History UsefulNotes / Existentialism

* ''NeonGenesisEvangelion''

* ''MassEffect''
* ''MetalGear''

[[/folder]]

Existentialism is [[PostSomethingIsm the response]] to the soul-crushingly [[TheFatalist fatalistic]], DarknessInducedAudienceApathy-fostering [[CrapsackWorld worldview]] of [[NietzscheWannabe Nihilism]]. For an Existentialist, sure the "meaning of life" is brutally {{deconstructed}} as not being able to exist objectively and [[CosmicHorrorStory all our hopes are a cruel illusion]], we {{humans are flawed}} and [[YouCantFightFate there's nothing we can do about it]], but then again each individual has the choice to make the most meaningful out of each hour of our lives — those who choose to spend it being bored, or following others, or {{wangst}}ing endlessly are wasting it.

Existentialist character types include TheAntiNihilist and TheUbermensch (the extreme {{Blue And Orange| Morality}} version). Very likely to behave like a KnightInSourArmor or DeterminedDefeatist.

* ''{{Hamlet}}'' and ''{{Candide}}'' are considered [[UrExample forerunners]].
* ''AsILayDying''
* ''AssassinsCreed''

* ''CrimeAndPunishment''
* ''FightClub''
* ''FinalFantasy'': Existentialist themes appear over almost the entire series, but most notably in FinalFantasyVII.
* The ''{{Firefly}}'' episode ''Objects In Space'' had existentialist themes, according to JossWhedon's commentary.

* LegacyOfKain: To the extent that the series literally ends with [[spoiler: you having a fight against god.]]
* ''MetalGear''
* ''[[MontyPythonsFlyingCircus Monty Python's The Meaning of Life]]''
* ''Nausea''

* ''NoExit'', famous for the phrase [[ItWasHisSled "Hell is Other People."]]
* ''NotesFromUnderground''
* ''RosencrantzAndGuildensternAreDead''

* Notable genres with some elements include CyberPunk and KafkaKomedy

* ''NoExit'', famous for the phrase [[ItWasHisSled "Hell is Other People."]]
* ''NotesFromUnderground''
* ''TheStranger''
* ''FightClub''

* ''Nausea''
* ''The Unbearable Lightness Of Being''
* ''WaitingForGodot''
* ''RosencrantzAndGuildensternAreDead''
* ''AsILayDying''
* ''Steppenwolf''

* ''GurrenLagann''
* ''NeonGenesisEvangelion''
* ''SoraNoWoto''
* Notable genres with some elements include CyberPunk and KafkaKomedy
* ''[[MontyPythonsFlyingCircus Monty Python's The Meaning of Life]]''

* ''AssassinsCreed''

Existentialism is [[PostSomethingIsm the response]] to the soul-crushingly [[TheFatalist fatalistic]], DarknessInducedAudienceApathy-fostering [[CrapsackWorld worldview]] of [[NietzscheWannabe Nihilism]]. For an Existentialist, sure the "meaning of life" is brutally {{deconstructed}} as not being able to exist objectively and [[CosmicHorrorStory all our hopes are a cruel illusion]], we {{humans are flawed}} and [[YouCantFightFate there's nothing we can do about it]], but then again each individual has the choice to make the most meaningful out of each hour of our lives — those who choose to spend it being bored, or following others, or {{wangst}}ing endlessly are wasting it. Existentialism often advocates individuality and involves things like BeYourself, DesperatelyLookingForAPurposeInLife, IAmWhatIAm, living out your GoalInLife, EarnYourHappyEnding, and sometimes moments of YouAreNotAlone. This gives a [[WorldOfCardboardSpeech world-of-cardboard]][=/=]PatrickStewartSpeech to the nihilists and {{reconstruct|ion}}s the "meaning in life" concept.

Existentialist character types include TheAntiNihilist and TheUbermensch (the extreme {{Blue And Orange| Morality}} version).

Existentialism is [[PostSomethingIsm the response]] to the soul-crushingly [[TheFatalist fatalistic]], DarknessInducedAudienceApathy-fostering [[CrapsackWorld worldview]] of [[NietzscheWannabe Nihilism]]. For an Existentialist, sure the "meaning of life" is brutally {{deconstructed}} as not being able to exist objectively and [[CosmicHorrorStory all our hopes are a cruel illusion]], we {{humans are flawed}} and [[YouCantFightFate there's nothing we can do about it]], but then again each individual has the choice to make the most meaningful out of each hour of our lives — those who choose to spend it being bored, or following others, or {{wangst}}ing endlessly are wasting it. Existentialism often advocates individuality and involves things like BeYourself, DesperatelyLookingForAPurposeInLife, IAmWhatIAm, living out your GoalInLife, and EarnYourHappyEnding. This gives a [[WorldOfCardboardSpeech world-of-cardboard]][=/=]PatrickStewartSpeech to the nihilists and {{reconstruct|ion}}s the "meaning in life" concept.

