Kyle

The Other is a mediator between myself and me. But how exactly? Well first off, we know who we are by what others say and think about us. If you find out about it, it can cause a conflict between you and that person. That is what The Other is, as Sartre describes it. He likes to resolve conflict, the mediator, and come to a resolution. Myself and me seem like the same definition, just spelled differently. But, Sartre believes differently. In his story, The Existence of Others, he states. “Thus shame is shame of oneself before the Other; these two structures are inseparable. But at the same time I need the Other in order to realize fully all the structures of my being. The For-itself refers to the For-others.” What Sartre means by this is that before the Other, one doesn’t know how to process all the negative energy one is receiving. When the Other becomes into the life, you start to realize the difference between itself and others. You need the Other to help you process, but in the end you don’t need the other. You know who yourself is going to be and that is going to be you. That is the mediator Sartre is discussing. Once the Other comes in to help you, you know yourself to the point where you know that is me!

You are responsible for your own shame. That is how life works. That is the recognition Sartre is talking about. You recognize your shame, the Other will help you and guide you. Sartre describes shame about how it is always leads back to you, like it is your own fault, but it helps you grow stronger as a person. In the Existence of others, Sartre states, “Consider for example shame. Here we are dealing with a mode of consciousness which has a structure identical with all those which we have previously described. It is a non-positional self-consciousness, conscious (of) itself as shame; as such, it is an example of what the Germans call Erlebnis, and is accessible to reflection.” What Sartre means by this is that shame is indeed embarrassing to come across. But it shows of how we grow in the process. You are going to blame others for the shame you have came across. That is when the Other comes into play. The Others wants us, me and myself, to come an agreement. There is nothing you can do about the shame you have came across, what matters is how you heal and grow in the end. Shame is what we have done wrong, what others embarrass you about, and feeling like you are failing. The other, as Sartre states, is what helps us heal, we all grow as a process.

In my life, shame has came to me all the time. There is one time in my life where nobody was on my side, I was all alone, and I had to do everything by myself. It was very shameful that the only people who believed me was my family. I was very sad for awhile, but because of this tragic event, it made the person I am today. The other was there for me as Sartre stated. It shaped myself into a stronger man to where I have the best girlfriend, job, and family in the entire world. Also, I have made many better friends along the way. That is how I became me, as Sartre states. The Other fixes yourself and then when all the healing is done, you are you. Even though you want to realize that this is the truth, the Other is what saves you, according to Sartre.

In the archive, Existentialism is a Humanism, by Sartre, he talks about abandonment, anguish, and despair. What Sartre means in this line is that one’s attitude with guidance to accommodations to the world is beyond our control. In the archive, Sartre states, “When a man commits himself to anything, fully realizing that he is not only choosing what he will be, but is thereby at the same time a legislator deciding for the whole of mankind – in such a moment a man cannot escape from the sense of complete and profound responsibility.”(10th paragraph). What Sartre is stating in this statement is that a man wants to complete what is best, but deciding what is best for the whole community is hard to please everybody. Somebody can take on that responsibility but for everyone to agree and for mankind to understand that decision, is beyond our control. The guidance we provide can only help, but mankind to accept it and follow it , that is a another story mankind has on their plate.

To choose for mankind, even though we have our own personal choices is hard to say. Making choices for mankind is a hard decision no matter what your status is in the economy. What I mean is that everybody has a voice into mankind to make decisions, depending on how they are involved in the government or organization they are in. There is always a way to improve mankind, but many people have different personal opinions about it. In the archive, Sartre states, “If I regard a certain course of action as good, it is only I who choose to say that it is good and not bad.” (Paragraph 11). What Sartre means by this statement is that he believes that the action is good, it is going to be good. Others might believe that is going to be bad. You are going to have to believe in yourself in order for it to work. No matter what you propose there is always going to be a disagreement about it, if your spreading the idea to a wide range of people. An example of this would be a war veteran going into combat. Sartre states in this archive that, “When, for instance, a military leader takes upon himself the responsibility for an attack and sends a number of men to their death, he chooses to do it and at bottom he alone chooses.” (Paragraph 11). This example is stating that the military leader takes full responsibility for his actions, it is not his fault for what happened. There is nothing he could have done. It was the best plan the military reader could have come up with and it failed.

