Existentialism

2 definitions found

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  existentialism \ex`is*ten"tial*ism\, n. (Philosophy)
     a philosophical theory or attitude having various
     interpretations, generally emphasising the existence of the
     individual as a unique agent with free will and
     responsibility for his or her own acts, though living in a
     universe devoid of any certain knowledge of right and wrong;


     from one's plight as a free agent with uncertain guidelines
     may arise feelings of anguish. Existentialism is concerned
     more with concrete existence rather than abstract theories of
     essences; is contrasted with {rationalism} and {empiricism};
     and is associated with Kierkegaard, Heidegger and Sartre, as
     well as others.
     [PJC]

From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:

  existentialism
       n : (philosophy) a 20th-century philosophical movement; assumes
           that people are entirely free and thus responsible for
           what they make of themselves [syn: {existentialist
           philosophy}]