EXISTENTIALISM

      Unlike determinism, existentialism emphasizes the free will to make choices and the consequent responsibility of the individual. Humans create their own existence by choices and actions.

      Danish philosopher and theologian Soren Aabye Kierkegaard (1813-1855) defended individualism against statism as propounded by the German philosopher Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel. As a proponent of the significance of individual freedom, Kierkegaard is credited as the father of existentialism.

      Jean-Paul Sartre (1905-1980) was the most notable of the existentialists. Born in Paris, France, he graduated from the Ecole Normale Superieure in 1919. He was also educated at the University of Fribourg and the French Institute in Berlin, Germany. He taught philosophy, authored numerous books and articles, and received but rejected the Nobel Prize in literature in 1964.

      Sartre coined the word existentialism to define his view of the nature of man as a self-defining projection in a universe that is devoid of purpose. He believed in the principle that existence precedes essence, meaning that man is free to make choices rather than simply being the victim of predetermined laws. The writing of Sartre emphasized the necessity for man to act rather than simply exist. Man creates his own world by rebelling against authority and by accepting personal responsibility for his actions unaided by society, traditional morality, or religious faith. Sartre's belief was atheistic and assumed that the world is basically meaningless. In the 1950's, Sartre repudiated his emphasis on individualism and argued for the Marxist view of a collective will.

      Although existentialism recognizes the intercession of free will into the flow of events, how can the individual accept responsibility for his actions without also believing that his actions will be the cause for future events? It seems that existentialists must accept that consequences flow from prior actions. This points out that free will does not operate in a vacuum.