Existentialism is [[PostSomethingIsm the response]] to the soul-crushingly [[TheFatalist fatalistic]], DarknessInducedAudienceApathy-fostering [[CrapsackWorld worldview]] of [[NietzscheWannabe Nihilism]]. For an Existentialist, sure the "meaning of life" is brutally {{deconstructed}} as not being able to exist objectively and [[CosmicHorrorStory all our hopes are a cruel illusion]], we {{humans are flawed}} [[HumansAreMorons morons]] who are all gonna die and [[YouCantFightFate there's nothing we can do about it]], but then again each individual is responsible for the meaning of his or her life, and we have a choice to make the most meaningful out of each hour of our lives — those who choose to spend it being bored, or following others, or {{wangst}}ing endlessly are wasting it. Existentialism often advocates individuality and involves things like BeYourself, DesperatelyLookingForAPurposeInLife, IAmWhatIAm, living out your GoalInLife, and EarnYourHappyEnding. This gives a [[WorldOfCardboardSpeech world-of-cardboard]][=/=]PatrickStewartSpeech to the nihilists and {{reconstruct|ion}}s the "meaning in life" concept.

* ''[[MontyPythonsFlyingCircus Monty Python's The Meaning of Life]]''

Existentialism is [[PostSomethingIsm the response]] to the soul-crushingly [[TheFatalist fatalistic]], DarknessInducedAudienceApathy-fostering [[CrapsackWorld worldview]] of [[NietzscheWannabe Nihilism]]. For an Existentialist, sure the "meaning of life" is brutally {{deconstructed}} as not being able to exist objectively and [[CosmicHorrorStory all our hopes are a cruel illusion]], we {{humans are flawed}} [[HumansAreMorons morons]] who are all gonna die and [[YouCantFightFate there's nothing we can do about it]], but then again each individual is responsible for the meaning of his or her life, and we have a choice to make the most meaningful out of each hour of our lives — those who choose to spend it being bored, or following others, or {{wangst}}ing endlessly are wasting it. Existentialism often advocates individuality and involves things like BeYourself, IAmWhatIAm, DesperatelyLookingForAPurposeInLife and EarnYourHappyEnding. This gives a [[WorldOfCardboardSpeech world-of-cardboard]][=/=]PatrickStewartSpeech to the nihilists and {{reconstruct|ion}}s the "meaning in life" concept.

Existentialism is [[PostSomethingIsm the response]] to the soul-crushingly [[TheFatalist fatalistic]], DarknessInducedAudienceApathy-fostering [[CrapsackWorld worldview]] of [[NietzscheWannabe Nihilism]]. For an Existentialist, sure the "meaning of life" is brutally {{deconstructed}} as not being able to exist objectively and [[CosmicHorrorStory all our hopes are a cruel illusion]], we {{humans are flawed}} [[humansAreMorons morons]] who are all gonna die and [[YouCantFightFate there's nothing we can do about it]], but then again each individual is responsible for the meaning of his or her life, and we have a choice to make the most meaningful out of each hour of our lives — those who choose to spend it being bored, or following others, or {{wangst}}ing endlessly are wasting it. Existentialism often advocates individuality and involves things like BeYourself, IAmWhatIAm, DesperatelyLookingForAPurposeInLife and EarnYourHappyEnding. This gives a [[WorldOfCardboardSpeech world-of-cardboard]][=/=]PatrickStewartSpeech to the nihilists and {{reconstruct|ion}}s the "meaning in life" concept.

Existentialism is [[PostSomethingIsm the response]] to the soul-crushingly fatalistic, DarknessInducedAudienceApathy-fostering [[CrapsackWorld worldview]] of Nihilism. For an Existentialist, sure the meaning of life does not exist objectively and [[CosmicHorrorStory all our hopes are a cruel illusion]], we're all gonna die and [[YouCantFightFate there's nothing we can do about it]], but then again each individual is responsible for the meaning of his or her life, and we have a choice to make each hour of our lives meaningful — those who choose to spend it being bored, or following others, or {{wangst}}ing endlessly are wasting their lives. This {{reconstruct|ion}}s the {{deconstructed}} concept of the "meaning in life." Existentialism often advocates individuality and involves things like BeYourself, IAmWhatIAm, DesperatelyLookingForAPurposeInLife and EarnYourHappyEnding.