In this archive that Sartre has provided us, I truly agree with him. In mankind and making decisions for them no matter if you are in the military, government or even in a simple club, to be able to please everybody is literally impossible. How we use that movement to benefit mostly everybody in the safest way possible. There is no way you can please everybody, you just have to believe in yourself and if you mess up or it doesn’t work, we are only human. People think they can take your role in society, but you are in your place because you are the best person for the job. Our personal choices may affect our decisions, but they also influence them as well.

The lessons that we should learn while our normal lives are paused at this moment in time is one, to wash our hands properly. Washing our hands is something we have learned as a kid from our mom and dad. Sing the happy birthday song twice and use soap and warm water. But, the sad fact is that most Americans are lazy. We all known we have walked into a stinky public bathroom and have seen someone walked out of the restroom without washing their hands. We all know how nasty that is, all those germs on those hands. Americans are like, why do we need to wash our hands? These germs don’t kill me, like I am never sick. Also, most Americans do not know how to was their hands properly. Some will walk into the stinky bathroom, put there hands inside the water, and just walk out. I don’t understand what that does for you, but you do you buddy. Anyways, with this virus going around, everyone is buying hand sanitizer and soap. The CDC is recommending to wash your hands after everything you touch. Americans are now so scared, they are finally washing their hands every single day. What should be learned from this virus, is you should wash your hands every single day, no matter if there is a virus going around or not. So, based on this, you cannot take life for granted.

The second lesson to learn from this predicament is that you can’t take life for granted. Life is a precious thing. In my opinion, Americans over use everything and spoil themselves way to much. Once all of the luxury they have had is gone, they do not know what to do, so Americans get really, really bored. In the article, Plague Excerpts, it states, “And then we realized that the separation was destined to continue, we had no choice but to come to terms with the days ahead. This shows us we have to adapt to our situations when needed. The United States is most free place you can live in the world. Most Americans are spoiled out of their mind. They get whatever they want, but once something happens to them, they will start to rethink and relearn. They always get what they want. Since they are stuck inside now and everything they want is now gone, Americans are starting to realize that life is too short and will do anything to stay healthy. There are times where you can have fun, but you need put in the work in order to get there. Everything is not handed to you. We cannot just hoard everything to make this virus go away. Americans need to get what they need so other people can enjoy the food, so not everyone dies from this predicament. When Americans go out, they will come to the realization that they will love going out and won’t be so spoiled.

This virus is changing everybody’s lives one to the next. To stop the spread of the virus we all need to work together. We need to stay at home whenever we can to stop the spread. Yes it may not affect you, but imagine giving it to somebody who is in your family, or your elders, you won’t be laughing then. If you are hoarding toilet paper or food, don’t go to the store, other people probably need it more than you. Let’s grow as a community and get this virus out of the way so life can go back to normal.

In my opinion, I would never erase a certain person from my life. Everybody that I have met in my life has made me who I am today. If you erase that person from your memory, whether it was good or bad, it changed your whole life and it can change your perspective on things. In some cases, it might be acceptable to be able to erase somebody from your mind. For example, if someone hurt you so bad and never made a positive impact on your life, maybe it would be a good idea to get rid of them If you really don’t gain anything from it, all you do is get nervous and anxious because you only think about the horror they caused you, it might be even a great idea to get rid of the memory. Erasing your memory to some people is going to have a positive impact on you or a negative impact on you, depending on the circumstance and the reason why you want to get rid of somebody. But in all honesty, if something so bad has happened to you, you are a strong individual who will overcome it and it may take a while but who knows, you can become the best person you ever will be, because of the stuff you have gone through. You might even help other people who have gone through that as well.

This negates Nietzsche’s idea of Eternal Recurrence because it means that life goes through an infinite cycle no matter if memory is erased of not. If you have your memory lost, you are going to go through deja vu where you repeat the same thing over and over again. If your memory is erased you will not realize why everything is repeating over and over again. You cant figure out why. In the movie we watched in class, Clementine had her memory erased of Joel, but when she was going out with one of the guys who helped erased her mind, she knew she has heard and seen all of this before, but couldn’t figure it out because her mind was erased. So if you do not erase your memory, you will not go through that deja vu symptoms. The best thing to do is overcome it and become a stronger human being.

