Age of Reason by Jean-Paul Sartre- 1
Aug. 29th, 2016 10:01 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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engh_2016Having picked up this book off the library shelf merely because one of my teachers mentioned Sartre in passing, I was completely unaware of what it held or how it was written. The Age of Reason by Jean-Paul Sartre is the first book of his unfinished Roads to Freedom series. I had a vague recollection of Sartre being a philosopher, one of the most famous, who dealt majorly with existentialism. The blurb talked about a man dealing with a crisis in the politically unstable background of 1938 France.
Admittedly, it took me a long while to actually begin reading, and then even longer to get past the first chapter. Not much has happened over the first few chapters, presumably since two days are described over three hundred pages. Though written in third person, the narrative is intensely descriptive, we go through every thought that passes through their minds. It feels like looking through a window into someone's brain; Sartre takes us on a journey inward. From the little I do know about Sartre, I know that to him his literature and philosophy were inseparable. His writing was a vehicle for his thoughts, or as Coulte put it, it was his way of bridging the gap between himself and the world.
As for the story so far, I feel like there are a lot of things that I cannot really relate to, but it still makes sense. Both Mathieu and Boris are always preoccupied with thoughts about their life, the meaning of life, their place in the world, searching for what they want, trying to find answers through quiet contemplation- the essence of Existentialism, which is Sartre's area of expertise. Both the characters ponder a lot on growing old and both their female companions act like an extension of their conscience, asking questions and reflecting through their actions what the two male characters are thinking of themselves. The general plot is trudging along but the spotlight remains on the characters so far. It has left me with a lot to think, because I'm having to reread most of the lines trying to grasp what Sartre is saying. I can understand most of it, but in an abstract way, as one might understand gravity in a Physics crash course. I am able to get the essence, but not really realise what is causing those thoughts in their heads, or how it feels like to have those thoughts. I feel like a spectator, quietly watching the story unfold.
Admittedly, it took me a long while to actually begin reading, and then even longer to get past the first chapter. Not much has happened over the first few chapters, presumably since two days are described over three hundred pages. Though written in third person, the narrative is intensely descriptive, we go through every thought that passes through their minds. It feels like looking through a window into someone's brain; Sartre takes us on a journey inward. From the little I do know about Sartre, I know that to him his literature and philosophy were inseparable. His writing was a vehicle for his thoughts, or as Coulte put it, it was his way of bridging the gap between himself and the world.
As for the story so far, I feel like there are a lot of things that I cannot really relate to, but it still makes sense. Both Mathieu and Boris are always preoccupied with thoughts about their life, the meaning of life, their place in the world, searching for what they want, trying to find answers through quiet contemplation- the essence of Existentialism, which is Sartre's area of expertise. Both the characters ponder a lot on growing old and both their female companions act like an extension of their conscience, asking questions and reflecting through their actions what the two male characters are thinking of themselves. The general plot is trudging along but the spotlight remains on the characters so far. It has left me with a lot to think, because I'm having to reread most of the lines trying to grasp what Sartre is saying. I can understand most of it, but in an abstract way, as one might understand gravity in a Physics crash course. I am able to get the essence, but not really realise what is causing those thoughts in their heads, or how it feels like to have those thoughts. I feel like a spectator, quietly watching the story unfold.