Existentialism is [[PostSomethingIsm the response]] to the soul-crushingly fatalistic, DarknessInducedAudienceApathy-fostering [[CrapsackWorld worldview]] of Nihilism. For an Existentialist, sure the meaning of life does not exist objectively and [[CosmicHorrorStory all our hopes are a cruel illusion]], we're all gonna die and [[YouCantFightFate there's nothing we can do about it]], but then again each individual is responsible for the meaning of his or her life, and we have a choice to make each hour of our lives meaningful — those who choose to spend it being bored, or following others, or {{wangst}}ing endlessly are wasting their lives. This {{reconstruct|ion}}s the {{deconstructed}} concept of the "meaning in life." Existentialism advocates individuality and involves things like BeYourself, IAmWhatIAm, DesperatelyLookingForAPurposeInLife and EarnYourHappyEnding.

* Notable genres include CyberPunk and KafkaKomedy
* ''TheMatrix'' although it is primarily toned down in the sequels

Existentialism is [[PostSomethingIsm the response]] to the soul-crushingly fatalistic, DarknessInducedAudienceApathy-fostering [[CrapsackWorld worldview]] of Nihilism. For an Existentialist, sure the meaning of life does not exist objectively and [[CosmicHorrorStory all our hopes are a cruel illusion]], we're all gonna die and [[YouCantFightFate there's nothing we can do about it]], but then again each individual is responsible for the meaning of his or her life, and we have a choice to make each hour of our lives meaningful — those who choose to spend it being bored, or following others, or {{wangst}}ing endlessly are wasting their lives. This {{reconstruct|ion}}s the {{deconstructed}} concept of the "meaning in life." The term [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Existential_angst#Angst Existential]] {{Angst}} is even coined to describe the sudden feeling of QuickSandbox it gave them, especially if they had just abandoned the FreedomFromChoice provided by both religion and social peer pressure.

Existentialist character types include TheAntiNihilist and TheUbermensch (the extreme {{Blue And Orange| Morality}} version). May involve IAmWhatIAm, DesperatelyLookingForAPurposeInLife and EarnYourHappyEnding.

* ''TheMatrix''

Existentialism is [[PostSomethingIsm the response]] to the soul-crushingly fatalistic, DarknessInducedAudienceApathy-fostering [[CrapsackWorld worldview]] of Nihilism. For an Existentialist, sure the meaning of life does not exist objectively and [[CosmicHorrorStory all our hopes are a cruel illusion]], but then again we have a choice to make it meaningful, and each individual is responsible for the meaning of his or her life — those who choose to spend it being bored, or following others, or {{wangst}}ing endlessly are wasting their lives. This {{reconstruct|ion}}s the {{deconstructed}} concept of the "meaning in life." The term [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Existential_angst#Angst Existential]] {{Angst}} is even coined to describe the sudden feeling of QuickSandbox it gave them, especially if they had just abandoned the FreedomFromChoice provided by both religion and social peer pressure.

Existentialism is [[PostSomethingIsm the response]] to the DarknessInducedAudienceApathy-fostering [[CrapsackWorld worldview]] of Nihilism. For an Existentialist, sure the meaning of life does not exist objectively and [[CosmicHorrorStory all our hopes are a cruel illusion]], but then again we have a choice to make it meaningful, and each individual is responsible for the meaning of his or her life — those who choose to spend it being bored, or following others, or {{wangst}}ing endlessly are wasting their lives. This {{reconstruct|ion}}s the {{deconstructed}} concept of the "meaning in life." The term [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Existential_angst#Angst Existential]] {{Angst}} is even coined to describe the sudden feeling of QuickSandbox it gave them, especially if they had just abandoned the FreedomFromChoice provided by both religion and social peer pressure.

* ''Hamlet'' and ''Candide'' are considered [[UrExample forerunners]].

While existential motifs are OlderThanYouThink (Buddha's teachings are a UrExample), Søren Kierkegaard, FyodorDostoevsky and FriedrichNietzsche foreshadowed in the 19th century some of what would be the defining characteristics of the philosophy, although they didn't know each other and the philosophy was unnamed. The term "existentialism" seems to have been coined by the French philosopher Gabriel Marcel. It gained popularity in the early 1940s around the time of the Modernist movement (amidst scientific discoveries of large and downright weird things out there, which inspired LovecraftianFiction, and of course the horrors of WorldWarTwo), when Jean-Paul Sartre [[TropeCodifier codified]] existential philosophy with three words: "Existence precedes essence." It was the reverse of most previous philosophical thought, which held that the essence (soul, purpose, meaning) of a thing came first.

