can receive social security in the same way as marriage.
It can be said that the relationship between the two at that time was the forerunner of this system.
Even more interesting is Sartre's pickup line. "Our love is inevitable, but we also need to know accidental love".
In other words, do we want to date on the condition that we can have an affair? That is what it means.
Surprisingly, she accepted that condition.
And after that, they lived in the entire exercise of their right to love.
14)
Sartre and Beauvoir's love was real.
They remained alive and well until death did them part.
Although they went out with other people, they always loved each other, wrote letters, went out together and enjoyed intellectual conversations.
Commonly, love a person without looking away. Even if you don't do that, if that love is real, it doesn't decay and is beautiful. They give us that insight.
15)
Even after he became famous as a thinker, Sartre wrote in a local café called Saint-Germain-des-Prés.
And sometimes, he would gather young people around his seat and have philosophical discussions.
He was called "the Pope of Saint-Germain-de-Pres" because those around him adored him.
To describe Sartre's personality in one word, he is a "rebel".
More innovative than conservative. Free of discipline.
When he was a teacher, he could take off his tie. He and his students could also smoke. We will discuss your opinion rather than tell you. Let's have a drink when we're finished! That was the feeling.
He likes artificial food like sausages, ham and cakes. On the other hand, he hates natural things. He hates shellfish and raw food.
16)
Sartre wrote a novel called Nausée(Nausea).
The first time this "La Nausée(Nausea)" author vomited was when he ate sashimi in Japan.
He hated crustaceans because he had hallucinations of crustaceans crawling around his body when he took drugs.
Sartre lost his father at a young age and went to live with his intellectual relatives. He spent his time there reading, surrounded by books. It seems to have been a pleasant time.
It seems he didn't move his body or play outside.
There is a view that this self-image of a "fatherless child" leads to Sartre's atheistic existentialism.
17)
Summarise Sartre's personality.
He is an intelligent Parisian who loves artificial things and hates nature.
He expresses his opinions on everything from teachers to novels to plays.
He hates being forced to do anything.
I'm ugly, but with "golden rhetoric", I can create a harem surrounded by beautiful women.
But the one I love the most is Castor. (Nickname of Simone de Beauvoir)
Urban is super intelligent.
A naughty and kind personality.
By the way, "Castor" was her nickname for Beauvoir, who called her that all her life.
She is Beaver (English), a play on the spelling of Beauvoir, and Castor is the French word for beaver.
C) Explain the essence of Sartre's philosophy.
18)
And the last topic. A short introduction to Sartre's philosophy.
We will move on to his commentary on what Sartre, full of such charm, said throughout his life.
Again, I'll give you his philosophy in one sentence.
He thoroughly clarified his opinion on "human existence is freedom, hope, and how to face life" and continued disseminating it.
From now on, he will clarify Sartre's philosophy by commenting on the quotations and keywords left by Sartre.
19)
This is Sartre's philosophy, and one of his famous words is: "Existentialism is humanism."
Humanism is a term that refers to anthropocentrism, and Sartre believes that there are two kinds of anthropocentrism.
One is the worship of humanity, and the other is reason-admiring.
Anthropocentrism is an idea that thinks about things from human-centred humanity, assuming that human beings are the pinnacle of living things and that they are the rulers of the earth.
On the other hand, reason-admiring humanism believes in human reason. It assumes that by using the power of reason, human beings can realise their ideals and improve the world with their hands concerning the natural and social environment.
20)
Sartre criticised humanism in his "La Nausée(Nausea)".
Nevertheless, after the Second World War, he said his philosophy was humanism.
Many people point to self-contradiction and self-deception in this regard.
But this remark is misplaced.
Suppose you know more or less about the two types of humanism that Sartre mentioned earlier. In that case, you can say that Sartre's statement is not self-contradiction but a challenge to arrogant anthropocentrism. I hope you understand that he has made this statement a philosophy of freedom and hope.
21)
Sartre is famous for saying that "existence precedes essence".
This is the first proposition of Sartre's philosophy.
Let me first explain the terminology.