Also, another reference in the movie was when Mary had liked the doctor once before. She knew she had liked the doctor that erased her memory but didn’t know how because her memory was erased. Erasing the mind is not a good idea because your mind is going to be in a cluster zone that you do not know how to get out of. You will keep repeating events over and over again, and you do not know how are why, they just keep on coming. Even though Mary screwed everything up by sending the memory erase tapes, it still gave Joel and Clementine to do what they did once before, but this time don’t erase there memory because they do not want to happen over and over again.

One would live as an artistically creating subject by making a role model for themselves. What I mean by that is the So called God Nietzsche is talking about, is that everyone is put on this Earth for a reason. Everybody is going to have a different aspect of the world and who they want to become. Everybody is going to have different hardships and what kind of things people can accomplish based on the tools and skills they are able to acquire. People can grasp themselves as a truth teller or a bad liar. It depends on how one is raised and what kind of people they hang out with in their lifetime. In the article Nietzsche wrote, he says, “…only in the invincible faith at this sun, this window, this table is a truth in itself, in short, only by forgetting that he himself is an artistically creating subject, does man live with any repose, security, and consistency.” This quote shows that depending on who the person is, what problems are they going to face, and how are they going to overcome it. You might forget on who you are trying to create yourself as, your “God” will take you through the light and it won’t be easy, but you got this.

I could perceive myself as an aesthetic relation in the world by showing my good side but also showing my bad side. For example, in my life I show more of the good side rather the bad side of me. When i am on my good side, i’m always loud, always trying to make people laugh, putting a smile on peoples faces, and having a good time. When I am on my bad side, I’m very quiet and just like to put raging thoughts in my head, knowing in real life, I am not going to do. In the article that I read about Nietzsche he states, “For between two absolutely different spheres, as between subject and object, there is no causality, no correctness, and no expression; there is, at most an aesthetic relation.” What he means by this is that a person can show two sides of them without even realizing it. The good side and then the bad side. So in this world, I could myself having an aesthetic relation because of both of the sides I have shown and experienced.

For an aesthetic relation, it does help you understand yourself and your life. In the paragraph above, i believe it means you have a good side and then a bad side in the aesthetic relation. You will not understand who you are becoming when you are younger. You don’t find out until your late teens or early twenties when you start to realize who you have become and what kind of characteristics you have seen in yourself, and if there are any bad ones, how do you improve on them. In your own personal life, you don’t want to be that person who comes out all mean and everything. You want to be the nice person. You want to be who you want to be, the more positive you are, the better.

There is not a limit to our aesthetic relation. Everybody has heard of this saying, the sky is the limit. There are so many ways and so many creations you can do in order to become who you want to be in life. You do as many changes as you want. If it is good or bad, that is your own decision to make. Your life is your own choosing on where you want to go to college, who you want to live with, what kind of job you want, the list goes on and on. At the end of the day, you want to ask yourself, Am I happy with what i’m doing in my life? If you answered Yes to that question, you are doing great for yourself and keep up the good work. If you said no, then you got to ask yourself, what is not making me happy? Once you figure out that answer, the world will start to feel a lot brighter for yourself.

First off, lets talk about Phyllis because ladies first. Phyllis is not satisfied with her life for different reasons. But first, her desire she wants most in life is money. Money, money, money! Phyllis wants to be that fancy woman you always see in the movies, living in a rich house with a handsome husband where Phyllis can anything she absolutely wanted. Phyllis is not satisfied because she wants a handsome, sexy husband, but more importantly she wants money. That is why, she kills her husbands ex-wife so she can have all the money then kill him so she keeps the money and then runs off with a handsome man who already has money. It’s just a simple plan right? Her biggest mistake though was meeting the handsome fellow named Walter. Now, Walter was not satisfied with his life either because he was lacking love and gaining to much attention. Walter is really good at his job, getting policies and policies signed to almost every client he goes to from door to door. Since he was so good at his job, that’s where he gets most of his attention from. The best sales man in the 1920s to the business Walter is apart of. But, once Walter met Phyllis, everything changed. He wanted her love so bad, Walter did anything to grasp it. That means kill her husband to gain the money and be with her forever baby. But once Walter’s business found out about the murder, he was gaining so much attention on himself from Keyes. Keyes was starting to put everything together and Walter could not risk that happening. Walter is smart though. He mostly desire and wants love so bad and be in control. Walter loved being in control, and that is what he desires the most. Once he found out Phyllis was using him and he wasn’t in control of his baby anymore, he had to kill her. In the movie, Walter says, “Suddenly it came over me that everything would go wrong. It sounds crazy, Keyes, but it’s true, so help me. I couldn’t hear my own footsteps. It was the walk of a dead man.” Walter had to confess to Keyes because he wanted all the attention to get off his shoulders. It wasn’t like the good old days anymore where his attention was coming from selling bonds.

