raylux 's review for:

The Myth of Sisyphus and Other Essays by Justin O'Brien, Albert Camus

5.0

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When I discovered Camus and The Myth of Sisyphus , I realized that most of the ideas I had worked out for myself were already written down by one of the most popular philosophers to ever live. I was 18 when I first read the essay. I was grappling with the idea of living a lifetime that would be rendered pointless by death. I felt my own impending doom very strongly and trying to find a reasonable purpose to continue living was resulting in a very bleak depression. After reading Camus I realized I was not alone. Being 18, none of my friends cared about philosophy or thought about death. I wasn't sure if I was going insane or not because I was so different from everyone around me in my thinking. I toyed with the idea that I was smarter than most people, however failing math class and sitting around brooding over the doom made it hard for me to believe it was intelligence separating me from the people around me. Camus allowed me to feel that my thoughts weren't insane, and that my problems were not only reasonable but able to be worked out in a positive way. I still feel governed by doom but I am able to live with relative happiness knowing that I'm not the only one who thinks existence is meaningless. It doesn't have to have a meaning. While it may be hard to stay motivated in a world with assured death, it certainly allows for life to be beautiful.