fei75766_ch11_345-376.indd 351  02/06/20 12:38 PM
Chapter 11    May: Existential Psychology351
Second, existentialism opposes thesplitbetween subject andobject. According 
toKierkegaard, people aremore thanmere cogsinthemachinery ofanindustrial -
izedsociety, buttheyarealsomore thansubjective thinking beings living passively 
through armchair speculation. Instead, people arebothsubjective andobjective and
must search fortruth byliving active andauthentic lives. 
Third, people search forsome meaning totheirlives. They ask(though not
always consciously) theimportant questions concerning theirbeing: Who amI?Islife
worth living? Does ithaveameaning? How canIrealize myhumanity?
Fourth, existentialists holdthatultimately eachofusisresponsible forwhowe
areandwhat webecome. Wecannot blame parents, teachers, employers, God, or
circumstances. AsSartre (1957) said,“Man isnothing elsebutwhat hemakes ofhim-
self.Such isthefirstprinciple ofexistentialism” (p.15).Although wemayassociate 
withothers inproductive andhealthy relationships, intheend,weareeachalone. We
canchoose tobecome what wecanbeorwecanchoose toavoid commitment and
choice, butultimately, itisourchoice.
Fifth, existentialists arebasically antitheoretical. Tothem, theories further 
dehumanize people andrender them asobjects. Aswementioned inChapter 1,
theories areconstructed inparttoexplain phenomena. Existentialists aregenerally 
opposed tothisapproach. Authentic experience takes precedence overartificial 
explanations. When experiences aremolded intosome preexisting theoretical model, 
theylosetheirauthenticity andbecome divorced from theindividual whoexperi -
enced them.
Basic Concepts
Before proceeding toRollo May’s viewofhumanity, wepause tolookattwobasic 
concepts ofexistentialism, namely, being-in-the-world andnonbeing.
Being-in-the-World
Existentialists adopt aphenomenological approach forunderstanding humanity. To
them, weexistinaworld thatcanbebestunderstood from ourownperspective. 
When scientists study people from anexternal frame ofreference, theyviolate both
thesubjects andtheirexistential world. Thebasic unity ofperson andenvironment is
expressed intheGerman word Dasein, meaning toexistthere. Hence, Dasein literally 
means toexistintheworld andisgenerally written asbeing-in-the-world. Thehyphens 
inthistermimply aoneness ofsubject andobject, ofperson andworld.
Many people suffer from anxiety anddespair brought onbytheiralienation 
from themselves orfrom theirworld. They either havenoclear image ofthemselves 
ortheyfeelisolated from aworld thatseems distant andforeign. They havenosense 
ofDasein, nounity ofselfandworld. Aspeople strive togainpower overnature, they
losetouch withtheirrelationship tothenatural world. Astheycome torelyonthe
products oftheindustrial revolution, theybecome more alienated from thestars, the
soil,andthesea.Alienation from theworld includes being outoftouch withone’s 
ownbody aswell.Recall thatRollo Maybegan hisrecovery from tuberculosis only
afterrealizing thatitwashewhohadtheillness.
Thisfeeling ofisolation andalienation ofselffrom theworld issuffered not
onlybypathologically disturbed individuals butalsobymost individuals inmodern Final PDF to printer