led and passions hold no power. An existentialist will never view a great passion as a destructive agent, or blame fate for making a man commit certain actions. Again pointing to mans' existence being defined by his choices and actions.Since Sartre claims that existence precedes essence, an existentialist will also deny the support of an organized religion. As a result there is an absence of values. The existentialists' world is one of being forsaken and abandoned. In this sense, abandonment can mean that we ourselves decide our being. As an example we can consider the case of the man who was faced with a difficult decision the. The young man had two choices: To take care of his mother, or to go to England to join the freedom forces. The first option is a concrete and certain course of action. It is immediate, but directed to only one individual. The second choice of action is addressed to an infinitely greater cause, yet the outcome is rather uncertain. "The Kantian ethic warns not to regard another person as a means, but rather as an end."(pg 25-26) In this case, for the young man to remain with his mother, he would be treating her as the end and the freedom fighters as the means. On the other hand, if he were to aid the freedom fighters, he would be treating them as the end at the risk of treating his mother as the means.This example shows how man cannot rely on values. Sartre in this case recommended to the young man to trust his instincts. Sartre's philosophy also deals with despair and the meaning of one's life. Marxists say, "Your action is limited by your death; but you can rely upon the help of others." (pg 30) However, Sartre claims that he must confine himself to what he can see. Existentialists doubt that others will carry on their work after their death. An existentialist does not necessarily believe that the revolution will lead to the triumph of the working class. To carry this further, from the individual cases to the g...
