Sartre`s view of Freedom

Sartre 's View of Personal Freedom

2006

Jean-Paul Sartre was the French existentialist philosopher , writer dramatist and essayist . One of

the main points of his philosophy is the concept of freedom . He considered that only individual determines his future by making decisions , therefore he is condemned to be free . I agree with Sartre that the individual is completely responsible for all his choices however , in my opinion , absolute freedom can exist only in theory whereas in real life the individual limits his or her freedom , in to correspond to some

moral , public etc . rules , because the human being depends on nature and the society

To start with , Sartre didn 't take into the account the fact that an individual has to depend on nature , which limits his freedom . On the one hand , the human being has conquered nature . For example , he has changed the channel of the river , destroyed mountains and even made nuclear energy to work for his benefit . Thus , there emerges the impression that he is free to do what he wants and nothing in this world can stop him However , it is a matter of common knowledge that human activities in the recent years have so greatly polluted nature that we are facing the problem of global warming . This is a serious hazard nowadays and many scientists deal with this problem . We can 't live contrary to laws of nature and have to be responsible for our activities . Therefore , we depend on nature , although we have already conquered it . Thus , I partially agree with Sartre , because we are completely responsible for our activities , but our freedom is limited , as we depend on nature and can 't do whatever we like

In my opinion , freedom of the individual depends on many factors specifically on the society , in which he or she lives . This standpoint can be demonstrated on Sartre 's own example that illustrates his understanding of freedom . The individual who is standing at a cliff and has a right to jump out or not . Nobody and nothing can prevent him from the fatal step , and it is here that the freedom of the human being becomes apparent . However , on mature reflection , many considerations make the individual stick to life and not to death , for instance , the sufferings of relatives , the lot of orphaned children and so on Moreover , if the individual dies , the responsibility for his or her death will be born by their relatives or close friends . Therefore , the individual thinks that he or she has absolute freedom , but in fact , it is an illusion , because he or she depends on their close people and the society on the whole . This shows that neither freedom , nor responsibility can be absolute

Furthermore , personal freedom can 't be absolute , because one personal freedom ends where another personal freedom starts . For instance , when riding in the car , the individual is the complete owner of the car , so he or she can race on any road on any speed...