WHY WRITE?
Jean Paul Sartre
Critical summary by Dr. S. Sreekumar
Biographical
note
Sartre is known for his famous philosophical work—Being
and Nothingness—which
expounds atheistic existentialism. [Atheistic existentialism
(of Sartre and Camus) excludes all metaphysical and religious beliefs. Sartre
and Camus believed that there is nothing that transcends (that is beyond) human
existence].
Sartre thought that the individual is autonomous (a
self -contained being who/which does not need either God or Nature for its
existence) and at the same time responsible for his actions.
Sartre’s relationship with the Communist Party had
been stormy and contentious. But he was always a man with extreme left
ideologies. The present piece, ‘Why Write’, is the second chapter of his What is Literature. In ‘Why Write’ Sartre adopts a
phenomenological view of a work of literature as existing by virtue of an
agreement between writer and reader.
WHY WRITE?
Some believe that art is a form of escape. Others see it as a means of conquering.
Sartre says that there are other means of escape than through art. For example,
a person can escape into a hermitage or can escape into madness or death.
[Madness and death are seen as ways of escaping from the world]. Similarly, one
can conquer through arms. Thus Sartre
believes that for escaping from the world or for conquering it, art is not
necessary. He believes that there is a
deeper motive behind the aims of authors.
