'The Myth of Sisyphus' and Existentialism (A2.2)

Name: Rajeshvariba Rana

Roll No: 16

Semester: 2 (Batch 2022-24)

Enrolment No. : 4069206420220023

Paper No: 107

Paper name: The 20th Century Lit. from WWII to the End of the Century

Paper code: 22400

Topic: 'The Myth of Sisyphus' and Existentialism

Submitted to: Smt. S.B. Gardi, Department of English, MKBU

Email Address: rhrana148@gmail.com

'The Myth of Sisyphus' and Existentialism

Albert Camus:

Albert Camus was a French philosopher, writer, and journalist who lived from 1913 to 1960. He was born in Algeria, which was then a French colony, and grew up in poverty. His father died when he was young, and he was raised by his mother and grandmother.

Camus was an excellent student and received a scholarship to study philosophy at the University of Algiers. He began his career as a journalist, working for various newspapers in Algeria and Paris. He also became involved in the French Resistance during World War II, and his experiences during this time influenced his writing and philosophy.

Camus was active in political and social causes in addition to his writing. For a time, he was a member of the French Communist Party, but he eventually lost faith in communism and became a vocal critic of Soviet-style socialism. He also advocated for human rights and spoke out against the use of the death penalty.

Camus died in a car accident in 1960 at the age of 46. He remains an important figure in 20th-century philosophy and literature, and his ideas continue to be studied and debated today.

Best Known works:

→ "The Stranger" (1942) - a novel that tells the story of Meursault, a French Algerian who kills an Arab man and is put on trial.
→ "The Myth of Sisyphus" (1942) - an essay in which Camus introduces his concept of the "absurd" and explores the question of whether life has any meaning or purpose.
→ "The Plague" (1947) - a novel that tells the story of a small town in Algeria that is hit by a deadly epidemic.
→ "The Rebel" (1951) - a philosophical essay in which Camus explores the idea of rebellion and the importance of individual freedom and choice.
→ "The Fall" (1956) - a novel in which a former judge named Jean-Baptiste Clamence reflects on his life and the moral choices he has made.
→ "Caligula" (1944) - a play that explores the theme of power and the corruption it can bring.
→ "The Just Assassins" (1949) - a play that tells the story of a group of revolutionaries who plot to assassinate a Grand Duke.
→ "A Happy Death" (written in 1936, published posthumously in 1971) - a novel that tells the story of a young man named Patrice Mersault who dreams of living an authentic life.

 

These works have had a significant impact on philosophy and literature, and they continue to be widely read and studied today.

Themes :

The Absurd:

Camus defines the absurd as the conflict between the human need for meaning and purpose in life and the inherent meaninglessness and irrationality of the universe. This theme is central to the essay, and Camus uses the story of Sisyphus as a metaphor for the human struggle to find meaning in a meaningless world.

Rebellion:

Camus suggests that although the world may be meaningless, we can rebel against it by creating our own meaning and purpose through acts of creativity, solidarity with others, and the pursuit of personal freedom and dignity. This theme is closely related to the concept of the absurd, as rebellion is seen as a way to overcome the sense of futility and despair that arises from the conflict between human desires and the meaninglessness of the universe.

Acceptance:

Camus argues that the only way to overcome the absurdity of life is to accept it fully and live in the present moment. By doing so, we can find a kind of freedom and happiness that is not dependent on external circumstances or the pursuit of material wealth or success. This theme is related to the idea of rebellion, as acceptance is seen as a way to rebel against the absurdity of life by embracing it fully.

Individualism:

Camus emphasises the importance of individual freedom and choice in the face of the absurdity of life. He suggests that the pursuit of personal dignity and authenticity is more important than external success or conformity to societal norms. This theme is related to the idea of rebellion, as individualism is seen as a way to create meaning and purpose in a world that is fundamentally meaningless.

One of the most influential works of this century, this is a crucial exposition of existentialist thought. Influenced by works such as Don Juan, and the novels of Kafka, these essays begin with a meditation on suicide: the question of living or not living in an absurd universe devoid of order or meaning. With lyric eloquence, Camus posits a way out of despair, reaffirming the value of personal existence, and the possibility of life lived with dignity and authenticity.

