For those looking to start reading nonfiction existentialist philosophy, JeanPaul Sartre’s lecture, “Existentialism is a Humanism,” is a great place to start. In this short and accessible text, Sartre outlines some of the basic principles of existentialism while defending it against accusations of “quietism and despair.”
One prominent principle of existentialism is that existence precedes essence. Some philosophies and many religions ascribe an essence to a human being with a specific purpose in mind. This is similar to a manufacturer determining the purpose of a hammer before creating that hammer. For humans, however, Sartre believes that there is no essence that precedes the existence of humans. Humans are thrown into this world without an essence and create their essence through the great responsibility of choice.
Another point of the essay is to clarify that existentialism posits that humans not only choose for themselves but choose for others through that choice. This clarification defends against the critiques of quietism laid against this philosophy.
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