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Articles on Jean-Paul Sartre

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Philosophical pessimism isn’t all doom and gloom: it’s about explaining and confronting the origins, prevalence and the ubiquity of suffering. (Shutterstock)

Stop dissing pessimism — it’s part of being human

Pessimism, as explored by the philosopher Schopenhauer, offers tools to come to terms with the idea that refusing to relentlessly pursue happiness is perhaps the most reasonable attitude.
Solidarity with France and Charlie Hebdo in Taipei. Pichi Chuang/Reuters

We are all Charlie Hebdo – or are we?

In his 1998 novel, The Elementary Particles, Michel Houellebecq argued that Charlie Hebdo played a pivotal role in the redefinition of social values in post-1968 France. For self-appointed troublemaker…
Sartre, Hoover and Camus. Wikimedia Commons

The US vs Sartre: what the hell is Existentialism anyway?

On 7 February 1946 we find J Edgar Hoover, director of the FBI, writing a letter to “Special Agent in Charge” at the New York field office, to draw his attention to one ALBERT CANUS, who is “reportedly…
Man and superman. Wikimedia Commons

Becksistentialism: because man is a goal-seeking animal

A student came up to me after class the other day and said, “So what is this ‘Becksistentialism’ all about then?” I want to begin to answer that question by defining the negative: Sir Alex Ferguson is…

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