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faithd325's review against another edition
challenging
informative
reflective
slow-paced
3.0
The absurd, what we live in, is sin without God. Very very good.
LOTS of trigger warnings for the topic of suicide, and the deep, explicit reflection of it in this book. Despite that though, I find this book extremely compelling.
"I don't know whether this world has a meaning that transcends it. But I know that I cannot know that meaning and that it is impossible for me just now to know it."
"The only way to deal with an unfree world is to become so absolutely free that your very existence is an act of rebellion."
I'm tired of pushing my boulder.
LOTS of trigger warnings for the topic of suicide, and the deep, explicit reflection of it in this book. Despite that though, I find this book extremely compelling.
"I don't know whether this world has a meaning that transcends it. But I know that I cannot know that meaning and that it is impossible for me just now to know it."
"The only way to deal with an unfree world is to become so absolutely free that your very existence is an act of rebellion."
I'm tired of pushing my boulder.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide
mosswood's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
3.5
This wasn’t one of my favourites of Camus’ though it places the rest of his work in significant context. The way he uses story-telling techniques to explore intense philosophical debates of is God alive but then to take the unconventional atheist approach of throughout contemplating the implications if they’re not. I really appreciated this and his beautiful writing.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide
dxprile's review
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicidal thoughts and Suicide
drdumplings's review against another edition
challenging
reflective
medium-paced
2.25
Content Warnings
Moderate: Suicide
anka_not_anchor's review against another edition
challenging
dark
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
4.5
camus, camus, camus
i love a good existential crisis
i love a good existential crisis
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Suicide, and Suicide attempt
happening__'s review against another edition
slow-paced
3.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Death
jessfastlane's review against another edition
challenging
informative
reflective
slow-paced
3.5
Ridiculously dense. Camus is exceedingly brilliant in this book, but it takes more than one read to even begin to fully understand. It's hard to recommend the full book to anyone unless they're very interested in these types of nonfiction books. Most people are probably better off with a summary, it's certainly easier. Still very much enjoyed it, despite its complexity.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Suicide
Minor: Incest
cayley_graph's review against another edition
challenging
informative
reflective
slow-paced
2.0
Some books are temporal and ephemeral; they were meant to be read in a certain place, by a certain type of people, at a certain time. Almost all authors write for their peers and not some hypothetical reader hundreds of years in the future. Even so, some books transcend their immediate trappings. This book does not.
It's a collection of essay on how an absurdist (man) ought to live life. The philosophy can be summarised as: 1) life has no meaning/fate/destiny, except what you make and 2) just because life is meaningless does not mean it cannot be happy. Sisyphus is happy pushing his rock up the hill only to have it fall down because he enjoys the journey and is not attached to the outcome.
It is nigh on unreadable. I have read Dostoyevsky and Kafka, but since I cannot remember all the details from those story that are referred to, so some of the reactionary essays were impossible. At the time, those were the works of the day that everyone would have read and talked about. Today, these essays require you to read (reread or at least refresh) your knowledge of several other books, of varying degrees of enjoyability.
The impression I got from this was the Camus was traumatised from WWII; he and everyone else experienced a very visceral time of hardship. His reaction, like many other people, was to make this very polished, very cerebral world of literature and abstract thoughts. So his book has beautiful sentences that one cannot make heads nor tail of. I can imagine someone come home from the horrors of the war and feeling comforted and safe reading these sentences and pondering on these abstract ideas, for a bit of separation from their immediate surroundings and memories.
But yes, no, I would not recommend this book to a modern reader, unless existentialism, absurdism, Kafka and Dostoyevsky is their jam. Also, I the essays in the appendix on Iran and Algiers were insightful into the times and painted a vivid picture.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Suicide