WHITEHEADS METAPHYSICS NIHILISM AND EXISTENTIALISM Grendel Chapters 5

WHITEHEAD’S METAPHYSICS, NIHILISM AND EXISTENTIALISM Grendel Chapters 5 and 6

Metaphysics Concerned with being and the world Ontology-the categories of being and how they relate to each other Cosmology-the study of the universe – its nature, origin, dynamics, structure

Whitehead Alfred North Whitehead-(1861 -1947) mathematician/philosopher � brought new attention to metaphysics We apply meaning – the “thing” does not “fallacy of misplaced concreteness”-the “real” things are merely abstractions � All things change by the second/all things have experience

Nihilism Life has no meaning – it’s almost a cruel joke Nothing matters because the world and people have… � No purpose � No truth � No value

Nietzsche Friedrich Nietzsche – (1844 -1900) German academic with a fantastic mustache Most famous nihilist “God is dead” Negative connotations when everything is negated Saw Christianity as nihilistic because it focuses on an afterlife

The Dragon Negates The Shaper’s stories Omniscient – all-knowing Gives Grendel purpose, though he clearly views people’s understanding of the universe as flawed, in that they have no purpose. Materialistic/nihilistic – echoes Nietzsche’s position that God is dead

Existentialism Existence precedes essence � An individual acts alone � Is not influenced by societal labels, stereotypes, etc. � Creates his/her own essence � Free will… to an extent

Existentialism � Life has no meaning … the individual gives it meaning � Related to nihilism, but more positive (to me) � The Absurd: anything can happen to anyone � Facticity: giving meaning to facts of one’s life… letting those facts define him � Authenticity, Despair, Angst

Jean-Paul Sartre First person to call himself an “existentialist” We are “condemned to be free” “human nature” isn’t a thing – we are responsible Being and Nothingness

Chapter 6