Existentialism from Dostoevsky to Sartre: Basic Writings of Existentialism by Kaufmann, Kierkegaard, Nietzsche, Jaspers, Heidegger, and Others (Meridian S)

This is book consisting mostly of excerpts of the writings of the main existentialist writers - as the title says, from Dostoevski to Sartre, including Kirkegaard, Camus and many other important authors. The introduction, by Dr Kaufmann, is very informative, very well written and, in its style, shows us the way in which professional philosophers communicate. Both the introduction and the excerpts are quite complex, at least for a simple mathematician like me. Other than the articles by Sartre, Camus and Kirkegaard, I enjoyed very much working through the Parables by Kafka. On the whole, a great compilation, with an introduction that points the way into the articles. But be aware, the whole thing is quite difficult for the layman!

Having read a few overviews of the subject this was a joy to read introducing as it does to original source material. As a lay reader I found all bar two of the pieces presented readily accessible. Of those that defy understanding I did at least get an idea of what the author stands for. A good primer for further reading.

This is a book of proven merit, bringing together a judiciously composed and multi-faceted assortment of texts giving voice to the existentialist experience of life or describing and analysing existentialism. The brief, to the point introductions by professor Kaufmann properly put the various contributions in context. Unfortunately, the printing quality is inadmissibly low (cheap, porous paper making for a bloated look, the contours of the characters annoyingly vague) and effectively distracts the reader's attention from the text.

Really good overview, and a coherent timeline, of how existentialism developed and how it's key proponents thought.

Great!

Excellent product

The book is good, although it is quite battered, some of the cover is torn, but for the price I paid for it, it is decent. Would have prefered it to be slightly better quality though.

This print version is quite bad-paper, ink quality. Makes for a hard read. In terms of content I did not think the intro was well written, I would recommend other books if you wish to find out more about existentialism.

Livro chegou em bom estado. Infelizmente a qualidade do livro não é boa. As folhas parecem de jornal e a capa é de uma material de baixa qualidade. Porém como estou interessado no conteúdo. está bom.

People in my Philosophy groups are actually jealous that I have this new edition, they say it's a classic of the field. Very essential! Walter Kaufmann is the departure point for great philosophical discussions. My class in particular made me see a whole new side of Dostoevsky that most people don't know, some context an change your entire interpretation of things. Get this book!

This is the book that introduced me to Existentialism in graduate school. It has a great selection of writings, and unlike most books on Existentialism is clear, not turgid. I now think of Existentialism as being a mood rather than a system of thought, and many of these writings are literary not academic, but that is a good thing. I took a graduate seminar on Existentialism from the man who edited this book, Walter Kaufmann. He was acerbic, but a great teacher. His emphasis was not on what philosophers taught, or what arguments they gave for their positions, but what kind of men they were. He was more concerned that his students embraced challenging, creative, heroic lives, than he was about teaching them how to parse obscure and usually fallacious arguments.

The introduction is very basic and even fails to define existentialism. Kaufmann is so sarcastic to the point of saying that Existentialism is not a philosophy. The excerpts from various existentialist writers are abrupt due to Kaufmann's lack of sincerity and heavy emphasis on editing, which of course is motivated by a personal bias toward Nietzsche. This personal bias becomes obvious from the start, and it will continue to go on throughout the book. I couldn't appreciate the harsh treatment that the author gives to all authors except Nietzsche and Sartre. There is an increasing trend that aims to disqualify any critic of Nietzsche and instead praise any defender of his Nihilism, namely Sartre. Kaufmann begins by insulting Dostoevsky by calling him "a rabid anti-Semite, anti-Catholic, and anti-Western Russian nationalist" (p. 14). Then he moves on to attack Kierkegaard, stating that he had recourse to "patently invalid arguments". Kaufmann continues: "Even those who share his violent distaste for desiccated writing should not find it difficult to see that his diagnosis is mistaken and that his prescription would be fatal" (p. 18). Finally, Kaufmann also found "a profound resentment against science" in Kierkegaard (p.29). As I said before, this attitude continues to the point of saying that Kierkegaard "deceived himself" persistently. Then, of course, Kaufmann starts attacking Jaspers by declaring that the same material is treated over and over again in his books, but he doesn't stop there, and so Kaufmann lashes out at Jaspers saying that "with this amazing and assuredly unscientific method which defies the canons of philology and history, all of Nietzsche's definite ideas, theories, and arguments are easily dissolved and he is finally reduced to Jaspers' conception of him" (p. 31). Well, one might be incline to just dismiss Kaufmann's rhetoric as silly and infantile, for how can someone truly believe that philology and history are "science" goes beyond me, but more than that, Kaufmann doesn't forget to throw roses to his beloved Nietzsche affirming that he "developed detailed psychologic theories which were meant to be based, as far as possible, on solid evidence", with "sparkling prose" (p. 29). I couldn't laugh any harder. If Kaufmann really, really believed that Nietzsche's Nihilism is rooted in a scientific approach, then this whole book can be dismissed as biased. I mean, not even the fragments of all these philosophers are accurate representations of their work. These fragments, that Kaufmann edited heavily and selected based on the personal bias that I have already exposed, start in the middle and take you nowhere. Each writer isn't introduced properly, and Kaufmann fails to link each writer with the other or differentiate their strand of existentialism. Except, of course, Nietzsche and Sartre. Oh, yeah, and Rilke and Ortega, which again, have nothing to do here other than to appease Kaufmann's passion for Nihilism. In conclusion, all of Kaufmann's selections, editing, and silly opinions are just the result of his personal bias against Christianity, and pretty much against anyone that dares to criticize Nietzsche. This book was disappointing, obtrusive, self-referential, and lacking any insight.

This is an appallingly printed version of an important reference text on Existentialism. It looks like those books that have been scanned and printed on demand. Get a decent edition; it will be worth it. It is still an important and relevant text.