What is existence?
Please think of it as the "existence of reality itself" before giving it meaning.
What is there now? Existence itself.
What is the essence?
What is it made of, and what is it for?
He is referring to these invisible "natures of things".
It is important to note that Sartre was an "atheist".
He is someone who believes that there is no God.
Nietzsche is famous for saying, "God is dead".
22)
"Existence precedes essence."
Now this existence of God leads to the famous assertion of the title, "Existence precedes essence".
In other words, most things around us are created with a "purpose" in mind.
23)
Sartre uses the paper-knife as an example.
Open the letter.
Cut the paper.
Avoid cutting your hand by accident.
Rooted in such a purpose, artisans make knives with slightly dull blades.
This is the way of things, where "essence precedes existence".
24)
But what about humans?
If God exists, then humans are like paper knives.
It was made with a purpose.
Or perhaps the purpose itself was to relieve boredom by creating a human being.
It can be said that "essence precedes existence". It is in the same state as a paper-knife.
But Sartre is an atheist, so he does not assume the existence of God.
25)
Therefore, human existence is "created and existed in this world before the meaning of purpose".
In other words, he argued that "man and life originally have no purpose or meaning''.
This is Sartre's claim that "existence precedes essence".
This state of being is called 'being thrown into the world'.
26)
Next comes another famous story: "Man is condemned to freedom".
Sartre's famous words are the second proposition of Sartre's philosophy.
This proposition is very famous.
Man is condemned to freedom, which, by using paradoxical expressions, beautifully expresses the duality of "freedom" in one line.
I will explain freedom.
The first theorem, "Existence precedes essence", is a step forward.
"Human existence has no meaning".
At the same time, "Man has reason and free will".
Then man can "define himself by his own will".
This is the aspect of freedom that Sartre talks about. We are free.
Accept the "projected nature" and throw yourself independently into the future.
This is called a "project".
27)
Projet in French.
Project in English.
PRO means "forward".
JECT means "throw".
Projectors are called projectors.
It's the difference between throwing light onto a screen and throwing yourself into the future.
28)
Next, I will explain the word "punishment" instead of freedom.
The word punishment is a symbol of compulsion.
It means that you are forced to be punished irresistibly.
This is the contradiction.
People are free; they are forced to be free.
This is the negative side of freedom.
You make your own decisions and take full responsibility for them.
That's why I'm always worried. And only you can decide your own life.
I'm always lonely because other people don't decide for me.
29)
Sartre's novel "Nausée(Nausea)" has a sentence like this.
"I am alone, and alone and free. But this freedom is a little like death. "
Do you also do your homework at school or play outside?
Get a job or start a business? Become a civil servant?
Would you be brave enough to tell someone you love? Should I keep my thoughts in my heart?
Do you want to see the fireworks from below or from the side?
You must have experienced various lonely conflicts and destiny choices.
It's up to me what to do. Free but painful. It hurts because you are free.
In this one sentence, Sartre perfectly expresses the duality of freedom, the "wonderfulness", and the "severity".
30)
Now I have spoken of how people can define themselves according to their will.
But here I want to talk about the existence that prevents this: it is the other.
It is also the gaze of others.
I'll explain what I mean.
Sartre says that there are three ways of being.
There are three: "being in itself", "being for itself", and "being for others".
31)
First of all, "Being-in-itself" refers to existence. Reality itself.
That is, it exists now.
On the other hand, "Being-for-itself" is "self-awareness." It's who you think you are.
And "be-for-others'' is "the image of oneself by others''. It is an image of how others view you.
32)
Next, I will explain "alienation".
Immediately there is self-existence, and later one's own will defines one's essence (self-existence). This is not a problem because it is human free will.
But the problem is "be-for-others". In other words, it is an image imposed by someone else. You cannot control this with your own free will.
Part of my being belongs to someone else.
Sartre thought that this was done by "the gaze of others".
The way others see themselves. It is the moment when others irresistibly steal one's existence.
This is called alienation.
Sartre said in one of his plays, "Hell is other people".
