Existentialism has its roots in the work of philosophers and writers such as Søren Kierkegaard, Friedrich Nietzsche, Jean-Paul Sartre, Simone de Beauvoir, and Albert Camus. The core idea of existentialism is that we have the freedom to choose what we do in life and how we act. We are, of course, influenced by the society around us – norms, culture, other people’s opinions, their approvals and disapprovals, as well as our genes and biological differences. However, despite these influences, existentialist thought argues that we still have our freedom to choose our lives and actions.
In the history of existentialism, many methods have been used to interpret a person’s inner drives, motives, or values. For example, psychoanalysis (inspired by Freud’s psychoanalytic theories), dream interpretations (inspired by Carl Jung), self-introspection and reflection, and the use of phenomenology as a method (the study of subjective experiences). All these methods can help us understand ourselves and choose whether to continue our paths or change them. It’s about surfacing the unconscious, the hidden, and past traumas to move forward.
This freedom to choose our lives and actions opens up possibilities for us. However, it can also create anxiety (Angst). The fact that we are free to choose our lives is what causes feelings of existential anxiety, but it is also that exact freedom that is very valuable.
Definitions
Existentialism
Existentialism is the broad umbrella term, and nihilism and absurdism are its sub-branches. Existentialism is a way of viewing us as free agents who can make our own choices and thus have responsibility for our lives and actions. It does not specify what the outcome of this realization means, but that’s for each individual to decide.
God has been a central theme in existentialism. A common saying in existentlism which is “God is dead” or the “Death of God” (Nietzsche), and many existential thinkers today are atheists. However, there are exisential thoughts that embrace God (e.g. Kirkegaard), as well as those who are atheistic (e.g. Sartre and Beauvoir). So, you can be an existentlist and either believe in God or not.
Key figures of modern existentalist thoughts are Jean Paul Sartre and Simone de Beauvoir who were the main proponents of existential thought during the 20th century, authoring books and articles and engaging in public speaking. They brought existential thoughts to societal and political issues such as feminism, racism, and inequalities.
Nihilism
Nihilism is a direction in existentialism that argues that life is inherently meaningless. We are not born with an ulteriative meaning or motive, but we are free to choose our lives. This can lead to feelings of depression, meaninglessness, and suicide. Nihilism is often seen as the most “depressing” way of taking existential thoughts.
Absurdism
Absurdism also sees the arbitrariness of our reality, making it seem “absurd”. Within absurdism, we have writers such as Albert Camus and Franz Kafka. Interestingly, Camus did not want to be labeled as an existentialist, and explicitly said so in interviews with the media.
The difference between Nihilism and Absurdism
Nihilism and Absurdism can both be seen as forms of existential thought, though their takeaway messages differ. Nihilism says life lacks purpose and that whatever we do, it’s fundamentally meaningless. This thought stops here and can lead to despair, depression, and suicide. Absurdism agrees that our life lacks inherent purpuse, but proposes that we should not despair. Instead, we should find solidarity with each other, and we should revolt and be passionate. For example, revolt against injustices in society. Be passionate about each other. Life is meaningless, but we should embrace this meaningless and live passionately instead of despairing and being depressed (usual consequences of embracing nihilistic thoughts).
Thus, I would say that nihilism is a more negative and depressive way of taking the meaningless of our lives, and absurdism is a more engaging and active way. If one already is convinces that there’s no inherent purpose or meaning to our lives, we can choose to either be depressed and lethargic about it, or embrace it and be passionate instead, taking action and revolting against injustices done against our fellow human beings.
In our modern times
In our modern times, existential thought is more important than ever. We are hooked by social media, mindlessly scrolling, wasting away hours of our lives. This behavior propagates the meaningless of our lives, while time passes us by. Instead of living actively, engaging in the world, we are endlessly scrolling on our phones. We are being exposed to content that are copies of other content, how can there be a deep meaning to that?
I think the absurd way of viewing the world as in Kafka’s books and Camus’s call for passionate revolt in society is as timely as ever. We must be aware of how we’re being pushed by big tech companies to waste our lives, hooked and addicted to constant scrolling. And I think we must look at ourselves – are we contributing to this way of life by our actions? Existentialist thought says that we can be made aware of our unconscious and our behaviors, and change them to how we want to act and be in this world.
Embracing existentialism today means to take a look at yourself and reflect on how you’re living. How are you spending your time? How are you affecting the world? Are you proud of how you’re choosing to live and act? If not, then it’s good time we embraced Camus’s view of life. We should become passionate again, care about each other, and revolut against what’s not right. And it starts with our own actions.
References
- The Penguin Book of Existentialist Philosophy (2025) by Jonathan Webber.
- The Second Sex by Simone de Beauvoir
- Either/Or by Søren Kirkegaard
- Selected Poems and Letters by Arthur Rimbaud