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An '''existential crisis''' is a moment at which an individual questions the very foundations of his or her life: whether his or her life has any meaning, purpose or value.<ref>{{citation |url=http://books.google.com/books?id=fAFg7z93gDwC&pg=PA13 |title=Crisis intervention strategies |author=Richard K. James}}</ref> This issue of the meaning and purpose of existence is the topic of the philosophical school of [[existentialism]].
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An '''existential crisis''' is a state of panic or feeling of intense psychological discomfort resulting from a sense of being alone and isolated or that one's life has no purpose or meaning.
 
   
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== Description ==
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It is quite similar to the sociological concept of [[anomie]]. It has also been likened to a [[mid-life crisis]]. The implication of an existential crisis is that the crisis iteself stems from some sort of existential realization or understanding. The essence of who one is and why one exists is believed to have not been defined before birth. By contrast, in non-existential belief systems, like religious ones for example, the essence of what it means to be human is largely held to have been predefined before birth, usually by some sort of supernatural being or group of beings. A certain lack of faith in such belief systems is typically a prerequisite for an existential crisis. Basically, however, an existential crisis is the sudden awareness of not knowing what one's life is all about that creates the crisis state.
  
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An existential crisis may result from:
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* The sense of [[solitude|being alone]] and [[social isolation|isolated]] in the world;
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* A new-found grasp or appreciation of one's mortality;
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* Believing that one's life has no purpose or external meaning;
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* Searching for the [[meaning of life]];
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* Shattering of one's sense of reality, or how the world is;
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* Awareness of one's freedom and the consequences of accepting or rejecting that freedom;
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* An extremely pleasurable or hurtful experience that leaves one seeking meaning;
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* Insight (often obtained through vipassana meditation, see below) revealing that the fluctuations of life and even ordinary perception are for a large part beyond control.
   
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An existential crisis is often provoked by a significant event in the person's life — psychological trauma, marriage, separation, major loss, the death of a loved one, a life-threatening experience, a new love partner, psychoactive drug use, adult children leaving home, reaching a personally-significant age (turning 16, turning 40, etc.), etc. Usually, it provokes the sufferer's [[introspection]] about personal mortality, thus revealing the psychological repression of said awareness.
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Those who are not in a state of existential crisis can peacefully accept either that the essence of their existence has already been defined by some sort of higher power or that their life in fact has no meaning. One who is experiencing an existential crisis cannot accept either view. Instead, that person is faced with the paradox of believing that their life is important on the one hand while at the same time perceiving that human existence itself is without meaning or purpose. It is the resolution of this paradox which makes the crisis go away. Some believe that the solution to resolving the paradox is a belief in some sort of supernatural explanation, while others hold that an individual can define for himself what his own meaning and purpose is on this planet. There are many more ways and variations on how to handle an existential crisis, however. One may decide, for instance, that thought is pointless and existential truth or security cannot be obtained through it. Others may decide that it is not important to know what happens or how things work, all that is important is the present. The failure to resolve an existential crisis sometimes leads to [[suicide]].
  
   
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An existential crisis may resemble [[anomie]] (a personal condition resulting from a lack of [[Norm (sociology)|norms]]) or a [[midlife crisis]]. Sometimes, an existential crisis stems from a person's new perception of life and existence. Analogously, existentialism posits that a person ''can and does'' define the meaning and purpose of his or her life, and therefore must ''choose'' to resolve the crisis of [[existence]].
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Existential crises are sometimes triggered by a significant event or change in a person's life. Usually the event in some way makes the person reflect on his or her own mortality. Typical examples of such events are the death of a loved one, a life-threatening experience, one's children moving away from home, or the reaching of a certain age.
  
