Existentialism in Plain Words: Making Meaning When Life Doesn’t Hand It to You

At some point most of us ask a quiet, uncomfortable question. Maybe it’s on a long commute, or late at night after a busy week: “Is this it? What is all of this actually for?”

Many philosophies and religions offer an answer from the outside: a purpose given by God, nature, society or tradition. A group of thinkers in the 19th and 20th centuries took a different route. They said that, as human beings, we often have to answer this question for ourselves. Their way of thinking became known as existentialism.

The core idea: existence comes first

The French philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre summed up existentialism in a short phrase: “existence precedes essence.”

A paper knife, he explained, is designed for a purpose before it’s made. Its “essence” (what it’s for) comes first. Human beings, Sartre argued, are different. We exist first, and only then, through our choices and actions, do we define who we are.

In plain words: you are not born with a script. You write it as you go.

Three thinkers, three angles

Søren Kierkegaard: the leap of commitment

The Danish thinker Kierkegaard (1813–1855) is often called the father of existentialism, though he was a deeply Christian writer. He believed that the most important truths are not learned from books but lived through personal commitment. He wrote about the “anxiety” that comes with freedom, which he called “the dizziness of freedom”, the feeling of standing before many possible choices and knowing that only you can choose.

Jean-Paul Sartre: freedom and responsibility

Sartre (1905–1980) said we are “condemned to be free”. Even not choosing is a choice. And with that freedom comes responsibility: we can’t fully blame our upbringing, our job or “the way things are” for who we become. Sartre called it “bad faith” when we pretend we have no choice in order to avoid that responsibility.

Albert Camus: the absurd and the rebel

Camus (1913–1960), who didn’t like being called an existentialist but is usually grouped with them, wrote about the absurd: the clash between our deep wish for meaning and a universe that doesn’t seem to answer. His famous image is Sisyphus, the figure from Greek myth condemned to roll a boulder up a hill forever. Camus ends his essay with a surprising line: “One must imagine Sisyphus happy.” The struggle itself, fully owned, can be enough to fill a life.

Why this isn’t as bleak as it sounds

Existentialism has a reputation for gloom: black clothes, cigarettes, Paris cafés. But its message can be deeply encouraging.

• If meaning isn’t handed to you, you’re free to create it. Your values, relationships and work can be chosen, not just inherited.
• You’re never just your past. Whatever has happened, you can still choose how to act next.
• Honesty is a strength. Facing hard questions directly, rather than distracting ourselves, can make life feel more real and more our own.

Existentialism in everyday life

You don’t need to read Sartre to live a little more existentially. Try these questions:

• “Am I choosing this, or just drifting?” Look at one area of your life (your work, your weekend routine, a relationship) and ask whether you’re actively choosing it.
• “Where am I in bad faith?” Notice when you say “I have no choice”. Sometimes it’s true. Often, there’s a choice we don’t like, which is different.
• “What would I stand behind?” Existentialists valued authenticity: acting in a way you can honestly own. Ask whether today’s actions are ones you’d stand behind.

Common misunderstandings

• “Nothing matters, so do anything.” That’s closer to nihilism. Existentialists argued that because we create meaning, our choices matter a great deal.
• “It’s about being alone against the world.” Sartre argued that in choosing for ourselves, we’re also showing what we think a human being should be. Our choices affect others.
• “It’s only for intellectuals.” The questions existentialism asks are among the most ordinary human questions there are.

Frequently asked questions

Is existentialism against religion?

Not necessarily. Kierkegaard was a passionate Christian, and thinkers such as Gabriel Marcel and Martin Buber brought existential ideas into religious life. Sartre and Camus, by contrast, were not religious.

How is existentialism different from Stoicism?

Stoicism says there is a rational order to nature and that virtue means living in line with it. Existentialism is more sceptical of any built-in order and puts greater weight on individual choice and creating meaning.

Where should I start reading?

Sartre’s short lecture Existentialism Is a Humanism (1946) is the most accessible starting point. Camus’s The Myth of Sisyphus is short and moving. Sarah Bakewell’s At the Existentialist Café is a readable history of the whole movement.

A small step for today

Write down one thing you do regularly mainly because “that’s just how it is”. Then ask: if I were choosing this freshly today, would I choose it? Whatever the answer, you’ve just done a little existential philosophy.

Sources and further reading

• Sartre, J.-P. (1946). Existentialism Is a Humanism.
• Camus, A. (1942). The Myth of Sisyphus.
• Kierkegaard, S. (1844). The Concept of Anxiety.
• Bakewell, S. (2016). At the Existentialist Café: Freedom, Being, and Apricot Cocktails. Chatto & Windus.