brittanywilliamsart

Camus is first and foremost a writer, which makes all of his work, fiction and otherwise, extremely accessible. The Myth of Sisyphus is a perfect example of this. For me, it is also, by far and away, one of the cleanest and most down to earth descriptions of French existentialist philosophy available. It gets right down to the point of it all. How do you define your existence and purpose in a world without Gods or eternal truth? Why should you go on if there is no transcendent purpose or divine meaning? In this essay, Camus expertly sets forth his vision of humanity's divine purpose and counters any claim that would cite suicide as the only option available in a meaningless world. To do so, he utilizes a story from Greek mythology which is that of the cursed Sisyphus. I first read this work in high school, when I was first faced with a sense of my own insignificance in a meaningless existence, and by the end, I found myself thoroughly empowered by the essence of his argument. Since that time, I have repeatedly gone back to it, each time reveling in Camus' masterful arguments and beautiful language. This is a must read for anyone interested in existentialism or philosophy in general, and in my opinion is easily one of the most accessible works in the philosophical canon.

2022-11-14 18:05