Letter to a Philosopher
Jesse Giron
University of Phoenix
February 9, 2015
Philosophy 105
To: Dr. Albert Camus
From: Dr. Jesse Jay Giron
RE: Philosophical Position
Date: February 9, 2015
Dear Albert Camus, The Continental concept and the statement: “The world is absurd, in the sense that no ultimate explanation can be given for why it is the way it is” (Moore & Bruder, 2011, p. 152) is very interesting to me and I agree with the concept in many ways. When I think of the statement I think of what I know to be true and how others may perceive the same information. I feel that there is no ultimate explanation for why things are the ways that they are. There are so many changes in the world from information to technology, to the way people behave to the way people cope with life in general. On a daily basis there is no way to tell exactly what will happen or even why it happens, except for by your perception. The world being absurd is farfetched for me because we have no idea what the grand scheme of this life is all about but I do not think that absurdity would be the best way to explain that fact, I would think of it as illogical. The question you asked, “What is existence?” came to mind while reading the statement and existence is defined in many different ways. Existence is said to be the world one is aware or conscious of through one's senses, and that persist independently in one's absence. Being conscious through senses does not explain why we exist but knowing that there is not an ultimate adequate answer helps me understand why you consider the world we live in to be absurd. However, I do not agree with the idea of suicide because you do not know the purpose of neither this world nor your existence. The Myth of Sisyphus suggest that because it seems absurd to keep pushing a rock up a hill that is going to keep rolling back down and the most logical question at that point is whether or not you should live. Although continuously trying to accomplish a goal seems absurd when you do not know exactly what the purpose is death does not seem to be the first option. Although life does seem to be hopeless at times and despair takes over your mental and everything starts seeming meaningless does not truly mean that it will remain that way. Sometimes purposes are revealed in different stages of your life and a guaranteed knowledge on why it happened does not correlate to everyone’s life the same. Have you ever thought about those who feel they actually know why they exist or why the world is the way that it is? Would you discredit them because the knowledge of their understanding is not yours? Our world has evolved in many ways since your thoughts of absurdity and some have found their purpose through their experiences and the results of those same experiences. I admire how you explain that for you the problem is that by demanding meaning, order, and unity, we strive to go beyond those limits and pursue the impossible. We will never understand, and we will die despite all our
