No Exit

No Exit

Existentialism is a very confusing concept to understand. Existentialism is a school of thought, so to speak, where people believe that for every action there is a reaction. Moreover, most of the time, the reaction is a negative one. There is the basic understanding that humans have free will. They have to choice to do whatever they feel in life, which in turn makes life very stressful. Our choices obviously result in some other consequence, and as I said, the consequences, though we may not notice, are negative ones. That is something that cannot really be explained. That is something that happens a lot. Many things are irrational, absurd, and really have no explanation whatsoever. The only that is for sure in our lives is once you decide to do something, you must follow through with it completely and accept whatever may come to you afterwards.

Existentialism is sometimes very hard to live by because of the beliefs that go along it with. Someone who is an existentialist believes that human choice is subjective, and that we must makes our decisions not based on outside influences such as laws or ethical standards set forth by society. Since we free our selves of the pressures of outside traditions and ways, we must be completely responsible for any choice we make.

There is also a very dark side to existentialism. There is always that question of who are we, why are we here, and how can we make meaning of this life? Because you are able to be so free in all that you do, it sometimes creates anxiety. You are forced to be completely responsible for anything and everything that you choose, which is a very scary thought. You are required to be in constant thought about all of your expressions and actions.

Predestination from God or any other form of higher being is totally rejected. Therefore, you have no basis on which to form your beliefs or say that your decisions come from. This absence of a pre designed moral set shows life's absurdity, but also shows the freedoms that are available to you. The ultimate goal is to live an authentic life that you are happy with, that you are conscious about all your decisions and what comes along with those. Only by assuming this freedom can you live authentically.

In Jean-Paul Sartre's play "No Exit", he brings to light the ideas of existentialism and how it would affect ones afterlife. The original title is actually translates to closed doors or behind closed doors, which makes sense since they are locked in a room where the door does not open. The three characters, Garcin, Inez, and Estelle, are all together in a room, trying to figure out why they have been assigned to each other in the afterlife. Because Sartre did not believe in a concrete vision of hell, he used the drawing room as a symbol of it, instead of the widely recognized flames and darkness. Although he did allude to it a little bit, "(Garcin) Whew! How hot it is in here! Do you mind if-," (13).

Sartre sets them in a paradox- a real life setting where they are still restricted by their death. "(Garcin) So that's the idea. I'm to live without eyelids. Don't act fool, you what I mean. No eyelids, no sleep; it follows, doesn't it? I shall never