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Pessimism is a state of mind in which one anticipates undesirable outcomes or believes that the evil or hardships in life outweigh the good or luxuries. Value judgments may vary dramatically between individuals, even when judgments of fact are undisputed. The most common example of this phenomenon is the "Is the glass half empty or half full?" situation. The degree in which situations like these are evaluated as something good or something bad can be described in terms of one's optimism or pessimism respectively. Throughout history, the pessimistic disposition has had effects on all major areas of thinking.Bennett, Oliver. ''Cultural pessimism.'' Edinburgh university press. 2001.Philosophical pessimism is the related idea that views the world in a strictly anti-optimistic fashion. This form of pessimism is not an emotional disposition as the term commonly connotes. Instead, it is a philosophy or worldview that directly challenges the notion of progress and what may be considered the faith-based claims of optimism. Philosophical pessimists are often existential nihilists believing that life has no intrinsic meaning or value. Their responses to this situation however are widely varied and are often life-affirming.==Etymology==The term pessimism derives from the Latin word ''pessimus'' meaning 'the worst'. It was first used by Jesuit critics of Voltaire's 1759 novel 'Candide, ou l'Optimisme'. Voltaire was satirizing the philosophy of Leibniz who maintained that this was the 'best (optimum) of all possible worlds'. In their attacks on Voltaire, the Jesuits of the ''Revue de Trévoux'' accused him of ''pessimisme''.Dienstag, Joshua Foa. ''Pessimism: Philosophy, Ethic, Spirit'' Princeton University Press, Feb 17, 2009, pg 9==Philosophical pessimism==Philosophical pessimism is not a state of mind or a psychological disposition, but rather it is a worldview or ethic that seeks to face up to the distasteful realities of the world and eliminate irrational hopes and expectations (such as the Idea of Progress and religious faith) which may lead to undesirable outcomes. Ideas which prefigure philosophical pessimism can be seen in ancient texts such as the Dialogue of Pessimism and Ecclesiastes (which maintains that everything is ''hebel'', literally 'vapor' or 'breath', but could also mean 'senseless' and 'absurd'.)In Western philosophy, philosophical pessimism is not a single coherent movement, but rather a loosely associated group of thinkers with similar ideas and a family resemblance to each other.Dienstag, pg 7 Philosophers who can be said to express pessimistic views include Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Giacomo Leopardi, Arthur Schopenhauer, Friedrich Nietzsche, Albert Camus, E.M. Cioran, Albert Caraco, Michel Foucault, Mikhail Artsybashev, Miguel de Unamuno,Dienstag, pg 5 Baltasar Gracián, Philipp Mainländer, Fyodor Dostoyevsky, Eduard von Hartmann, Carlo Michelstaedter, Fyodor Sologub, Peter Wessel Zapffe, Ulrich Horstmann, Ingemar Hedenius and John N. Gray. Philosophical pessimists have often been associated with related ideas such as anti-theism, romanticism, counter-enlightenment, misanthropy, antinatalism and existentialism.In ''Pessimism: Philosophy, Ethic, Spirit'', Joshua Foa Dienstag outlines the main propositions shared by most philosophical pessimists as "that time is a burden; that the course of history is in some sense ironic; that freedom and happiness are incompatible; and that human existence is absurd."Dienstag, pg 19Philosophical pessimists see the self-consciousness of man as bound up with his consciousness of time and that this leads to greater suffering than mere physical pain. While animals live in the present, humans can contemplate the past and future, and this is an important difference. Human beings have foreknowledge of their own eventual fate and this "terror" is present in every moment of our lives as a reminder of the impermanent nature of life and of our inability to control this change.Dienstag, pg 22The philosophical pessimistic view of the effect of historical progress tends to be more negative than positive. The philosophical pessimist does not deny that certain areas like science can "progress" but they deny that this has resulted in an overall improvement of the human condition. In this sense it could be said that the pessimist views history as ironic; while seemingly getting better, it is mostly in fact not improving at all, or getting worse.Dienstag, pg 25 This is most clearly seen in Rousseau's critique of enlightenment civil society and his preference for man in the primitive and natural state. For Rousseau, "our souls have become corrupted to the extent that our sciences and our arts have advanced towards perfection".Jean Jacques Rousseau, ''Discourse on the Sciences and the Arts''The pessimistic view of the human condition is that it is in a sense "absurd". Absurdity is seen as an ontological mismatch between our desire for meaning and fulfillment and our inability to find or sustain those things in the world, or as Camus puts it: "a divorce between man and his life, the actor and his setting".Camus, Albert, ''The Myth of Sisyphus'' The idea that rational thought would lead to