The Myth of Sisyphus

analysing this book was really difficult but somehow i did it and passed my exam and graduated highschool partly bc of it, thanks to the best teacher for recommending me this book it's now one of my favourite bokks ever :)

This was a tough thing, because I’m still not convinced by Camus’s argument, however... I simply must turn to page 54 and reread: “It may be thought that suicide follows revolt—but wrongly. For it does not represent the logical outcome of revolt. […] Suicide, like the leap, is acceptance at its extreme.” So, keep the revolution going, everyone.

Absurd kelimesinin uyumsuz olarak çevirilmesi rahatsız edici.

dare i say...this feels like camus at his most optimistic and uplifting? not complaining though.

this man is so dramatic i love it tho

"The Myth of Sisyphus" is a book I picked up as an attempt to find answers, but instead I found a piece of work which provided more or less of a framework for my ... existential crisis, so to speak. It addresses some of the most important aspects of human life, ranging from the temptation of suicide to the illusion of living. If I learned anything at all, it is that "beginning to think is beginning to be undermined". It might sound counterintuitive, but it is one of the truths I learned to tolerate. I started reading this book looking for answers, but Camus refrained from offering me such luxurious things. Instead of giving me hope, he took it away, and in an almost barbaric way, yet as gentle as one can be, reminded me that I have no future - and that's probably one way to summarise this book: a reminder that we do not belong to the future, but to the absurdity of our existence. One could attempt to escape it or one could attempt to go on living, but Camus chooses to look for a third way: incorporating the absurd in our daily lives. My experience with the Absurd is a fairly intimate one, and as I stood there, amidst the darkness of my mind, intimidated by the terror and dread of the Absurd, I learned that the only option I truly have is to accept it. As Camus said, it became a passion, "but whether or not one can live with one's passions [...] that is the whole question". If imagining Sisyphus happy is something to live by, I should find my own happiness in this Theatre of the Absurd I am being a part of. After all, I tried for a while now to rationalise the Absurd, yet "the most universal rationalism always stumbles eventually on the irrational of human thought". For now, revolt, freedom and passion are enough. Eventually, though, even embracing the Absurd won't amount to anything in itself.

existentialism is a niche mentality. I get it, but it's hard to imagine leading a life with this obscuring my mind

Thought-provoking. Let me stare at the sky for a while now and contemplate the absurdity of life.

Camus is funny, and he writes like we’re sitting in front of a fire talking over a finger of whisky. I’ll excuse myself and retire when I choose to, and he’ll accept it politely. He offers an alternative to the futile search for meaning in our short lives– simply to live, in revolt of the idea that it can be found.

Difficult to read, but definitely recommended. Camus' writing, like his novels, lack any sense of flow - instead feeling like a choppy ramble. Perhaps that fault lies on the translation. But the ideas presented in this book are extremely liberating. Camus proposes that life is worth living, despite having no intrinsic value. His ideas diverge slightly from his contemporaries (such as Satre), enough to be classed into a separate stream of philosophy - but I would recommend this to any person who is interested in the search of a raison d'etre, or any person interested in the 20th century philosophy movement.

Varoluşçuluk'tan çok yazarın kendi geliştirdiği absürdlük düşüncesi üzerine bir kitap. Mesela intihar etmeyi anlamsız bir şey olarak görüyor. Nasıl olsa hepimiz öleceğiz, öyleyse intihar, kaçınılmazı hızlandırmaktan baka bir şey değil. İnsan doğası gereği yaşamını sorgular; Camus'a göre varoluşumuzu anlamlandırmak ister. Ancak çoğu zaman arayışımızın cevabını doğada, evrende, yaşamın içinde bulamayız. Yabancı kitabının altyapısı hissediliyor. Camus'a göre intihar bir çözüm değildir. Absürt durumu bitirir ama yaşam da biter. Önemli olan iyileşmek değil, dertleriyle yaşamaktır. Hayatı yaşamaya değmeyeceği düşüncesi ile intihar etmek, hayata bir değer vermektir. Ancak yola çıkışımızla çelişen bir durum bu. Okumak için emek isteyen bir kitap. Üstüne kötü çeviriyi de ekleyince, hem zor okunuyor, hem zor anlaşılıyor. Kitabın adındaki "söyleni" mit demek. Kitap adının Sisifos Mit'i seçilmemiş olması bile sıkıntıyı gösteriyor.

One must imagine Sisyphus happy.

This book is fantastic. It is a very sobering account of the question of why you should bother living. Camus writing is fantastic, and incredibly insightful. His recounting of the absurdity of live, and why one should revel in these absurdities through revolt is really interesting. The way he outlines the human condition is unique, and has a certain charm to it. My primary complaint with this book is that the prose is written in a somewhat confusing way, and relies heavily on long since outdated alliteration that will go over most people's heads. The book is relatively short, but will take longer than you expect for need of re-reading sections. Overall I would recommend this to anyone who has never read any existential philosophy, and any angsty teen/pre-teens out there.