The role of fate is demonstrated in this film by looking at what happened to Phyllis and Walter at the end of the movie. Phyllis ended up dying for greed and cruelty towards Walter. You can’t have what you want, and if you get to greedy, bad things will happen to you, as portrayed in this movie. That is what Phyllis fate was. Walter fate was is that if you are desperate for love, bad things will come and happen to you. You have to take is slow and steady. Especially if the woman is married, you probably should go after somebody else because there is somebody out there for you. Walter desperateness cost him his life because if your desperate, you will do anything, and for Walter, i guess murder too.

All in all, this is not what a nihilistic world looks like. To Phyllis and Walter, life is not meaningless at all. To Phyllis, she just had a dream, to do whatever in her power to get what she wanted. For Walter, all he wanted was to have love and be the man of the house. He though Phyllis was the one, so he did whatever he could to get her. Unfortunately, it came to a bad result where he couldn’t get the woman, or the attention he desired. Even though it wasn’t a happy ending, there is still meaning to life, no matter what route you are headed too.

While reading the article The Myth of Sisyphus, I agree with Camus that Sisyphus is happy. As a God Sisyphus lived a good life. He is a pronounced as a absurd hero and has a lovely amazing wife. But, the other Gods were unhappy with him and wanted to punish Sisyphus. As stated in this article Camus says, “The gods had condemned Sisyphus to ceaselessly rolling a rock to the top of a mountain, whence the stone would fall back of its own weight.” This means that Sisyphus would roll the rock up a hill but then it would have to fall back down once it gets to the top, and keep repeating the process. This so called “rock” going up the hill is the daily struggles we all go through are life. When the rock goes down the hill, it is the sense of relief and all the happy and joy we have in our life. In life, we go through more struggles than non struggles to get where we are at today. It is the end goal, that it is going to be worth it at the end. For example, I want to be a Criminologist but in order for me to do so, I have to complete all the general ed classes and major classes in order to be able to apply for the job. But, passing the classes is the struggle I face. Some classes I have dropped with a W and most of my classes I have passed with a C. In order to transfer, you need better grades than just a C. That is the struggle of transferring, also known as pushing the rock up the mountain. Transferring is the rock going down the hill. All the pressure is gone because I have successfully done it, then have to push the rock back up because more struggles are going to come my life.

In the article Camus states, “His scorn of the gods, his hatred of death, and his passion for life won him that unspeakable penalty in which the whole being is exerted toward accomplishing nothing.” This means that Sisyphus is not accomplishing anything in his life to make more progress, but it makes him happy because that is what Sisyphus interprets life. Everybody sees life differently, as the Gods saw different views of the world than Sisyphus. Even though Sisyphus was punished, how he saw the world makes him happy, so even though he is the one being punished, and has to do labor, Sisyphus knows in the end he will die happy. This punishment can be severe, to where you look at it, put just rolling a rock up the hill is not as bad as you think it is.

The rock in this article is Sisyphus personality. This rock is equal to his body weight, so it defines who Sisyphus is for the rest of his life. When you roll it up the hill it is the struggles Sisyphus is going through with the blood, sweat, and tears he has. When it goes down, it’s the sense of relief he has to relieve the pain and have the success and be proud of what he is doing in his life. The rock is the most important part of this article, which sympathies how good or bad someone has their life. Life is always going to be complicated, but the goals ahead are going to be worth it in the end, which makes you happy.