Which existentialists explored the concept of non-being?
1. Martin Heidegger (1889–1976)
In Being and Time (Sein und Zeit, 1927), Heidegger introduces the concept of “nothingness” (das Nichts) as integral to understanding Being (Sein). He argues that confronting non-being—particularly through experiences like anxiety (Angst)—reveals the groundlessness of existence and forces us to confront the finitude of life. This encounter with nothingness can lead to a more authentic way of being.
I don’t see how confronting non-being makes existence groundless. Nor am I convinced that the finitude of life leads to a more authentic way of being.
2. Jean-Paul Sartre (1905–1980)
Sartre delves deeply into non-being in Being and Nothingness (L’Être et le Néant, 1943). He argues that nothingness is not an external force but rather a product of consciousness. Sartre distinguishes between “being-in-itself” (être-en-soi) and “being-for-itself” (être-pour-soi), where the latter involves the capacity to negate and imagine possibilities beyond the present reality. Sartre’s idea of freedom is rooted in this nothingness, as it allows for the creation of meaning through human action.
Is meaning created through human action, or is that just a Marxist trope? The imagined possibilities seem to refer to things beyond the present material reality but in the same possible world. There is a conflation of objective material reality and subjective (and intersubjective) space. Also freedom rooted in nothingness ignores the ethical dimension and is psychologically naive – we would all be psychopaths.
3. Friedrich Nietzsche (1844–1900)
Though not traditionally categorized as an existentialist, Nietzsche’s exploration of nihilism touches on non-being. He describes nihilism as the experience of the “death of God”, which confronts humanity with a void of meaning. Nietzsche challenges this with the concept of the Übermensch (Overman) who can create new values in the face of nothingness.
This is much more interesting.
4. Søren Kierkegaard (1813–1855)
Kierkegaard, often seen as a precursor to existentialism, explored non-being through the lens of despair and anxiety. In The Concept of Anxiety (Begrebet Angest, 1844), he connects anxiety to the freedom of possibility, which brings an encounter with the abyss of non-being. He believed that facing this nothingness could lead to a leap of faith toward God, as a way to ground oneself.
5. Karl Jaspers (1883–1969)
Jaspers spoke of “boundary situations” (Grenzsituationen), such as death, suffering, and guilt, which confront individuals with non-being. These moments strip away illusions and bring one face-to-face with the limitations of human existence, potentially leading to transcendence or a greater understanding of Being.
6. Simone de Beauvoir (1908–1986)
In The Ethics of Ambiguity (Pour une morale de l’ambiguïté, 1947), de Beauvoir addresses non-being in the context of human freedom and mortality. She discusses how the awareness of death (as a form of non-being) shapes our ethical choices and the construction of meaning.
Would you like to dive deeper into how these ideas connect to broader themes in existentialism, or perhaps explore how they might intersect with contemporary thought?