A constant battle of man is finding the answer to the question of life. To some it may be religion, to others it may be a collection of theories. In hindsight, it is near impossible to provide an objective understanding of the world, that is why we have philosophy to better understand life in itself. Philosophy is a study that teaches us how to think of the world, the universe, and life. An internationally acclaimed theory behind life is existentialism. Jean Paul Sartre and Albert Camus are two of the largest studied philosophers in the world, and both are admitted existentialists. Sartre is considered the father of existentialism, and though he and Camus both fall under the same umbrella, it does not mean both of their ideologies go hand in hand. Existentialism believes in the simple fact; existence precedes essence. We create our own purpose, our own essence. It is one's own actions that define them as a person.
As Jean-Paul Sartre’s book Existentialism is a Humanism illustrates his view on the purpose of life, it explains that to live, our existence precedes its essence. Sartre’s existentialist philosophy assumes that just for man, existence precedes essence. Man exists first, and their essence, i.e. purpose, follows later as they develop that for themselves. It is constantly discussed in philosophy how Sartre viewed humankind's innate freedom as a condemnation rather than a gift. Man commences their life and tossed onto the world and live as told until they develop a certain consciousness that allows them to create a purpose for themselves. Sartre places his faith in self-perception and applying that onto one's own life and onto others. His philosophy is heavily based on individualism; individual thought, freedom, decisions, and actions. Our freedom and how we act on it is subjective, and differs from person to person depending on what they make of that freedom.
Furthermore, existentialism may be theistic or atheistic, but in this case Sartre is an atheist. His ethical beliefs recognize our freedom and we must not strictly abide by nothing but our cultures and traditions, as there is so much more. Due to his theory being atheistic, humans have the ability to be as liberated and free as they please, without any moral code to live by. If everything in existence is simply “being”, then the truth, i.e. the essence, is only what humans make of the experience. “Existence precedes essence”, because something must exist first, then be given a purpose.
Moreover, in Sartre’s beliefs, anguish is the emotion one feels when they acknowledge that they have the responsibility for all humanity, not just for oneself. Anguish is a hard emotion to experience as it makes one feel almost disabled and powerless, but existentialists encourage to face these emotions head on. It is the negative feeling that is an outcome of experiencing ultimate freedom. Anguish, torment, dread, all arise from the simple fact that life is absolutely meaningless and we live for nothing, and that is why you must give yourself a purpose, to avoid such emotions. Overall, Sartre’s existentialist view of human life is outlined in his belief that the elemental motivation for every act is found in the truth of consciousness, i.e. the ambition for being.
In this degree, to live a happy anguish free life as an existentialist to Sartre’s account, one must take their absurd freedom and life as authentic of a life as possible. Sartre defines what makes one an authentic human being with the way one chooses to go about their freedom. By one making decisions and performing on those actions in their own free will, would account those decisions as true and authentic to them. Therefore, for ones choices to wholeheartedly be their own, those decisions must indicate their authentic self. Sartre also preached that one man's decision affects all mankind, that is why with every decision one makes, it must be the most authentic one.
On the other hand, Camus and Sartre are both existentialists with very similar values, but Camus’ outlook on life helps one understand that though we live in a purposeless universe, that does not have to justify choosing not to live. Instead, we are to take our lives into our own hands, and grant ourselves a purpose. The universe does not give us answers, our truth is what we make of it.
Philosophical suicide is a way for mankind to shutdown their curious minds by accepting easy, basic answers to life’s fundamental questions. The most common way to commit philosophical suicide in Albert Camus’ theory is to defer to an already existing belief system, like religion. He believes that the reason humanity chooses to believe in God is to escape the suffering of an absurd, answerless world and grant ourselves a purpose to devote our lives to a said deity. In reality, nobody has the answer to life and it is fundamental questions, but believing in religion gives one the religious answers to those questions, and soothes the anxious, conscious mind. One of the most common concepts humans get concerned about, is the concept of justice. It would be greatly exhilarating to know that there is some sort of guarantee of justice, that those who are good will be rewarded, and those who are bad will be punished. In reality, it does end up that way in some cases, I.e. jail for criminals, but a lot more bad things happen to good people. So, there is no definite answer for justice in literal way of thought. However, the belief in a deity, or karma, relieves these worries by implementing a sure system of ultimate justice. This system of belief allows one to no longer experience these anxieties that life brings onto us. Thus, what makes this concept a philosophical suicide, is that one must “kill”, or shut off, the part of their mind that is asking these questions in the first place. One must moderate their intellect, and accept the teachings of the religion of choice.
As a matter of fact, religion is just one way of committing mental suicide, as per Camus. There are secular ways to do so; such as, science, entertainment, and recreational materialism. Anything we commit to that halts the questioning mind, can be used for philosophical suicide, as the point really is accept reality for its answerless fact and enjoy life in ignorance. Whether one decides to rest in certainty in religious or secular ways, Camus’ ultimate solution to face life’s most fundamental questions is to challenge and accept life’s questionable and erratic nature, i.e. the absurd.
Furthermore, mankind's experiences with life’s absurdity are merely just reflections of the essentially absurd nature of life itself. The most common experience of the absurd acting on their thoughts remains between mans helpless yearning to find an answer for their questions, and the universes painful silence in return. This absurd restlessness is what leads the questioning man to a physical or philosophical suicide. Camus supports the acceptance of life's absurdity, and allowing our questions to be unanswered. The absurd man, Camus version of an existential hero, is someone who “lives without appeal”, and who is unfazed by the truth of life’s absurdity, and though he recognizes the absurdity, he allows his intellectual mind to keep asking questions and wondering anyhow. The existential hero chooses not to take the easy route of philosophical answer, as that is for the weak who cannot handle life’s harsh truth. By wholeheartedly accepting life’s absurdity, also means remaining non accepting of it. To simplify, Camus believes that one must accept the misery of living a pointless life, but this contempt towards life is exactly what makes physical suicide an illogical, invalid answer to their misery. Committing suicide is existential defeat, and is a way of following the absurd truth by allowing life’s suffering absurdity can only be solved with suicide. One must negate the meaning of the condemnation to truly defy it.