The Myth of Sisyphus is a small work, but Camus’s meditation on faith and fate has personally been hugely important in developing my ideas. Writing in the embers of World War II, Camus confronts in The Myth of Sisyphus both the tragedy of recent history and what he sees as the absurdity of the human condition. There is, he observes, a chasm between the human need for meaning and what he calls “the unreasonable silence of the world”. Religion is a means of bridging that chasm, but a dishonest one. “I don’t know if the world has any meaning that transcends it,” he writes. “But I know that I do not know this meaning and that it is impossible for me just now to know it.”

Camus does not know that God does not exist. But he is determined to believe it, because that is the only way to make sense of being human. Humans have to make their own meaning. And that meaning can come only through struggle, even if that struggle appears as meaningless as that of Sisyphus, who, having scorned the gods, was condemned by them to spend eternity in the underworld, forever rolling a rock to the top of a mountain.

The certainties of religion provide false hope, and in so doing undermine our humanity by denying human choice. So do any other false certainties with which we may replace religion. For Camus, religious faith had to be replaced neither with faithlessness, nor with another kind of false certainty, but with a different kind of faith – faith in our ability to live with the predicament of being human. It was a courageous argument, especially in the shadow of the Holocaust. And it is an argument that remains as important today as it was then.

Sisyphus in Greek Mythology :

The Myth of Sisyphus is a story from Greek mythology that explores the human condition of struggle and the search for meaning in life. According to the myth, Sisyphus was a king who was known for his cunning and deceitful nature. He was punished by the gods for his hubris and was forced to push a boulder up a hill for all eternity.

Each time Sisyphus would almost reach the top of the hill, the boulder would roll back down, and he would have to start again. The task was deemed impossible, and Sisyphus was forced to repeat it endlessly. The punishment was meant to teach him the futility of his actions and the importance of humility.

Sisyphus refused to give up despite his seemingly hopeless situation. In the struggle, he found a sense of purpose and used his wits and determination to find ways to make the task more bearable. The Sisyphus myth has come to represent the struggle of human existence and the search for meaning in life, even in the face of seemingly insurmountable obstacles.

Existentialism:

Existentialism is a 20th-century philosophical and literary movement that emphasised individual freedom, choice, and responsibility in the face of life's meaninglessness and absurdity.

Existentialism is fundamentally concerned with fundamental questions of human existence, such as the meaning of life, the nature of death, and the relationship between the individual and society. Existentialist writers and thinkers frequently address these issues through literature, philosophy, and psychology, emphasising the importance of personal experience and subjective interpretation.

The concept of the absurd, which refers to the conflict between human desires and the universe's inherent meaninglessness and irrationality, is a key idea in existentialism. This can result in feelings of despair.

The importance of individual freedom and choice is another central idea in existentialism. Existentialists argue that instead of relying on external values and norms, individuals have the ability and responsibility to create their own meaning and purpose in life.

Existentialism has had a significant influence on literature, philosophy, and psychology, as well as a diverse range of thinkers and writers. Among the most well-known existentialist authors are Jean-Paul Sartre, Albert Camus, and Friedrich Nietzsche. Other writers, such as Franz Kafka, Samuel Beckett, and Virginia Woolf, have used existentialist themes in their works.

Existentialism is a multifaceted philosophical and literary movement concerned with the search for meaning and purpose in life, the individual struggle against the absurdity of existence, and the value of individual freedom and choice.

How can one fail to feel the basic relationship of these minds! How can one fail to see that they take their stand around a privileged and bitter moment in which hope has no further place? I want everything to be explained to me or nothing. And the reason is impotent when it hears this cry from the heart. The mind aroused by this insistence seeks and finds nothing but contradictions and nonsense. What I fail to understand is nonsense. The world is populated with such irrationals. The world itself, whose single meaning I do not understand, is but a vast irrational. If one could only say just once: "This is clear," all would be saved. But these men vie with one another in proclaiming that nothing is clear, all is chaos, that all man has is his lucidity and his definite knowledge of the walls surrounding him.

(Words 1650; Images 03)

Work Cited

Camus, Albert. The myth of Sisyphus, and other essays. Edited by Justin O'Brien, translated by Justin O'Brien, Vintage Books, 1991.