Template:Existentialism

	Existentialist
	This user follows the philosophical school of Existentialism.

Philosophical Definition

Existentialism is the philosophical movement positing that individual human beings create the meaning and essence of their lives as persons. It emerged as a movement in twentieth-century literature and philosophy, though it had forerunners in earlier centuries. Philosophically, existentialism stresses that people are entirely free, and, therefore, responsible for what they make of themselves. With this responsibility comes a profound anguish (dread) if viewed negatively. Existentialism is a reaction against traditional philosophies, such as rationalism and empiricism, seeking to discover an ultimate order in metaphysical principles or in the structure of the observed world, and therefore universal meaning. Given that someone who believes in reality might be called a "realist", and someone who believes in a deity might be called a "theist", therefore someone who believes fundamentally only in existence, and seeks to find meaning in his or her life solely by embracing existence, is an existentialist.

Usage

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