Week 10 -- Jean Paul Sartre

Essence vs. Existence

I feel as though you could take either of these both ways very, very easily. I could say that existence would come before essence, in which case I look at a more individualized view where a person builds their essence over time. Alternatively, I could say that essence comes before existence, which takes a societal view where the “collective unconscious” of the people is eventually transferred to each new person born.

Actions responsible for impact in humanity

I feel like each action has some impact on humanity, even if it is negligent. At the end of the day, you’re still contributing something to the world, and that can have its own rippling effects towards a wider scope. Honestly, I believe this clause fits better with the essence before existence theory, as for each person adds a piece to the collective unconscious, that will further build future generations.

The Decision-making of Individuals

I believe that people will always make the decision they think is best. Even in situations where people say “this is a bad idea” or “I’m not too sure of this”, there’s still something inherently there that makes them choose the decision. We do not consciously understand a decision is bad and then go through with it; that all being said, I do believe there is an objectivity when it comes to a worse decision.

Taking responsibility for all people by setting their own ideal

I think this ties back in to what Nietzsche (?) was saying when he talked about the way people act versus the way our ideal self is. I think that when you do act to your ideal, that is setting in motion what you believe should be the idea for everyone on earth (at least who is fairly similar to you).

Emotions take precedent over logic

Unless you go through years of training and meditation, I think that for the most part your emotions are going to always control you. Even if you do acknowledge your emotions, and try to suppress them, you can’t – it goes deeper and more fundamentally than that. And, if emotions always control you, then it can be derived that emotions will usually take precedent over logic for most people.

Emotions instinctual vs. based in thoughts and actions

I think its probably a bit of both. Instincts create the baseline feeling you have (angry, happy, sad, etc.) but the acceleration/deceleration of these feelings is driven specifically by the thoughts the person is experiencing within that moment. This helps explain certain psychological disorders such as bipolar disorder, as the brain is continuously ramping up happiness/sadness to the point of mania/depression.

Emotion gets us away from anxieties of free will

I would actually say the opposite is true – we use logic to help understand our free will in hopes that a better understanding or discovery will help shield the anxieties away, rather than keep them in focus; however, it never seems to work out that way. Emotion, however, is the embracing of that anxiety to fully utilize the free will that you do have.