57 pages • 1 hour read
The Misunderstanding
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Background
Philosophical Context: Existentialism and Absurdism
During World War II and the postwar period in Europe, intellectuals struggled to conceive a new foundation for personal identity, meaning, and morality in a world rendered senseless by war and genocide. One of the philosophies that flourished in this climate was existentialism, a decades-old school of philosophical thought and artistic practice that developed in Europe during the 19th and 20th centuries. Written in occupied France, The Misunderstanding falls into this category of existentialist works grappling with a world shaken by global war.
The main figures of this new existentialism were the French philosophers Jean-Paul Sartre, Simone De Beauvoir, and Albert Camus (whose philosophy of absurdism differs slightly from existentialism). Sartre and Beauvoir posit that people, though partially constrained by the circumstances into which they were born, are condemned to be free. People have a duty to create a meaningful life through the projects they pursue, to befit themselves and others. This duty is a source of anguish: One cannot be sure of the morality of one’s choice until its consequences unfold, meaning there is always a danger of unintentionally harming oneself or others. They argue that despite this risk each person must make choices to the best of their ability.
