Jean-Paul Sartre

Day 2656, Windows of opportunity.

Daily picture, Philosophy

Life is unfair. Why do I say that? Because we are free and unfree at the same time.

“Man is condemned to be free; because once thrown into the world, he is responsible for everything he does. It is up to you to give [life] a meaning.”

Jean-Paul Sartre

Sartre takes our freedom to the extreme in that we can take our own life and end it at any moment. We are condemned to find a reason to live and not take the final step, and this finding of a reason is the meaning you give to your life.

If you are not satisfied with parts of your life, let’s say your work becomes meaningless to you, you can repeat to yourself all the reasons why you should keep this job, like feeding your family and paying the mortgage. These reasons are all valid for your particular life, but you as a human being can just stand up after lunch, walk away, and don’t stop walking till you are far away from your life, literally. We don’t do this because of moral reasons, society and responsibilities, but the fact that we can do it makes this tension between our freedom and unfreedom so interesting.

A second problem is that there is no general reason for life or to keep on living besides the fact that we do. Our basic instincts functions like eating and breathing extend our life till its natural end without much effort on our part. You can believe in some sort of god or afterlife, but that is not more than a personal reason to live for and not one that is grounded in what we know, the facts.

We humans, thinking animals, have, through our living together, invented all kinds of reasons why we live, and we have written books full of rules that tell us what to do and what not to do. We all know this, even if you can’t read or end up in a society that is alien to you, you know that there are rules, and you try to follow them. We are conditioned to follow these written and unwritten rules, but none of these rules relate to any facts about life. The only rule with any basis in facts is that we can ignore all these man-made rules and regulations. We can ignore a red light at a crossroad; no one stops you the next time you approach this symbol that forbids… you are free to make a choice.

All these rules are, of course, necessary to let our society function, but like Sartre said, we are ultimately free to stand up and go our own way, we are condemned to be free.

“My thought is me: that’s why I can’t stop. I exist because I think… and I can’t stop myself from thinking. At this very moment – it’s frightful – if I exist, it is because I am horrified at existing. I am the one who pulls myself from the nothingness to which I aspire.”

Jean-Paul Sartre

Day 2382, The cause of our talents.  

Daily picture

This is a picture of a door with someone’s art painted on it. I don’t like showing of pictures of something that in itself is beautiful or interesting. The problem is that most things you take pictures of are interesting in themselves. A colorful sunset is beautiful, and a picture can show that, but as a photographer, you have to manipulate that reality to make the sunset yours. There is a thin line between just a picture of a sunset or landscape or a picture of these scenes that is in itself worth watching.

The art on the door and fence is interesting in itself if you go to the place where it is, you can enjoy it too, but there is a lot of distraction around it, and it might be cold or too warm and the light harsh. This picture shows what the original artist probably intended, and that is the illusion and movement. Though I manipulated this photo just like I do with a picture of a sunset, I find it still strange to take credit for it, and that is strange because a sunset is mothers nature’s work, but in a sense, so is the art we make as humans, as individuals too.

I sometimes make pictures that can be considered as art, but I have never put any effort into learning these skills. I take a lot of pictures, but that’s what I like to do and what I know of composition and style is something I just had without any effort. I had the luck that I got a camera from my parents when I was young so I could discover these qualities in me, I would have never known without the right people around me at the right time. I also find enough motivation and inspiration to keep on taking pictures, but again, there is no effort in that because it’s what I have always done when my mind is set on something, it’s “baked” in me.

I just want to say that we can praise the artist for what comes out of their mind or hands, but I think we should praise even more the coincidence that so much talent has come together in one place and gave birth to that art. I think some humility is good for all of us, and we shouldn’t inflate what “we” bring to the table ourselves. Some say that we are just conscious, I don’t know about that, but we are at least conscious of ourselves and our talents, and we should also know that we are not the cause of our talents, at most caretakers.

Continue reading →

Day 1714, behind.

Day's pictures, Poetry

I like Jean-Paul Sartre’s existentialism, you are responsible for your own deeds and the door is wide open. It was, and is of course a bold thought, and he refined it later in life as I understood. But in a sense, he is right. If you have to do something and it will cost you your life if you don’t, you can choose death. You can walk away from a bad relation or job, just walk away. It is simple, it sounds simple but it is also, almost impossible. A great harm or bad relation feels often more secure than an unknown future or a known future you don’t want.

Sartre came up with many of his thoughts during the second world war in occupied France. He probably knows more about the ultimate sacrifice than we do, even if it is just through stories from close friends. Would you save someone else’s life if it meant your own death? It is a choice you have according to Sartre, there is no denying in that.

Another example, more relatable for most of us. Keeping a job you don’t like but the bill’s keep on coming and you and the people that rely on you need to eat and want a roof over their heads. There is no physical force, that I can think of, that keeps you from walking away from it all. And people do of course, and we tend to shame those people.

We feel responsible, have morals and values. You just don’t do that, but you could. And Sartre was right in this sense, and you might expect that your wife or husband can take responsibility for there own life if you suddenly disappear, but what about your kids or a sick mother that lives with you?

We have the ultimate freedom to go away or choose death, but is it honest to expect this from us?

The Haiku that inspired me was from Day 889

Behind no bars

leaning on the open door

and staring outside.

The picture that was the inspiration of this poem was of a chicken in its coop, but the door was also open, as always. Footnote: this particular chicken was eaten by an…well…a sort of eagle. We saw it all happen while sitting on our couch…poor thing…maybe it was her own choice…