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m_henchard's review against another edition
3.0
I've long had a distaste for mid-20th c. countercultural types in philosophy, and I have to thank the author for finally convincing me I need not investigate any of the writers discussed, save Husserl, Merleau-Ponty, and maybe Iris Murdoch.
mrs_bonaventure's review against another edition
4.0
Dense, heavy reading at times but lightened regularly by biographical details. I read all of de Beauvoir's memoirs and The Second Sex as a teenager and had forgotten how much it influenced me - built me - it's so much part of my early feminist education.
In this I was reminded of the whole milieu and why I've always thought Sartre was more impractical and somehow less useful in real life than de Beauvoir - but - this made me realise the sheer influence and force of his (their) philosophy, and its origins and forebears.
Even though they seem spectacularly naive politically by today's cynical standards, at least it was an attempt to be politically committed - engagé - which we've fallen out of today. They made mistakes but they were an attempt to at least do something. That's worth learning from. So is the responsibility to continually decide what to do with one's "wild and precious life." In that sense, existentialism is the only philosophy to fully attempt real life, real choices, real responsibilities.
In this I was reminded of the whole milieu and why I've always thought Sartre was more impractical and somehow less useful in real life than de Beauvoir - but - this made me realise the sheer influence and force of his (their) philosophy, and its origins and forebears.
Even though they seem spectacularly naive politically by today's cynical standards, at least it was an attempt to be politically committed - engagé - which we've fallen out of today. They made mistakes but they were an attempt to at least do something. That's worth learning from. So is the responsibility to continually decide what to do with one's "wild and precious life." In that sense, existentialism is the only philosophy to fully attempt real life, real choices, real responsibilities.
highlanderajax's review
informative
reflective
slow-paced
4.0
Tough one for me, and I'm going to rank this on its own merits rather than based on my enjoyment.
For what it is - an exploration of existentialist ideas, thinkers, and history - it's pretty damn excellent. It presents a very interesting track through phenomenology to existentialism, discusses the effects of Heidegger and Husserl on thinkers like Sartre, De Beauvoir, and Merleau-Ponty. It's in-depth but approachable, communicating really quite a staggering amount for the not over-long book. I was very interested, in particular, to see the shift between Camus' perspective and Sartre, especially with regard to Camus' philosophy of the absurd ("Sisyphus happy.") I thought there were pieces here and there of incredible insight and apt explanation of how and why certain existentialist thoughts fit together - the understanding of mauvaise foi, of the existentialist notions of authenticity versus those commonly understood, and the idea that meaning cannot be inherent to anything - we, as humans, can imbue things with meaning and set out own.
However, there are some core negatives, for me.
The first, I will not count in scoring this book, because it's not the author's fault, it's more my lack of understanding. This is very much an exercise in historical analysis that yields existentialist understandings, NOT a book on existentialism itself. I picked this up initially thinking that this would be more of a discussion of existentialist thought applied through a particular setting, but it wasn't. That alone was something that caused me to struggle through this book. It's not what I expected, it's not what I particularly wanted to read, but I'm not unhappy that I did. The other is a bit more annoying. The book jumps around quite a lot, through history and through patterns of thought. It can be hard to keep focus at times, which makes prolonged reading a slog.
The book improves sharply after the mid-point - more time is given to understanding the existentialist principles, though the book is still very much concerned with existentialISTS not existentialISM. There are some fantasitc insights, and overall it's very well-written - Bakewell is a good communicator and a strong writer - but it's at times a little light on the actual philosophies themselves. I'd recommend this to someone who is well-read in existentialism and who wants more understanding of the lives of the philosophers, or to someone interested in philosophical history, but not to someone who wanted to learn about this school of thought.
For what it is - an exploration of existentialist ideas, thinkers, and history - it's pretty damn excellent. It presents a very interesting track through phenomenology to existentialism, discusses the effects of Heidegger and Husserl on thinkers like Sartre, De Beauvoir, and Merleau-Ponty. It's in-depth but approachable, communicating really quite a staggering amount for the not over-long book. I was very interested, in particular, to see the shift between Camus' perspective and Sartre, especially with regard to Camus' philosophy of the absurd ("Sisyphus happy.") I thought there were pieces here and there of incredible insight and apt explanation of how and why certain existentialist thoughts fit together - the understanding of mauvaise foi, of the existentialist notions of authenticity versus those commonly understood, and the idea that meaning cannot be inherent to anything - we, as humans, can imbue things with meaning and set out own.
However, there are some core negatives, for me.
The first, I will not count in scoring this book, because it's not the author's fault, it's more my lack of understanding. This is very much an exercise in historical analysis that yields existentialist understandings, NOT a book on existentialism itself. I picked this up initially thinking that this would be more of a discussion of existentialist thought applied through a particular setting, but it wasn't. That alone was something that caused me to struggle through this book. It's not what I expected, it's not what I particularly wanted to read, but I'm not unhappy that I did. The other is a bit more annoying. The book jumps around quite a lot, through history and through patterns of thought. It can be hard to keep focus at times, which makes prolonged reading a slog.
The book improves sharply after the mid-point - more time is given to understanding the existentialist principles, though the book is still very much concerned with existentialISTS not existentialISM. There are some fantasitc insights, and overall it's very well-written - Bakewell is a good communicator and a strong writer - but it's at times a little light on the actual philosophies themselves. I'd recommend this to someone who is well-read in existentialism and who wants more understanding of the lives of the philosophers, or to someone interested in philosophical history, but not to someone who wanted to learn about this school of thought.
aliazmi99's review
hopeful
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
4.5
a biography of phenomenology and existentialist thought and an invitation to revisit these whacky french and german fellas
accessible and fun to read
how embarassing if this book is going to turn me into a sartre reader in a cafe, wearing a black turtleneck... (it will)
accessible and fun to read
how embarassing if this book is going to turn me into a sartre reader in a cafe, wearing a black turtleneck... (it will)
hannahwashburn's review against another edition
4.0
This was an extremely thorough in detail look at people who I had no idea existed. I felt like I was embarking on my own research process rather than reading someone else's words. Through this journey I experienced pride, love, jealousy, identity crises, and above all, the human experience. And so even though I leave with still a pitiful idea of what existentialism or phenomenology is, I know how it feels. And I think that's just as good, if not better.
bartonstanley's review against another edition
4.0
I found this to be a remarkably accessible work on an expansive topic. I highly recommend it to readers wanting an introduction to existentialism. As someone who previously knew little of the topic I now have a good basic understanding and plenty of ideas about what to explore next.