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== Handling existential crises ==
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There is no single given [[therapy|therapeutic]] method in modern [[psychology]] known to coerce a person out of existential despair; the issue is seldom, if at all, addressed from a medical standpoint.
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[[Peter Wessel Zapffe]], a [[Norwegian people|Norwegian]] [[philosopher]], provided a fourfold route in his work ''[[The Last Messiah]]'' that he believed all [[self-consciousness|self-conscious]] beings use in order to cope with the inherent indifference and absurdity of existence, comprising ''Anchoring'', ''Isolation'', ''Distraction'', and ''Sublimation'':
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* ''Anchoring'' is the "fixation of points within, or construction of walls around, the liquid fray of consciousness". The anchoring mechanism provides individuals with a value or an ideal that allows them to focus their attentions in a consistent manner. Zapffe also applied the anchoring principle to society, and stated "God, the Church, the State, morality, fate, the laws of life, the people, the future" are all examples of collective primary anchoring firmaments.
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* ''Isolation'' is "a fully arbitrary dismissal from consciousness of all disturbing and destructive thought and feeling".
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*''Distraction'' occurs when "one limits attention to the critical bounds by constantly enthralling it with impressions". Distraction focuses all of one's energy on a task or idea to prevent the mind from turning in on itself.
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*''Sublimation'' is the refocusing of energy away from negative outlets, toward positive ones. The individual distances him / herself and looks at his or her existence from an aesthetic point of view (e.g. writers, poets, painters). Zapffe himself pointed out that his written works were the product of sublimation.
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===Medication===
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A short-term and non-clinical study found that a dose of [[acetaminophen]] can reduce some aspects of existential anxiety.<ref>Randles, D., Heine, S. J., & Santos, N. (2013). The Common Pain of Surrealism and Death Acetaminophen Reduces Compensatory Affirmation Following Meaning Threats. Psychological science, 24(6), 966-973.</ref>
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==Cultural contexts==
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In the 19th century, [[Kierkegaard]] considered that angst and existential despair would appear when an inherited or borrowed world-view (often of a collective nature) proved unable to handle unexpected and extreme life-experiences.<ref>S. Kierkegaard, ''The Sickness unto Death'' (1980) p. 41</ref> [[Nietzsche]] extended his views to suggest that the so-called [[Death of God]] - the loss of collective faith in religion and traditional morality - created a more widespread existential crisis for the philosophically aware.<ref>Albert Camus, ''The Rebel'' (Vintage 1950[?]) p. 66-77</ref>
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Existential crisis has indeed been seen as the inevitable accompaniment of [[modernism]] (c.1890-1945 and beyond).<ref>M. Hardt/K. Weeks, ''The Jameson Reader'' (2000) p. 197</ref> Where [[Durkheim]] saw individual crises as the by-product of social pathology and a (partial) lack of collective norms,<ref>E. Durkeheim, ''Suicide'' (1952) p. 214 and p. 382</ref> others have seen existentialism as arising more broadly from the modernist crisis of the loss of meaning throughout the modern world.<ref>M. Hardt/K. Weeks, ''The Jameson Reader (2000) p. 265</ref> Its twin answers were either a religion revivified by the experience of anomie (as with [[Martin Buber]] ), or an individualistic existentialism based on facing directly the absurd contingency of human fate within a meaningless and alien universe, as with [[Sartre]] and [[Albert Camus|Camus]].<ref>J. Childers/G. Hentzi eds., ''The Columbia Dictionary of Modern Literary and Cultural Criticism'' (1995) p. 103-4</ref>
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[[Frederic Jameson]] has suggested that [[postmodernism]] with its saturation of social space by a visual consumer culture has replaced the modernist angst of the traditional subject, and with it the existential crisis of old, by a new social pathology of flattened affect and a fragmented subject.<ref>M. Hardt/K. Weeks, ''The Jameson Reader'' (2000) p. 267-8 and p. 199-200</ref>
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===Meditation practice===
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Intense vipassana (insight) meditation ([http://roma1vipassana.wordpress.com/goals-and-method/ description of the method]) will usually bring about a set of experiences, referred to as the dark night of the soul by Western spiritual traditions, that resemble the typical symptoms of an existential crisis.<ref name=Ingram>{{cite web |url=http://www.interactivebuddha.com/mctb.shtml|title=Mastering the Core Teachings of the Buddha|author= Daniel Ingram|date= April, 2007|work= |publisher= |accessdate=November 17, 2009 }}</ref><ref name=Barendregt>Henk Barendregt, "[http://dhammapages.wordpress.com/papers/ Buddhist Phenomenology I & II]".</ref> During the "dark night", meditators become severely discouraged in regard to practice and life in general. The reason is that insight reveals that the fluctuations of life and even of ordinary perception are for a large part beyond control; but one can develop the mind so that one can deal well with this perpetual change. Therefore continuing meditation is said to be the way to overcome this difficult stage.<ref name=Ingram />To practise vipassana meditation a relatively balanced mind is required.
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==See also==
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*[[Angst]]
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*[[Anomie]]
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*[[Depersonalization]]
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*[[Engulfment]]
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*[[Existential risk]]
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*[[Existential therapy]]
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*[[Existentialism]]
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*[[Identity crisis]]
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*[[Midlife crisis]]
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*[[Mystical experiences]]
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*[[Nihilism]]
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*[[Positive Disintegration]]
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*[[Spiritual crisis]]
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==References==
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<references/>
   
 
==External links==
  
==External links==

Latest revision as of 09:53, 22 December 2013

An existential crisis is a moment at which an individual questions the very foundations of his or her life: whether his or her life has any meaning, purpose or value.[1] This issue of the meaning and purpose of existence is the topic of the philosophical school of existentialism.

Description

An existential crisis may result from:

  • The sense of being alone and isolated in the world;
  • A new-found grasp or appreciation of one's mortality;
  • Believing that one's life has no purpose or external meaning;
  • Searching for the meaning of life;
  • Shattering of one's sense of reality, or how the world is;
  • Awareness of one's freedom and the consequences of accepting or rejecting that freedom;
  • An extremely pleasurable or hurtful experience that leaves one seeking meaning;
  • Insight (often obtained through vipassana meditation, see below) revealing that the fluctuations of life and even ordinary perception are for a large part beyond control.

