Jean-Paul Sartre and Consciousness

Jean-Paul Sartre

• Jean-Paul Sartre was a French philosopher born on June 21, 1905, in Paris, France.
• He died on April 15, 1980, at the age of 74 in Paris.
• He was a philosopher, playwright, novelist, screenwriter, political activist, biographer, and literary critic.
• He was a leading figure in 20th-century French philosophy and Marxism.
• He received the 1964 Nobel Prize in Literature.
• Key works include Existentialism is a Humanism (1945), Being and Nothingness (1943), Nausea (1938), The Roads to Freedom trilogy (1945–49), and plays like No Exit (1947), Flies (1947), and Dirty Hands (1948).

Consciousness and Ego

• Sartre viewed consciousness and ego as interconnected but separate entities.
• Consciousness is the awareness of oneself and the external world. It is a dynamic process constantly engaging with reality.
• The ego, according to Sartre, is a product of conscious acts and is not a pre-existing entity.
• The ego is a construct within consciousness, not the source or foundation of consciousness.
• Pre-reflexive consciousness focuses on external objects.
• Reflexive consciousness focuses on the self.
• Sartre disagreed with those philosophers that stated the ego is the basis for all conscious acts.

Nature of Consciousness

• Sartre's phenomenology is a method to understand consciousness, and it's not a critical study but rather a scientific exploration.
• Consciousness is intentional, meaning it's always directed toward something.
• Consciousness transcends itself; it's not confined to the present moment.
• Key figures in Sartre's thought included Kant and Husserl.

Constitution of the Ego

• Sartre argued the ego is a construct, not an inherent part of consciousness.
• The ego emerges from how we interact with and define ourselves in society.
• Our roles in society shape our sense of self.
• The ego is a product of our continuous engagement with the world, shaped by our actions and experiences.

Summary of Highlights

• Sartre believed consciousness and ego were interconnected, with the ego constructed from conscious acts.
• Consciousness is intentional and transcends itself.
• Sartre's view of the ego differed from other philosophers, who viewed it as the basis of consciousness.