Apparently, French surgeon and biologist Alexis Carrel fashioned his quote here from the great Friedrich Nietzsche and his masterpiece “Beyond Good and Evil,” which contains this, IMO the definitive explanation of existentialism, and the most beautiful single sentence ever written …
Tag: Existentialism
A Little Existentialism for This First Day of the New Year
If you can relate to the meme here, and you’re willing to “surrender to the mystery,” you’ll love the composition of American singer-songwriter Iris Dement, below.
Tagged with: Existentialism
Existentialist Music
It’s the birthday of rock legend Warren Zevon, who died of cancer at the age of only 56, but not before leaving us with this masterpiece, The Vast Indifference of Heaven. There are dozens of variations on the theme of …
What We Believe
In my post called “In Celebration of Science,” I tried to provoke a discussion on how we come to know things. In response, a reader notes: At least one component of deciphering the truth lies in being able to tap …
Existentialism
Existentialism could be defined as the philosophic doctrine that we are all born into an icy-cold universe that is completely indifferent to our well-being, and that we come to be who we are by making life choices for which we …
Tagged with: Existentialism
A Couple of Thoughts on a Scientist’s Birthday
It’s the 59th birthday of American astrophysicist and author Neil deGrasse Tyson, whose most recent and aptly named book Astrophysics for People in a Hurry was published earlier this year.
Human Existence: It’s Icy Cold Out There, But That’s OK
If the 109th birthday of French existentialist Jean-Paul Sartre isn’t a good time to discuss the meaning of life, it’s hard to imagine what would be. I agree with Sartre that we live in a universe that is completely indifferent …
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Totally Off-Topic: Existentialist Poetry
It’s the birthday of e.e. cummings, which gives me the opportunity to present one of my favorite poems, and offer a short comment on it. a man who had fallen among thieves
Tagged with: Existentialism
We’re Alone, But Strangely Connected To One Another
Existentialism is the concept that we live in a universe that is indifferent to our happiness and general welfare, that we are free to make our own choices, and that we are, in fact, defined by the totality of those …
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Wanted: Energy Pragmatists
It’s the 202nd birthday of Danish philosopher Søren Kierkegaard (pictured). He’s best known as the first existentialist philosopher, but he was also active in many other fields, including the writing of fiction. According to the Writer’s Almanac: He published many …
