Best Existential Books | Top 10 Writing of Existentialist Authors

Existentialism is a humanistic approach that emphasizes the existence of the person. It determines the meaning of life, freedom of choice, life scripts, being present, etc. Also, it focuses on the help of past experiences that humanity has faced. These experiences do not refer to the thoughts of human beings but rather their actions and feelings. According to existentialists, an individual’s initial stage is “the existential angst” or attitude. When faced with an absurdity, this is a feeling of confusion, anxiety, or disorientation. We will show you the best existential books in this article.

What are the primary themes of existentialism?

The main themes of existentialism are –

Importance of the individual Importance of choice
Anxiety related to life, death, and critical situations
Meaning and absurdity
Authenticity
Social criticism
Importance of personal relations
Atheism and religion

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10 Best Existential Books to Read

Here is a list of some best existentialism books that will provide you with a better understanding of the subject matter:

1. Man’s Search for Meaning, by Viktor E. Frankl

Viktor Emil Frankl was an Austrian psychiatrist and neurologist. He established logotherapy, a school of psychotherapy that heals people through the meaning of life. Logotherapy is considered to be the Third Viennese School of Psychotherapy.

Man’s Search for Meaning is one of the best existential books. Its primary focus is finding a drive to fight against the odds in times of hopelessness. Frankl shares his personal experiences in the Nazi concentration camps in this book. He portrays how people were still looking to find the meaning of life in times of grave danger.

Frankl explains that human beings do not find pleasure in their primary drives. But instead, what they discover and find meaningful gives them pleasure. Frankl uses his theory of logotherapy to inspire the new generations facing numerous challenges daily. This book is recognized as one of the best philosophy books in the world.

2. Existentialism is a Humanism, by Jean-Paul Sartre

Jean-Paul Sartre was a French philosopher, playwright, and novelist. He was an important figure in existential philosophy and phenomenology. His works have contributed to sociology, postcolonial theory, critical theory, and literary studies. He was awarded the Nobel Prize in 1964 for literature. He is one of the best existentialist philosophers in the world.

Existentialism is a Humanism based on the 1945 lecture of Jean-Paul Sartre on existentialism. He expressed his thoughts and philosophy in existentialism, a trendy term. At that time, it was thought that existentialism was only for philosophers. Through this speech, Sartre made the term public to the general people.

In this book, Sartre’s philosophy mainly focuses on freedom. He says that man builds up his self and being by selecting his choices.

3. Irrational Man, by William Barrett

William Barrett was an American professor of philosophy at New York University. He was an editor of Partition Review and a literary critic of the Atlantic Monthly magazine. He wrote several books that focused on existential philosophy. This is one of the best philosophy books for beginners.

Irrational Man introduced existentialism to America in 1958 and is one of the best existentialism books. In this book, Barrett talks about the absurdities of the 1990s that endangered humankind. At that time, human beings did not even know the meaning of existence.

The book discusses the ancestries of existentialism through the thoughts of Aquinas, Baudelaire, Tolstoy, Augustine, and many more. The book also brings the views of famous existentialists, including Sartre and Nietzsche, to the readers. It explains the impact of existentialism on our life.

4. Existentialism For Dummies, by Christopher Panza and Gregory Gale

Christopher Panza is a New York City-based philosopher and author. He was a professor of philosophy at Drury University in Springfield. His specialization includes Existentialism, Confucianism, Asian and Western ethics, Logic, and much more. He wrote this book on existential psychotherapy. This book is most popular among mental health professionals. So, this is one of the best existential therapy books.

Do you want an existentialism definition for dummies? Existentialism for Dummies discusses how existentialist ideas have influenced human life. It focuses on the irrationality of human life. We can see the impact of existentialism everywhere, starting from arts, literature, movies, and different world events.

This book will provide readers with the history of existentialism in philosophy. This complete guide will give the readers an insight into how existentialism controls politics, religion, solidarity, and respect for others. Also, this book will provide the meaning of the phrase “God is dead.” It consists of ten existential movies, existential aphorisms, and ten general misapprehensions about existentialism.

5. No Excuses, by Robert C. Solomon

Robert C. Solomon was an American philosopher and author. He was a professor of philosophy at the University of Texas. He was awarded several awards, including the Standard Oil Outstanding Teaching Award and the University of Texas President’s Associates Teaching Award.

No Excuses is one of the best existentialist books that contains 24 analytical lectures on existentialism. The book shows how existentialism has influenced modern thoughts. These thoughts have created waves of debates on the existence of existentialism.

The book helps the readers to explore a wide range of existentialist thoughts from different perspectives. This book gives an insight into the thoughts and ideas of Kierkegaard, Camus, Sartre, Martin Heidegger, and many more.

6. Existentialism, by Thomas Flynn

In Existentialism, Thomas Flynn describes the titular movement that changed everyone’s life in the twentieth century. The book explores the impact of existentialism on arts and literature.

Flynn explains the main themes of individuality, free will, and personal responsibility. He mainly focuses on the ideas and thoughts of Sartre, Heidegger, Nietzsche, de Beauvoir, Camus, and many other existentialists. Flynn enlightens the readers with how existentialism affected human studies and changed the way of living.

The book also explains existentialism’s connection with National Socialism, Feminism, and Communism.

