What Is Existentialism? (Members Video)
Added 2022-12-03 23:47:23 +0000 UTCHey all, here's a quick video talking about existentialism. My main goal here is to make the concept less intimidating for people who don't have a handle on what it means. Let me know what you think.
For main channel videos, I'm currently working on a piece on Elon Musk and am looking to follow that up with a piece on either censorship or Thomas Jefferson & his relationship with slavery. As always, that roadmap can change. I often start a piece and decide the material or concept isn't strong enough to actually produce and release. But that's my current plan.
Cheers and thanks again for your support.
- Ryan
Comments
Hi, my explanation came from paraphrasing and slightly expanding on Alan Taylor's explanation in 'On Politics,' which includes the decision to base the definition around 'existence precedes essence.' To respond to your suggestions: I think the humanism quote is too general to base a definition around, and I think Dostoyevsky's quote adds specificity, but a specificity that is particular to his work and not existentialism on the whole. - Ryan
Ryan Chapman
2023-06-12 13:29:10 +0000 UTChey man, I love your videos but I don't think you've quite gotten existentialism. The Sartre quote you use comes from a metaphysical context and doesn't really do a good job of expressing the practical concern of these people. Here's a quote from another book of Sartre, "Existentialism is a humanism", that might help: "Dostoyevsky wrote: "If God didn't exist, everything would be permitted" That is the starting point of existentialism." The problem that arises from the death of God is the loss of normativity. Why bother do anything? Why not do things that are considered awful? From there the thinkers have different ideas, however most of them seem to agree that taking responsibility, carrying heavy loads is the way to recultivate normativity. At the end of Crime and punishment, Raskolnikov has to carry out the load of his jail sentence to find happiness. I hope this was helpful.
Nicholas Heilig
2023-06-12 08:46:04 +0000 UTCWow forgot about this completely. 1: Shorts could benefit by increasing people's curiosity for documentaries without biases, so they would click on more extensive videos. 2: Do you have any supporting arguments for shorts being bad for creating arguments? I can't find anything to support your argument, on the contrary, shorts could be sort of a Feynman's Learning Technique to make sure concepts are easy to understand. 3: I don't get why shorts could ruin anyone's reputation. Isn't it just a tool to reach the market? Why using tools can harm someone's reputation?
Diego Torres
2023-05-08 16:14:16 +0000 UTCI agree entirely, Smef.
Shelden
2023-05-08 04:49:52 +0000 UTCRyan, I love your stuff, but I now see that even you cannot turn a bowl of hooey into something of value. I've never understood existentialism, and having failed to grasp it even with your fine mind doing the explaining, I can conclude that existentialism is a type of tautology of the obvious. In other words, pseudo intellectual crap.
Shelden
2023-05-08 04:46:33 +0000 UTCI interpret this as existing for sake of existing. Live life as life is just to be lived. Basically the opposite to many religions that pose that life is given as a gift. To try your best in life is to help fellow man and creature and to be humble.
MARIO Gismondi
2023-04-27 07:44:24 +0000 UTCI'm still confused. Would you give examples of what existentialists would think, say and do in specific scenarios?
Tan Lee
2023-04-21 00:01:59 +0000 UTCI have been truly been thinking that i might take a departure from my normal work to take a moment to share/interpret Albert Camus speech "The Human Crisis" I feel that it would genuinely be of benefit to our newest generations, to feel caught in a violent moment of history where they are suffering because of the decisions of a generation that seems distant and unnaffected. Not to diminish or admonish them but to let them know they are not alone and that the moment they are living in is survivable.
Taya Graham Police Accountability Report
2023-03-30 00:40:53 +0000 UTCI think that existentialism IS political. Or, at least, it can be and should be. Satre goes on to talk about responsibility (for example: in his small on responsibility for WW2). He approaches an almost Catholic sense of shame over the war and describes a space in which freedom clearly points towards responsibility for broader concerns. Of course, he also think thats that people have an individual responsibility to build out their own systems, etc. This is a kind of moral politic which would became a foundation for ethical systems. I think where people think think existentialism is not political is that some people interpret angst, ennui, and nausea as the by products of a critique of the world and therefore, permission to isolate from it. I think the bulk of existentialists would say that the absurdity of our existence calls for a radical engagement and "taking things seriously."
justsomeguy
2023-03-16 13:36:24 +0000 UTCShort form content is bad for creating intellectually stimulating arguments and is a prime reason why discourse is so toxic these days. I would highly recommend against Ryan using it to boost his content. Though it would give him more short term attention, it would ruin his integrity as someone who makes high quality educational videos.
smef
2023-01-05 01:47:34 +0000 UTCMaybe you could have some of this as shorts in your youtube channel. BTW, using this channel for experimenting could benefit you and your audience
Diego Torres
2022-12-15 10:18:20 +0000 UTCPhilosophy and Politics are closely connected. I think it would fit right in on your youtube channel. But don't upload this one. It looks like a passing thought. Make a better one like all your other videos.
Khalid Jaleel
2022-12-10 00:04:05 +0000 UTCI tnhink this is a great Patreon bonus. Short and easier to make but exactly in the format we enjoy and want to support! Keep it up 👍
Flare
2022-12-04 22:50:33 +0000 UTCRyan, you are certainly growing into the video format. You're mannerisms are much more relaxed and confident. Good stuff. I really like these sound bites. Perhaps a next direction might be describing how an influential existentialist, motivated by a philosophy, changed their world. I think it would ground the abstract for me a little. Thanks again.
bryan bell
2022-12-04 10:18:56 +0000 UTCThat was actually super helpful and informative. I found Jean Paul Satres' book too dense to quickly process so I gave up. But your summary was very digestible. I also appreciate how this video is a little less polished and more casual compared to your normal YT videos. Feels more intimate and community-like this way. Thanks for the good work, Ryan!
Lara Lu
2022-12-04 05:31:07 +0000 UTCThis was great. Thank you. I wonder if there’s anything to explore in a video about the necessity for opposing political parties to operate in good faith for the debate to be constructive, rather than destructive.
Craig Albert
2022-12-04 04:52:36 +0000 UTCOh, wow, yes, would love to see more of your condensations of philosophical concepts. Thanks
Tim Elston
2022-12-04 04:38:54 +0000 UTCGreat! i think both videos shows this to be a successful concept. To me it would not seem out of place with this video or topic on your channel. I would argue your channel deals with "The Application of ideas" rather than "Politics" which i think is a subset of the first. If one views your channel in that lense, it feels to me that both topics in your short format videos would fit with the rest of the videos on your channel. Perhaps even as Youtube Shorts.
Anton Berg
2022-12-04 00:22:30 +0000 UTCThat does help! Mentally “chewy”, and concise. Thanks!
Esther Burke
2022-12-03 23:54:59 +0000 UTC
