Flipped Learning Task: Existentialism

This Blog-post is a response of Flipped Learning Task about Existentialism. To know more about this task, CLICK HERE.

My understanding about Flipped learning:

Click this Image and do visit the website created by our professor Dr.Dilip Barad Sir.

We studied from school to college. Normally teachers asked to find the solution and come up with answers in the next day.This is traditional way to solved the questions. However, it flipped in modern education. Students supposed to find questions and will come with particular questions and teachers will solve as live method in the class.We saw given videos and we have certain questions and we typed in our Google Classroom. We will discussed or solved in the next day. Main aim of this learning process is maximum questions will required from the students which also developed the process of asking questions in students.Here is my outcome of each video:

Video 1: What is Existentialism

Existentialism is the movement occurred during twentieth century along with Surrealism,Absurd theory. The whole movement started with the name Jean-Paul-Sartre. He not considered himself as the first person known as Existentialist. He believed that this philosophical movement starts with Søren Aabye Kierkegaard. Along with, we can apply this term great thinker such as, Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche, Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoevsky, Franz Kafka, Martin Heidegger, Lev Shestov,Hermann Karl Hesse, Simone de Beauvoir. They all stat to think in certain way along with the subject namely the individual first and second Passion and Freedom at third one. Believing and not believing in God is might be the aspect of Existentialism.There is God is only be possible to thinking to be as individual person.There is such possibilities that perhaps God is not exist, because we didn't see him in real. It my be our illusion! Albert Camus thinks as that in absurd way. He argues that believing in God is very easy way to escape from the particular situation or certain bad event. We believe that there is God that he may be solved the situation. Camus called it that 'Philosophical Suicide' that people can't ready to deal with certain problems. 

Video 2:The Myth of Sisyphus: The Absurd Reasoning (Feeling of the Absurd)

This video deals with Albert Camus's The Myth of Sisyphus ans Absurd Reasoning. He begins with, "There is but one truly serious philosophical problem, and that is suicide."For Camus, suicide is an individual Act. When we feel absurd and despair of things which have no meanings, we might be commit suicide. Camus noticed that many people died because of they feel that their life is not worthy living. The relation between an individual and suicide which considered as the ART. Further the narrator of the video mentioned about the Movie, STAY.The protagonist sait it was the best art work of the 19th century. The phrase from the movie like "An elegant suicide is the ultimate work of art"Further very interesting part of the video comes that about divorce-life and love-death. Once one discover the life is absurd that question that Dose this absurdity require one to escape it through Hope or Suicide? Camus said that "In truth, there is no necessary common measure between these two judgments." And Is there a logic or the point of death? He suggest that I cannot know unless I pursue without reckless passion in the soul light of evidence, the reasoning of which I am here suggesting the source. This is what I call An Absurd Reasoning. 

Video 3: The Myth of Sisyphus: the notion of philosophical suicide

This video deals with Absurd in detail. Narrator said that absurd is neither in man nor in the world. It can only occur  in their presence together. Most people are not feel hesitating to reflect. We need to confront the problem of the absurd and struggle with it which implies in  total absence of hope, a continual rejection and conscious dissatisfaction.. In absurd mind, reason is useless and there is nothing beyond reason.For Kierkegaard, faith is the solution of absurd, but in Camus statements if we can see that it is Escapism. The leap which considered that about believing to the God. 

Video 4: Dadaism, Nihilism and Existentialism

This video deals with two movements and differences between them, also describes that Dadaism is just the movement like Existentialism.Most people believe that Dadaism is associated with Nihilism.But actually is not. The primary goal of Dadaism is always question every value rather than creating creation.It is merely an art movement. Dadaism is the way of becoming free from everything and is the chance to create own values. Nihilism and Dadaism is not the same. Dada is the response of world  war-I same as Existentialism is the response of world war-II. 

Video 5: Existentialism - a gloomy philosophy

Why Existentialism thought of as a gloomy philosophy? It might be the notion like anxiety, absurdity, despair which are the subject of to discussion in deep level with the life.The solutions like, believing in God, finding the truth which is true for you and being absurd in the life. Existentialism is also being a narcissistic philosophy.Existentialism is the response to the emptiness of post-world war. Existentialism is not same as Nihilism.

Video 6: Existentialism and Nihilism: Is it one and the same?

