Monday, April 13, 2015

Symposia Make-Up: Sarte

This is a blog to make up missing Wednesday, April 8 Symposia for a softball game-

In class we learned that Sarte believed in numerous things but two things have stood out to me the most: One, is that human beings are free; two, is that we fall into patterns that tell us we are not free or free unconditionally. I totally agree with the fact that humans are free beings. We are free to do whatever we want and whenever we want (except crime of course). I also agree that we fall into patterns that tell us we have no choice but it doesn't apply to every situation. During the symposia on Friday, April 10 Dr. J brought up the situation of a bad relationship. What if you absolutely positively cannot get out of this relationship without suffering the consequences you are trying to avoid? This is something I've experienced in my own life. I was in a relationship that was absolutely toxic to me. I was trying to find a way out for months and months and I went to numerous people asking for their advice. I went to my best friends and they told me that I couldn't get out of this relationship for fear of ruining my softball teams' "chemistry". And they were right. I couldn't break up with this person without ruining the rest of the season for this person because they had such a stronghold over the rest of my teammates. I wasn't free in this situation. I had no choice that would make me feel better about what I needed to do to better myself. I had no choice that would avoid the consequences that I didn't want to face. Long story short I did end the relationship but to this day I am facing criticism and people talking behind my back for what I did. That was what I was trying to avoid but I am a better person today.

The point I'm trying to make here is that there was no choice that was going to allow me to avoid the consequences/discrimination that I felt and am feeling now from certain people. I did express my free will as a human being and exercised it. But during the situation I felt like I had no choice and that I was in a sense "trapped". I mean another example where Sarte's philosophy could not apply would be the Holocaust. The Jewish people really didn't have a choice in escaping what they were about to face or they would be killed. Sarte is still a great philosopher and I believe that his ideas that humans are free beings and that we always have a choice means he has hope in the human race. Of course I can't really say what kind of man Sarte was but according to my optimistic personality I feel like that was the kind of man he was. Why else would he say that we always have a choice and that we are free human beings?

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