EMERSON G.

MOSTOLES BS PSYCH 4-IRREG

I. What is absurdity?

According to the published Journal of Philosophy, Inc., with the title The Absurd by

Thomas Nagel (2012) Article II states that in ordinary life situation is absurd when it includes a

conspicuous discrepancy between pretension or aspirations and reality: someone gives a

complicated speech in support of a motion that has already been passed. This simply means that

in absudism, things are not so easy. It denies the existence of free will, claiming that it is just one

more sad fiction invented by human beings to avoid despair- Based section IV: Leap of Faith

( Denial of Religion) and The Acceptance of Absurdity (Find happiness without the involvement

of happiness).

II. What are the ways to deal with the absurdities?

Albert Camus (1960) identifies three characteristics of the absurd life: (1) revolt (we must

not accept any answer or reconciliation in our struggle), (2) freedom (we are absolutely free to

think and behave as we choose), and (3) passion (we must pursue a life of rich and diverse

experiences).

By these, absurdists take one or two ways to deal with absurdities- The Leap of Faith

and The Acceptance of Absurdity. (1) The Leap of Faith seems to start off from a complete

denial of religion, it doesnt necessarily end up there, while on the other hand, the (2)

Acceptance of Absurdity states that, if religion still doesnt seem like an acceptable option, we

can always decide to make our own peace with the absurdity of the universe; we can try to find

sources of happiness that dont involve the need for meaning. It would be a little a sick person

learning to accept their illness and being okay with the fact that they will never be well again.
III. Do you think Sisyphus can still find meaning in his life given his punishment?

Yes. He finds himself happy by doing so the acceptance, though Sisyphus knows he has

been punished for an eternity to push that boulder up, and then do it over, and over again. If he

expects anything out of the situation, maybe for the boulder to settle on the top, then only

disappointment awaits him. To imagine him to be happy, we must abandon the bigger picture,

that way you would only see absurdity of his actions, and a sad picture overall. His happiness

lies in purpose, which is to push the boulder up, always, relentlessly. He derives happiness is the

effort of pushing the boulder up, he gives it his best every day.

This is how I make sense of it all. Remember, Camus said: one must imagine.So this

is how I imagine the whole Sisyphus situation. The book (by Albert Camus) ends with the line

one must imagine Sisyphus happy to show that it is a personal choice to decide about your

psychological state irrespective of the vagueness and pointlessness of life. One must be happy or

deals that life presents simply because we have no control over it. What cannot be changed

should be cherished! What really is felt by Sisyphus is only known to Sisyphus. But Camus and

I imagine that Sisyphus is happy.

IV. Do you experience the same punishment Sisyphus had in your life now?

Yes. Sometimes I feel that I have been punished without prior reason or explanations.

That sometimes that I feel disappointed and depressed on whats going on in my life. But no

matter what happens, I would be the one just like Sisyphus that we have to drag through life with

the acceptance of the knowledge that it is devoid of purpose- the boulder is a metaphor for life.
V. If you were now Sisyphus, how would you make your life meaningful?

Sisyphus was condemned to pushing the bolder uphill, perpetually for having defied the

gods. According to Camus version, it was because he'd chained death that no one must die. A

noble, if not futile has gesture, in and of itself.

There is the suggestion by Albert Camus (1960), that if Sisyphus were to realize and

acknowledge the nature of his condition, he could become contented, and accept his fate.

However, contentment is not exactly the same thing as happiness. So, I really don't believe he

could make himself happy with his predicament, regardless of any knowledge about it. I think

the point is perhaps that Sisyphus is happy because he has purpose, he has something to do, to

struggle for - whether or not it is ultimately meaningless or not.

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