Dropped it… not againn.
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sundray@lemmus.org 4 months ago
You dropped this, fam.
wonderingwanderer@sopuli.xyz 4 months ago
“Imagine Sisyphus happy” reeks of corporate middle management extolling the virtues of grind culture to their underlings. I’ve never thought it was a good argument. Just a cheap cop-out for people who can’t face the never-ending barrage of existential despair that comes from truly, deeply questioning the meaning and purpose of life.
Like “Here, find meaning in this menial labor that you’re compelled to do by society!” No, you mindless automaton, the whole point of my existential despair is that I’ve seen through the superficial layers of appearances to grasp the utter meaninglessness at the core of everything. I’m not gonna pretend that I haven’t seen through it and stop questioning things just because it’s uncomfortable.
softwarist@programming.dev 4 months ago
From the Wikipedia summary:
However, the absurd can never be permanently accepted: it requires constant confrontation, constant revolt.
shneancy@lemmy.world 4 months ago
Camu has addressed that in his essay on suicide -
it’s not that you distract yourself, that’s denial, and it’s not a full embrace of nothing, that’s depression (and suicide). it’s an acceptance that things are meaningless - but you as a person can never stop looking for that meaning, in fact just the search itself is what keeps you going. that’s the absurd in absurdism, searching for meaning despite knowing it doesn’t exist, finding happiness in the journey, making peace with the fact that even if you do reach some goal you’ll never feel fulfilled. and even if you become the king of the world and have everything you could ever desire - the rock is still going to roll down, you’ll feel like there’s still something missing, and you’ll need to push the rock again
at least that’s my interpretation
sundray@lemmus.org 4 months ago
I think there’s more to existentialism than that, but if it’s not for you there are other philosophies available–there’s always Schopenhauer.
wonderingwanderer@sopuli.xyz 4 months ago
There’s definitely more to existentialism than that. I don’t think any two existentialist philosophers are alike. Kierkegaard, Sartre, Camus, Heidegger, Watsuji, Nishida, Nishitani, et cetera. None of them are remotely similar other than in being existentialists. It makes sense though, for a school of philosophy that rejects essentialism to be so disparate in ideas.
I do like Schopenhauer, though. So much better than Nietzsche who kinda stole his thunder.
BonsaiBoo@lemmy.world 4 months ago
Nah, never forget, Sisyphus had meaning in his life, he helped a kidnapped daughter, he secured an ever lasting spring of water for a village… the gods punished him because he kept tricking them and helping himself and other people, masses of normal people.
sundray@lemmus.org 4 months ago
He chose to do those things, so… you could say he created his own meaning in the midst of an inherently absurd and meaningless universe? 😉
BonsaiBoo@lemmy.world 4 months ago
Yep, that’s the crime, he rejected their bullshit systems, and they can’t have their own illusion destroyed - that they’re inbred irrational, jealous, bottomless pits of power hungry idiots that serve no purpose and shouldn’t be worshipped, but removed from power. he threatened to reveal their illusion and to show people they could make big differences and change the system without the powers of the Gods, so they imprisoned him with meaningless slave labor.