Keeping up with the existentialism theme for the year, I have been reading Nausea by Sartre. The book explores the central theme of existentialism: the idea that existence precedes essence. This philosophical idea marks a departure from the traditional school of thought that individuals have a predefined essence or nature. Through the character of Antoine Roquentin, Sartre explores the emptiness and absurdity of life.
I plan to spend 2024 delving deeper into existentialism. While I am somewhat familiar with the general concepts of Husserl’s phenomenology, the existence of God in Kierkegaard’s existentialism, and Camus’s absurdism, I have yet to fully immerse myself in their works. This year, I am challenging myself to understand more about the principle that existence precedes essence. To help in this journey, I have chosen to read At the Existentialist Café by Sarah Bakewell, having enjoyed reading book below (How To Live: A Life Of Montaigne) by her last year.
Recently, I have started to read How to Live: A Life of Montaigne in One Question and Twenty Attempts at an Answer by Sarah Bakewell. For anyone interested, here are the 20 themes discussed in the book:
Don't worry about death;