I honestly feel like I cannot even rate this essay…it was really interesting…but also made me go into a deep depression

This book covers the exposure and deep dive into existentialism and how it bounds with humanism. it provides depth and detailed explanations about misconceptions to existentialism linked with religion, purpose of life, and marxism itself. it is a somewhat interesting primer and the important thing to acknowledge is not so much this particular philosophy, but the importance of philosophy in general. This book also explores the commentary of The Stranger by Sartre, further describing the tension between Sartre and Camus, both literary giants at that time. It was enlightening to consider different viewpoints (both the absurd, and existentialism itself) when trying to perceive the world and this book contributes to that search and is therefore important and worth reading, not to mention it can be read in a single afternoon.

Big fan of existentialism and Sartre's explanation of it. Really cool presentation as it's a lecture that was recorded by a stenographer and reviewed by Sartre. It has been interesting to read this while reflecting on poststructuralism and phenomenology. You have to be somewhat privileged to believe every choice is only yours and the consequences are your responsibility, and that's one of many obvious reasons why I am not a hardcore Sartre fanboy. But nevertheless there are important tenets of existentialism that emphasize the humanist nature of ethics under atheism.

** spoiler alert ** Nice.

An excellent introduction into Sartre's philosophy. Considering this is essentially a lecture, it's very accessible and as a former philosophy student I can appreciate the straight talking tone. Makes a nice change!

i’m interested in existentialism. this isn’t exactly what i thought it’d be, but definitely thought-provoking. i am not an existentialist

incredibly informative i found myself agreeing to a lot of what he said because every single value/statement had a lot of logic backing it up. excited to read reviews which challenge his work so that i can understand this book further.

I have always been a fan of Sartre.

This was my first real foray into Sartre's philosophy. I had a cursory knowledge of existentialism, but only of the kind that's pretty inevitable if you spend enough time on Twitter or Tumblr. That said, I gather that this isn't an entirely accurate portrait of existentialism, even if it was given by the man himself. It's actually a speech Sartre gave in response to his critics, so he necessarily rounded off some corners and sanded some edges to fit the narrative. Even so, it's fascinating to delve into, and Sartre relays his ideas in an approachable way without dumbing anything down. The first third of the book was spent nodding along vigorously, everything basically boiling down to the famous line that "existence precedes essence," that man creates himself. Sartre then runs into a stumbling block: his complete and utter denial of what we now know to be pretty basic truths of human nature and psychology. Had he known what we know now, I think he would've adjusted his views accordingly, but as it stands, I think much of Satre's philosophy hinges on a faulty premise. Still, it's a fascinating read, and it's hard not to feel inspired when you finally turn the last page.