! Existentialism in fiction:
Some works with existentialist themes:

Having some elements:
* ''{{Hamlet}}''
* ''{{Candide}}''
* ''NeonGenesisEvangelion'' (pretty much the ''NoExit'' of anime)
* The CyberPunk genre

Existentialism is [[PostSomethingIsm the response]] to the DarknessInducedAudienceApathy-fostering [[CrapsackWorld worldview]] of Nihilism. For an Existentialist, sure the meaning of life does not exist objectively and [[CosmicHorrorStory all our hopes are a cruel illusion]], but then again we have a choice and each individual is responsible for the meaning of his or her life — those who choose to spend it being bored, or following others, or {{wangst}}ing endlessly are wasting their lives. This {{reconstruct|ion}}s the {{deconstructed}} concept of the "meaning in life." The term [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Existential_angst#Angst Existential]] {{Angst}} is even coined to describe the sudden feeling of QuickSandbox it gave them, especially if they had just abandoned the FreedomFromChoice provided by both religion and social peer pressure.

While existential motifs are OlderThanYouThink (Buddha's teachings are a UrExample), Søren Kierkegaard, FyodorDostoevsky and FriedrichNietzsche foreshadowed in the 19th century some of what would be the defining characteristics of the philosophy, although they didn't know each other and the philosophy was unnamed. The term "existentialism" seems to have been coined by the French philosopher Gabriel Marcel. It gained popularity in the early 1940s around the time of the Modernist movement (amidst scientific discoveries of large and downright weird things out there, which inspired LovecraftianFiction, and of course the horrors of WorldWarTwo), when Sartre cemented existential philosophy with three words: "Existence precedes essence." It was the reverse of most previous philosophical thought, which held that the essence of a thing came first.

* ''NoExit''

* Notable works in the CyberPunk genre

See TheAntiNihilist for the character type. TheOtherWiki [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Existentialism has an article and analysis on the subject.]] Related to {{Absurdism}}, {{Postmodernism}}, {{Romanticism}} and Individualism. May involve IAmWhatIAm, DesperatelyLookingForAPurposeInLife and EarnYourHappyEnding.

TheUbermensch, now defined on this wiki as just someone who lives by his own moral code, was formerly [[WallOfText described]] as the extreme "AntiHero[=/=]DarkMessiah" manifestation of Existentialism.

While existential motifs are OlderThanYouThink (Buddha's teachings are a UrExample), the two philosophers Søren Kierkegaard, FyodorDostoevsky and FriedrichNietzsche foreshadowed some of what would be the defining characteristics of the philosophy, although they didn't know each other and the philosophy was unnamed. The term "existentialism" seems to have been coined by the French philosopher Gabriel Marcel. It gained popularity in the early 1940s around the time of the Modernist movement (amidst scientific discoveries of large and downright weird things out there, which inspired LovecraftianFiction, and of course the horrors of WorldWarTwo), when Sartre cemented existential philosophy with three words: "Existence precedes essence." It was the reverse of most previous philosophical thought, which held that the essence of a thing came first.

While existential motifs are OlderThanYouThink, the two philosophers Søren Kierkegaard and FyodorDostoevsky formulated some of what would be the defining characteristics of the philosophy, although they didn't know each other and the philosophy was unnamed. The term "existentialism" seems to have been coined by the French philosopher Gabriel Marcel. It gained popularity in the early 1940s around the time of the Modernist movement (amidst scientific discoveries of large and downright weird things out there and the horrors of WorldWarTwo), when Sartre cemented existential philosophy with three words: "Existence precedes essence." It was the reverse of most previous philosophical thought, which held that the essence of a thing came first.

Existentialism is [[PostSomethingIsm the response]] to the DarknessInducedAudienceApathy-fostering [[CrapsackWorld worldview]] of Nihilism. For an Existentialist, sure the meaning of life does not exist objectively and [[CosmicHorrorStory all our hopes are a cruel illusion]]), but then again we have a choice and each individual is responsible for the meaning of his or her life — those who choose to spend it being bored, or following others, or {{wangst}}ing endlessly are wasting their lives. This {{reconstruct|ion}}s the {{deconstructed}} concept of the "meaning in life." The term [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Existential_angst#Angst Existential]] {{Angst}} is even coined to describe the sudden feeling of QuickSandbox it gave them, especially if they had just abandoned the FreedomFromChoice provided by both religion and social peer pressure.

A philosophical concept and school that takes the premise of Nihilism (the meaning of life does not exist objectively, [[CrapsackWorld the universe is cold and meaningless]], and [[CosmicHorrorStory humans or at least individuals are insignificant]]), but responds to it by saying each individual is responsible for the meaning of his or her life — those that spend it being bored, or following others, or {{wangst}}ing endlessly are wasting their lives. This {{reconstruct|ion}}s the {{deconstructed}} concept of the "meaning in life." The term [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Existential_angst#Angst Existential]] {{Angst}} is even coined to describe the sudden feeling of QuickSandbox it gave them, especially if they had just abandoned the FreedomFromChoice provided by both religion and social peer pressure.