Existentialism For and Against

Neither science nor a philosophy which aims at an entirely objective approach can deal with our personal experience. Value-judgements, for instance, presuppose freedom of choice and if responsible actions are to be based on them, man must be free to act according to his decisions. There is clearly an urgent need for a philosophy which can be lived; and it is as a philosophy of this kind that Existentialism exists. In this book Roubiczek confronts the prevalent 'objective' method with the 'subjective' and attempts a proper balance between the objective and the personal, the scientific and the ethical. Concentrating on the valuable aspects of Existentialism, he looks for positive results which can be philosophically justified and, at the same time, accepted as a way of life. This approach leads both towards and beyond Existentialism, so that the book is both an introduction to this school of philosophy and a critique of it.

Preface; 1. Towards Existentialism; 2. Progress or catastrophe - Darwin and Nietzsche; 3. Nietzsche and Existentialism; 4. Kierkegaard; 5. Morality - relative or absolute?; 6. Kierkegaard and Existentialism; 7. Some aspects of French and German Existentialism; 8. Personal relationships - Martin Buber; 9. The irrational in science and religion; References; Select bibliography; Index.

Roubiczek attempts a proper balance between the objectivity of theory and personal experience. Concentrating on the valuable aspects of Existentialism, he looks for positive results which can be philosophically justified and at the same time, accepted as a way of life. The book is therefore both an introduction to this school of philosophy and a critique of it.