Exploring Existentialism and the Complexity of Love

Abstract

[Name] Philosophy 1301 [Instructor Name] November 5, 2023 Real world application An inseparable and natural part of human life is the feelings and presence of emotions within individuals. One of the most profound and influential feelings of emotion is the feeling of love. Love is an unbelievable feeling that elevates other emotions such as joy and content, allowing an individual to find fulfillment and happiness. Love, however, also forces individuals reveal their vulnerability, which may even result in the potential loss of those feelings, leaving one to feel empty and isolated. When viewing love through the perspective of existentialism, it is a complex emotion that interplays and questions the freedom, authenticity, and meaning within an individual. This paper seeks to apply how existentialism ties into love within an individual going through the experience of life. Existentialism is a philosophical ideology, some examples of philosophers who focus on this ideology include Jean-Paul Sartre and Simone de Beauvoir. Existentialism consists of the idea that individuals must confront and come to terms with the fact that there is a lack of inherent meaning within the purpose of life and the universe itself. Individuals must come to terms with this fact that there is no meaning in life and construct their own sense of purpose, morals, and values in order to create meaning. Best described by Johnathan Webber, existentialism is a “theory of how best to live” (222). As mentioned before, love is a complex emotion that is fundamental towards human experience as it involves different factors such as affection, intimacy, commitment, and selflessness. What makes love so complex is that it isn’t subject to a clear definition as love can be expressed and experienced in many different ways and can be taken in many different forms. As expressed by Skye Cleary, “Romantic love is a profoundly complex and perplexing topic which is rich with pain, paradoxes and pleasure” (423). Existentialism and love can be tied towards each other because they promote the search for meaning, freedom, and transcendence that can result into an overall higher quality of life. Although love is a fundamental aspect of life that can be tied into existentialism, it is also an example of...