An existential crisis is often provoked by a significant event in the person's life — psychological trauma, marriage, separation, major loss, the death of a loved one, a life-threatening experience, a new love partner, psychoactive drug use, adult children leaving home, reaching a personally-significant age (turning 16, turning 40, etc.), etc. Usually, it provokes the sufferer's introspection about personal mortality, thus revealing the psychological repression of said awareness.

An existential crisis may resemble anomie (a personal condition resulting from a lack of norms) or a midlife crisis. Sometimes, an existential crisis stems from a person's new perception of life and existence. Analogously, existentialism posits that a person can and does define the meaning and purpose of his or her life, and therefore must choose to resolve the crisis of existence.

Handling existential crises

There is no single given therapeutic method in modern psychology known to coerce a person out of existential despair; the issue is seldom, if at all, addressed from a medical standpoint.

Peter Wessel Zapffe, a Norwegian philosopher, provided a fourfold route in his work The Last Messiah that he believed all self-conscious beings use in order to cope with the inherent indifference and absurdity of existence, comprising Anchoring, Isolation, Distraction, and Sublimation:

  • Anchoring is the "fixation of points within, or construction of walls around, the liquid fray of consciousness". The anchoring mechanism provides individuals with a value or an ideal that allows them to focus their attentions in a consistent manner. Zapffe also applied the anchoring principle to society, and stated "God, the Church, the State, morality, fate, the laws of life, the people, the future" are all examples of collective primary anchoring firmaments.
  • Isolation is "a fully arbitrary dismissal from consciousness of all disturbing and destructive thought and feeling".
  • Distraction occurs when "one limits attention to the critical bounds by constantly enthralling it with impressions". Distraction focuses all of one's energy on a task or idea to prevent the mind from turning in on itself.
  • Sublimation is the refocusing of energy away from negative outlets, toward positive ones. The individual distances him / herself and looks at his or her existence from an aesthetic point of view (e.g. writers, poets, painters). Zapffe himself pointed out that his written works were the product of sublimation.


Medication

A short-term and non-clinical study found that a dose of acetaminophen can reduce some aspects of existential anxiety.[2]


Cultural contexts

In the 19th century, Kierkegaard considered that angst and existential despair would appear when an inherited or borrowed world-view (often of a collective nature) proved unable to handle unexpected and extreme life-experiences.[3] Nietzsche extended his views to suggest that the so-called Death of God - the loss of collective faith in religion and traditional morality - created a more widespread existential crisis for the philosophically aware.[4]

Existential crisis has indeed been seen as the inevitable accompaniment of modernism (c.1890-1945 and beyond).[5] Where Durkheim saw individual crises as the by-product of social pathology and a (partial) lack of collective norms,[6] others have seen existentialism as arising more broadly from the modernist crisis of the loss of meaning throughout the modern world.[7] Its twin answers were either a religion revivified by the experience of anomie (as with Martin Buber ), or an individualistic existentialism based on facing directly the absurd contingency of human fate within a meaningless and alien universe, as with Sartre and Camus.[8]

Frederic Jameson has suggested that postmodernism with its saturation of social space by a visual consumer culture has replaced the modernist angst of the traditional subject, and with it the existential crisis of old, by a new social pathology of flattened affect and a fragmented subject.[9]

Meditation practice

Intense vipassana (insight) meditation (description of the method) will usually bring about a set of experiences, referred to as the dark night of the soul by Western spiritual traditions, that resemble the typical symptoms of an existential crisis.[10][11] During the "dark night", meditators become severely discouraged in regard to practice and life in general. The reason is that insight reveals that the fluctuations of life and even of ordinary perception are for a large part beyond control; but one can develop the mind so that one can deal well with this perpetual change. Therefore continuing meditation is said to be the way to overcome this difficult stage.[10]To practise vipassana meditation a relatively balanced mind is required.

See also


References

  1. ↑ Richard K. James, Crisis intervention strategies, http://books.google.com/books?id=fAFg7z93gDwC&pg=PA13 
  2. ↑ Randles, D., Heine, S. J., & Santos, N. (2013). The Common Pain of Surrealism and Death Acetaminophen Reduces Compensatory Affirmation Following Meaning Threats. Psychological science, 24(6), 966-973.
  3. ↑ S. Kierkegaard, The Sickness unto Death (1980) p. 41
  4. ↑ Albert Camus, The Rebel (Vintage 1950[?]) p. 66-77
  5. ↑ M. Hardt/K. Weeks, The Jameson Reader (2000) p. 197
  6. ↑ E. Durkeheim, Suicide (1952) p. 214 and p. 382
  7. ↑ M. Hardt/K. Weeks, The Jameson Reader (2000) p. 265
  8. ↑ J. Childers/G. Hentzi eds., The Columbia Dictionary of Modern Literary and Cultural Criticism (1995) p. 103-4
  9. ↑ M. Hardt/K. Weeks, The Jameson Reader (2000) p. 267-8 and p. 199-200
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 Daniel Ingram. Mastering the Core Teachings of the Buddha. URL accessed on November 17, 2009.
  11. ↑ Henk Barendregt, "Buddhist Phenomenology I & II".

External links

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