Philosophy of Pragmatism: Sisyphus
Here’s your regular reminder that these posts exist to educate, not to indoctrinate. Cultivate a mature mind by grappling with strange ideas and asking hard questions.
“There is but one truly serious philosophical problem, and that is suicide. Judging whether life is or is not worth living amounts to answering the fundamental question of philosophy.” - Albert Camus, “The Myth of Sisyphus”
Albert Camus was a leading figure in the existentialist movement. He confronted one of the biggest challenges of worldviews that reject inherent meaning in the universe: finding a reason to live. Camus noted that people are willing to die for what they believe in. They also take their own lives because they don’t believe life is worth living. Nihilism has no answers. Can existentialism do any better?
The Myth of Sisyphus
Sisyphus was a wicked king. As punishment for his many crimes, the gods sentenced him to roll a massive boulder up a mountain. When, after great toil, he finally reached the top, the boulder immediately rolled back down to the bottom again. Sisyphus was doomed to repeat this pointless task for all eternity.
Albert Camus continues:
If this myth is tragic, that is because its hero is conscious. Where would his torture be, indeed, if at every step the hope of succeeding upheld him? The workman of today works everyday in his life at the same tasks, and his fate is no less absurd. But it is tragic only at the rare moments when it becomes conscious.
Most people reject the absurdity of their existence. They tell themselves that there is meaning to existence and life after death. That’s what gets them through their struggles. Sisyphus is different because he has no hope, and he knows that his task is futile. From an existentialist perspective, Sisyphus is a perfect representation of human life. If you were in Sisyphus’ shoes, could you find a reason to live?
Sisyphus would be miserable as long as he lamented the futility of his boulder-pushing. If he watched the boulder roll and thought: “I want the life I had before, when I was a King,” that thought would make him miserable. But if he instead faced the absurdity of his situation head-on and chose to enjoy it, he could unlock happiness. He could take control of his experience. He could embrace his suffering. He could find something new in every detail of his world, and within his own mind. And so, with the weight of the boulder forever bearing down on him, he could smile.
Here’s the famous ending to Camus’ essay.
I leave Sisyphus at the foot of the mountain! One always finds one's burden again. But Sisyphus teaches the higher fidelity that negates the gods and raises rocks. He too concludes that all is well. This universe henceforth without a master seems to him neither sterile nor futile. Each atom of that stone, each mineral flake of that night filled mountain, in itself forms a world. The struggle itself toward the heights is enough to fill a man's heart. One must imagine Sisyphus happy.
What does this have to do with Pragmatism? Stay tuned.