7. The Existentialist’s Survival Guide, by Gordon Marino

Gordon Marino is a professor of philosophy at St. Olaf College in Minnesota. He is the director of the Hong Kierkegaard Library. He is a former boxer and currently working as a boxing coach. Also, he received the Richard J. Davis Ethics Award for his extraordinary contribution to ethics and law-related writings.

In The Existentialist’s Survival Guide, Marino discusses the impact of existentialism in the 21st century. According to several existentialists like Kierkegaard and Nietzsche, human beings are vulnerable to their emotional ups and downs. But these feelings also teach them some valuable life-long lessons and make them more robust from the inside. This will help them in their personal transformation and spiritual development. This book will introduce you to famous existentialists around the world.

This book will guide you through fighting your depression, misery, and anxiety and rebuilding faith, love, and morality. Marino describes how to face the most challenging situations of our existence with a strong heart and mind.

8. Existentialism From Dostoevsky to Sartre, by Walter Arnold Kaufmann

Walter Arnold Kaufmann was a German-American philosopher and poet. He used to be a professor of philosophy at Princeton University. His writings primarily focus on moral philosophy, authenticity and death, theism and atheism, Judaism, Christianity, and literature.
Existentialism From Dostoevsky to Sartre is one of the best existential books. In this book, Kaufmann explores the idea of existentialism from different existentialist perspectives. He says that the origin of existential thinking does not lie with Jean-Paul Sartre. He mentioned a lot of existentialism examples with practical experience.

The origin of existentialism has a previous religious, literary, and philosophical background. According to Sartre, existentialism is a metaphysical doctrine. Man must follow his heart and spirit rather than lead them. Heidegger says existentialism is the totality of human beings. Kierkegaard gives a religious background of existentialism. The author has presented each existentialist’s entire work for reference to make it more understandable in this book.

9. Existentialism, by Thomas Wartenberg

Thomas Wartenberg is a professor of philosophy at Mount Holyoke College. He works with filmmakers to introduce philosophy to children and adolescents through films. He received the Merritt Prize in 2013 for his contribution to the philosophy of education.

In Existentialism, Wanterberg explains existentialism’s fundamental ideas with examples of classic movies, novels, and plays. These ideals include freedom, anxiety, authenticity, and absurdity. In this book, he also discusses the perspectives of renowned existentialists like Camus, Nietzsche, and Sartre. Besides, he gives an insight into de Beauvoir and Fanon’s use of existentialism theories to point out gender and colonial oppression.

This book provides answers to all the inquiries related to existentialism that is infused in our modern culture. Also, this book is suitable for people who think life is meaningless.

10. The Ethics of Ambiguity, by Simone de Beauvoir

Simon de Beauvoir was a French philosopher, writer, political activist, and feminist. She played a significant role in feminist existentialism and feminist theory. She wrote several essays, novels, biographies, and autobiographies on philosophy, politics, and social issues.

The Ethics of Ambiguity is one of the best existential books. De Beauvoir argues with other French philosophers that freedom carries some ethical responsibilities in existentialism in this book. She points out ways to be an adventurer, passionate person, lover, artist, and intellectual.

Also, she mentions how each role overcomes the former’s deficits. As a result, they can enjoy the responsibilities of freedom. De Beauvoir also argues that we have to fight against the suppressors to achieve independence. Overall, the philosopher explained the idea of liberty in existentialism through her knowledge of feminist and existential philosophy.

Conclusion:

Existentialism is a very misunderstood field of philosophy. Existentialists view it from different perspectives of religion, politics, freedom, philosophy, and literature. All these thoughts and ideas have made existentialism very complicated to understand. The mentioned books might help readers get an elaborative idea of existential philosophy and its impact on human beings.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. When did existentialism begin?

Existentialism is a philosophical and psychological practice that focuses on the nature of human existence. The term “existentialism” was first coined by Gabriel Marcel in the mid-1940s. But Søren Kierkegaard, a Danish philosopher, theologian, and social critic, is considered the first existential philosopher. Existentialism became popular post World War II and influenced many disciplines besides philosophy. These include drama, art, theology, psychology, and literature.

2. Who is the father of existentialism?

Danish philosopher Søren Kierkegaard is considered the father of existentialism. He was a philosopher, satirist, religious writer, journalist, psychologist, and literary critic.

3. Does existentialism believe in God?

Existentialism is an idea of philosophy that focuses on individual existence, freedom, and a wide range of choices. According to existentialism, human beings define their own lives meaningfully. They try to make logical decisions living in an absurd world. Existentialism believes in the existence of a human being. It considers that there is no God or any other superior force. Thus, existentialism believes that human beings are completely free. But they have to take responsibility for themselves.

4. What are the types of existentialism?

The following are the different types of existentialism:

Kierkegaard’s existentialism
Nietzschean existentialism
Camus’ absurdism
Sartrean existentialism
Heideggerian existentialism

5. What is Existential nihilism?

Existential nihilism is a philosophical theory that states that life has no inherent meaning. It is also termed optimistic nihilism. According to existential nihilism, human beings have no significance if there is no purpose. So the whole point of human existence or a meaningful life is to have a purpose. If there is no purpose, the human race will cease to exist.

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Last update on 2024-12-03 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API

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