According to Kierkegaard, every Existentialist has fought against Nihilism. He describe that Nihilism is define as the loss of individuality. For Nietzsche the is the highest values devaluate themselves. Emile Cioran accept the life with passivity and this position can be called 'Nihilistic Consent' It is passivity that stops people who committing suicide.He feels that all suicide have the responsibility of fighting against the temptation of suicide. He rejects rebellion and writes that "At twenty we rage against the heaven and the fifth they hide;then we grow tired of it.The tragic attitude suits only an extended and ridiculous puberty."   While Camus wrote The Myth of Sisyphus and argue that why rebellion is the only proper response to the absurdity of life.

Video 7: Let us introduce Existentialism again!

This video introduce Existentialism in broader way. This movement or term is quite difficult to explain as well to understand. Existentialism is not a philosophical system nor a set of doctrines. It is best to classified it as a philosophical movement which began in 19th century in Europe. Soren Kierkegaard and Friedrich Nietzsche often know as the father of this movement. Existentialism became espacially prominent in the mid-20th century and specially after world war two.Existentialists are all concerned with the problem of living life as human being. It takes some serious questions in the human condition that Why am I here? What does it means to be human? How should I live my life?  They rejects systems which propose to have definitive answers to the questions of meaning and purpose in life. However, Christianity has been most dominant all-encompassing system in the history of the west.The problems with All-Encompassing system is that, they do not adequately take into account what it is like to be human. Such systems lose sight of the human perspective on life. There is also some difference between Divine perspective and Human perspective. Divine perspective often comes with a belief in immortality. "Existence precedes Essence " this idea put forth by Jean-Paul Sartre in a 1945 lecture titled, "Is Existentialism a Humanism"

The concept of Essence comes from Greek philosopher Aristotle. He believes that "Every substance or in other words every independent thing be it a person a rock or a tree has an essence" Aristotle had a teleological view of nature-all substance in nature tend towards the actualization of their essence. The nature (nature) of human was acting in full accordance with reason. Those who see humans as beings designed by a God also hold that our essence precedes existence. Another hand Sartre that our existence is precedes. For him, humans are fundamentally different from things like cars,watches, or phones. As an atheist Sartre did not believe humans were "designed".I the conclusion, with the differences between Existentialism and Nihilism. Nihilism is  no meaning or purpose to life and it is not a necessary characteristic of Existentialism. 

Video 9: Why I like Existentialism? 

In this video, two teachers are going to teach existentialism and Friedrich Nietzsche to the children's.They explains that why certain rules or values are make by our parents and teachers and we do that. We can make our own rules and values for our life. They asked them very simple questions about that why your mother command you to clean the room? It's your own room and your own choice to make it clear or not. There is no any certain universal morality that governs all of us. Decidinglk what is good and what is bad is a part of what Nietzsche called being Ubermensche. They teach the pupils as metaphorically with the name of Supermen or Nietzsche's superman. 

Video 10: Let us sum up: From Essentialism to Existentialism

This Video starts with the questions like What gives your life meaning? God?Love?Money?Work? The narrator of this video talked that a sense of meaning is something that we all crave-maybe even need.How we can find our meaning of life? through religion, education, social justice or some more.Very impressive example the speaker that a knife could have a wooden handle or a metal handle it really doesn't matter but if it didn't have a blade, it wouldn't be a knife anymore. Here blade is the essential property given by the worker. Ancient philosopher thinks that everything has an essence including us and they believed that our essence is exist in us before we are even born. This essence gives us the purpose to live in certain way. This philosophy called Essentialism. But after modern philosophy came and they include that Our Existence is precedes  Essence. Our birth we can say is exist and we develop our life with whatever we like and we install the essence in the life. Late 19th century come up with new meaning of existence is Absurdity. After post-world war we can see in western that the meaning of life couldn't found by anyone and tha is call meaninglessness and nothingness in life which Camus called Absurdity.There is also a clash between freedom and authority. We find the freedom by government, religion and society or whoever we think that they fill our need to become free. But there is only we who make ourselves free from the needs. It's cslled 'authentic freedom' As Camus said that."The literal meaning of life is whatever you're doing that prevents you from killing yourself."

I like this video because through this I come to know about very important thing is that Essence and further I also try to find that which type of essence I had put and I will put in my life. 

Here are my questions which I asked in classroom and I also got the answers:

1. As Camus mentioned that, "Suicide has never been dealt with except as Social Phenomenon." How it is possible?

2. Camus called his sort of reasoning as the absurd reasoning which is opposed to the logical reasoning. But still it is called 'Reasoning'.Is any logic in this theory to understand the absurdity?