Existentialism from Dostoevsky to Sartre

Download or read book Existentialism from Dostoevsky to Sartre written by Walter Arnold Kaufmann and published by . This book was released on 1957 with total page 319 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Existentialism is perhaps the most misunderstood of modern philosophic positions-- misunderstood by reason of its broad popularity and general unfamiliarity with its origins, representatives, and principles. Existential thinking did not originate with Jean Paul Sartre. It has prior religious, literary, and philosophic origins. In its narrowest formulation it is a metaphysical doctrine, arguing as it does that any definition of man's essence must follow, not precede, an estimation of his existence. In Heidegger, it affords a view of Being in its totality; in Kierkegaard, an approach to that inwardness indispensable to authentic religious experience; for Dostoevsky, Kafka, and Rilke the existential situation bears the stamp of modern man's alienation, uprootedness, and absurdity; to Sartre it has vast ethical and political implications. This book contains only complete selections or entire works by the major thinkers.--From publisher description.