33)
Moreover, Sartre sees not only the gaze of the other but also society, laws, regulations, language and so-called history as a "network of otherness" that robs you of yourself.
Society, the world, defines itself faster and more robustly than one's own free will.
This leads me to the idea that the greatest obstacle to creating one's essence through free will is "the world itself".
34)
Human beings are born with a conflict caused by the world's gaze.
Isn't that what we feel every day?
For example, sentences like:
You're over twenty now, so be independent.
Men don't whine; let men carry heavy things.
If a woman gets married, she'll leave the company anyway so she won't be promoted to a regular employee.
Even if I did, I would lower my salary.
Unless you join a leading company, you are a loser.
As a worker, if you don't have your own business, you don't know the rules of capitalism.
Are you old and not married yet? You're 30, right?
35)
I can't help it. It cannot be controlled.
First of all, I was labelled and more and more cut off.
Of course, Sartre has prepared a way to fight against "the privatisation of the self by the other" and "the conflict of the gaze". Let's learn quickly.
36)
First, I would like to divide this problem of "alienation" into two parts.
Is it a "negative label" or a "discrimination against an immovable reality"?
For negative labels, for example:
You're an idiot.
You are incompetent.
It would be best if you took responsibility.
It's meaning and labelling from others.
37)
In this case, a healthy effort will work:
I'm not stupid.
I am not incompetent because I have achieved results.
You are the boss, so take responsibility.
You can deny the label simply by speaking and acting like this.
38)
And the problem is the other one.
In the case of discrimination against immovable reality, this isn't comforting.
For example:
I discriminate against Black. I determine because you're Yellow people.
I discriminate against LGBT.
Make fun of lousy style.
Make fun of your parents' job.Such discrimination cannot be denied.
You can't control facts that have already been established.
Therefore, when tainted as "low things, bad things", there is no choice but to "accept" it.
39)
The average wage for women is 30% lower.
She was born into a Christian family, so she shouldn't like same-sex people.
If you are born into a capitalist society, you have no choice but to win the competition or be miserably exploited.
It is OK.
Sartre can win freedom by inventing this "how to accept".
It is possible to create one's own life by free will, by overcoming the eyes of others and otherness.
He gave us the weapon of wisdom.
What is this wisdom? Finally, we come to the essence of Sartre's philosophy.
40)
"Engagement"
This is the core of Sartre's atheistic, existentialist philosophy.
From the moment you are born, your existence is exposed to the gaze of others and thus to the context of history.
How should we rescue our existence from the web of otherness and gain freedom? The answer is engagement.
First of all, engagement is literal.
Engagement can be interpreted as a demand to voluntarily accept one's otherness, transcend it, and liberate oneself.
The approach of "sublimating the self to a new dimension by voluntarily accepting and integrating the gap between the self-possessed self and self-knowledge" is very close to Hegel's dialectic.
The common denominator is that both believe in human reason and are optimistic humanists.
41)
Now let me explain the literal meaning of engagement.
Translated, it means "Restrain yourself. Engage".
It's the French word for commitment in English.
In English, commitment is closer in meaning.
Sometimes it is interpreted as "a person who is like Superman", but this is a mistake.
It refers to the act of "committing" itself.
42)
Meaning of Sartre
I am actively assuming and challenging the existence of the other through the presence of the self.
He is attracted to others with an inferiority complex, and instead of accepting them, he takes them out of his own will.
This is the difference between passive and active acceptance.
Examples of passive acceptance are:
Clothing manufacturers hire foreign models.
Europeans are tall, with blond hair and high noses, and beautiful.
Japanese have short legs and black hair. Uncool.
This is a destructive pattern of "passive acceptance of other existence".
43)
On the other hand, let us look at what is meant by "active acceptance" (Engagement).
The book "What is Existentialism?" cites the 1930s French literary movement "Négritude" as a good example.
It is a movement that actively accepts blackness and recognises the positive value of being black, taking pride in having black skin and being descended from an ancient African civilisation, and resisting the eyes of discrimination against blacks.
This also led to America's black civil rights movement in the 1960s.
