3. Biography: Born in Paris in 1905. Died in 1980. His behavior in school was unpredictable and arrogant. From 1931 to 1945 he worked as a teacher. He was never a member of Communist party. He tried to reconcile existentialism and Marxism and collaborated with the French Communist Party.
4. Beliefs: “ Existence is prior to essence.” Made the distinction between things that exist in themselves and human beings who exist for themselves. He believed that we are responsible for the choices that we make and we are responsible for our emotional lives. In a godless universe, life has no meaning or purpose beyond the goals each person sets for themselves. Individuals must detach oneself from things to give them meaning. Existentialism: stresses the individual’s unique position as a self-determining agent responsible for the authenticity of his or her choices.
5. Shawn believes that he is 50% correct. Kelly thinks that the ideas are reasonable. We agree with his ideas that in a godless universe life has no meaning or purpose beyond the goals that we set. This is different for everyone. We are responsible for the choices that we make is another very valid point that we agree with. We disagree with his more philosophical ideas that existence is prior to essence.