The slogan "Black is beautiful" is a symbol of engagement.44)
There is a constant erosion between "self-existence" and "other-existence".
If you leave it alone, your self-image will gradually erode into the image of others.
I'm being eroded more and more, and I'm not myself.
Therefore we must continue to erode the existence of other beings who continue to be born.
You can't kill. Instead, erode, digest and assimilate.
To be aware and to acknowledge the existence of others, and instead to try to become one on a higher level, is the struggle for freedom, and this struggle is freedom.
45)
Engagement is now an accepted term for social movements.
Sartre was a dissident, involved in political movements, and supported France and the student movement.
However, as Sartre said, engagement means " going quickly to the world in which one is subjectively placed" and "establishing subjectivity against other existences", no matter how far one goes.
As a result, they have been associated with political activity, but political participation is only one form of engagement.
46)
What kind of engagement is there other than political participation?
Sartre speaks through the main character Rocantan in "La Nausée(Nausea)", and like himself; his artistic activity is also a great Engagement.
And labour. According to Marx, workers can have agency over their work, no matter how they are exploited or alienated from it.
To strive for better products and better services based on our aspirations.
This is the engagement of labour.
47)
From this, you can understand that Sartre was not an "intellectual terrorist" or a "demagogue" trying to disrupt society.
Most philosophical books often present Sartre as "a philosopher who argued for the importance of social participation".
Sartre had the following questions:
What is human existence?
What is freedom?
What is hope?
How should I struggle until I have it?
He is a philosopher who, with a prominent mind and the kindness of a humanist, has given humanity great wisdom on these subjects that plague us all.
48)
Sartre also said:
Thrown into the web of otherness. That is the fate of human existence.
But man is a self-defining being, and his nature is defined by throwing himself into the future.
If that is not hope, what is?
49)
Born into a capitalist society.
Born as a man. Born a woman.
Born into a wealthy family. Born into a low-income family.
Born white. Born black. Born of the yellow race.
To be a lesbian. To be gay.
Parents, schools, companies and the stock market are judging us.
Let's take it. And beyond that, let's create a new self for ourselves.
50)
It is not essential to revolutionise society through political participation.
It is the power to re-examine the fragmented and alienated self, to reform oneself from there, and to throw oneself towards the desired future.
It is the power to revolutionise oneself in front of society and the world.
Accept the gaze of others. Dare to approach it and swallow it. And let's go one step further.
And let's live while enjoying the "freedom" of fighting for the realisation of "freedom".
That is how the world moves forward. Let's call that hope.
That's how we live.
From the moment of birth, human beings are dismembered and alienated.
Return the missing piece, find a replacement, or make it yourself.
Life is like that, a struggle to take back with your own hands the reins of your life that were stolen from you the moment you were born.
51)
Paradoxically, "struggle with the hope of freedom. The process of self-expression is freedom itself".
Freedom lies in the struggle between society, the world's gaze and self-image.
I feel that Sartre, a rebel against the regime, said this.
I would be thrilled if Sartre, the "interlocutor of freedom and hope", lived in you after reading this article.
[Complete Existentialist Philosophy] Explanation of the Thought of Sartre, the "Greatest Intellectual Giant of the 20th Century".
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MHEYwrD0-Pc
100th Anniversary of Beauvoir, the Standard Bearer of Feminism, Emerging "Light and Shadow."
https://www.afpbb.com/articles/-/2334580
What is Conscience?-Heidegger's Being and Time
https://naruhoudou.com/was-ist-das-gewissen/
Sartre "La Nausée(Nausea)" philosophy
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X9OffXh1vjg
"I am taking a walk. The moon has just risen. Useless, idle, and somewhat empty. Then you suddenly think, "Something happened.". It could be a faint squeak in the darkness or a silhouette lightly crossing the road. But this insignificant event is unlike any other. It is immediately seen as the forerunner of something big and shapeless, shrouded in mist. So people still say to themselves, "Something is about to begin."
Written by Jean-Paul Sartre, translated by Michihiko Suzuki, from "La Nausée(Nausea)."