human flourishing can be traced to Socrates and is at the root of most forms of western optimistic philosophies. Pessimism turns the idea on its head, it faults the human freedom to reason as the feature that misaligned humanity from our world and sees it as the root of human unhappiness.Dienstag, pg 33-34The responses to this predicament of the human condition by pessimists are varied. Some philosophers, mainly Schopenhauer, recommend a form of resignation and self-denial (which he saw exemplified in Indian religions). Some followers tend to believe that "expecting the worst leads to the best." Rene Descartes even believed that life was better if emotional reactions to "negative" events were removed. Others like Nietzsche, Leopardi and Camus respond with a more life-affirming view, what Nietzsche called a "Dionysian pessimism", an embrace of life as it is in all of its constant change and suffering, without appeal to progress or hedonistic calculus. Albert Camus indicated that the common responses to the absurdity of life are often: Suicide, a leap of faith (as per Kierkegaard's knight of faith), or recognition/rebellion. Camus rejected all but the last option as unacceptable and inauthentic responses.Philosophical pessimism has often been tied to the arts and literature. Schopenhauer's philosophy was very popular with composers (Wagner, Brahms and Mahler)., The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Winter 2011 Edition), Edward N. Zalta (ed.) Several philosophical pessimists also wrote novels or poetry (Camus and Leopardi respectively). A distinctive literary form which has been associated with pessimism is aphoristic writing, and this can be seen in Leopardi, Nietzsche and Cioran. Writers which could be said to express pessimistic views in their works or to be influenced by pessimistic philosophers include Miguel de Cervantes, Fyodor Dostoyevsky, Joseph Conrad, Charles Bukowski, Thomas Mann, Louis-Ferdinand Céline, Mihai Eminescu, Samuel Beckett, Dino Buzzati, Jorge Luis Borges, HP Lovecraft, Thomas Ligotti, Thomas Bernhard and Camilo Pessanha.
Pessimism is a state of mind in which one anticipates undesirable outcomes or believes that the evil or hardships in life outweigh the good or luxuries. Value judgments may vary dramatically between individuals, even when judgments of fact are undisputed. The most common example of this phenomenon is the "Is the glass half empty or half full?" situation. The degree in which situations like these are evaluated as something good or something bad can be described in terms of one's optimism or pessimism respectively. Throughout history, the pessimistic disposition has had effects on all major areas of thinking.〔Bennett, Oliver. ''Cultural pessimism.'' Edinburgh university press. 2001.〕
Philosophical pessimism is the related idea that views the world in a strictly anti-optimistic fashion. This form of pessimism is not an emotional disposition as the term commonly connotes. Instead, it is a philosophy or worldview that directly challenges the notion of progress and what may be considered the faith-based claims of optimism. Philosophical pessimists are often existential nihilists believing that life has no intrinsic meaning or value. Their responses to this situation however are widely varied and are often life-affirming.
==Etymology==
The term pessimism derives from the Latin word ''pessimus'' meaning 'the worst'. It was first used by Jesuit critics of Voltaire's 1759 novel 'Candide, ou l'Optimisme'. Voltaire was satirizing the philosophy of Leibniz who maintained that this was the 'best (optimum) of all possible worlds'. In their attacks on Voltaire, the Jesuits of the ''Revue de Trévoux'' accused him of ''pessimisme''.〔Dienstag, Joshua Foa. ''Pessimism: Philosophy, Ethic, Spirit'' Princeton University Press, Feb 17, 2009, pg 9〕
==Philosophical pessimism==
Philosophical pessimism is not a state of mind or a psychological disposition, but rather it is a worldview or ethic that seeks to face up to the distasteful realities of the world and eliminate irrational hopes and expectations (such as the Idea of Progress and religious faith) which may lead to undesirable outcomes. Ideas which prefigure philosophical pessimism can be seen in ancient texts such as the Dialogue of Pessimism and Ecclesiastes (which maintains that everything is ''hebel'', literally 'vapor' or 'breath', but could also mean 'senseless' and 'absurd'.)
In Western philosophy, philosophical pessimism is not a single coherent movement, but rather a loosely associated group of thinkers with similar ideas and a family resemblance to each other.〔Dienstag, pg 7〕 Philosophers who can be said to express pessimistic views include Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Giacomo Leopardi, Arthur Schopenhauer, Friedrich Nietzsche, Albert Camus, E.M. Cioran, Albert Caraco, Michel Foucault, Mikhail Artsybashev, Miguel de Unamuno,〔Dienstag, pg 5〕 Baltasar Gracián, Philipp Mainländer, Fyodor Dostoyevsky, Eduard von Hartmann, Carlo Michelstaedter, Fyodor Sologub, Peter Wessel Zapffe, Ulrich Horstmann, Ingemar Hedenius and John N. Gray. Philosophical pessimists have often been associated with related ideas such as anti-theism, romanticism, counter-enlightenment, misanthropy, antinatalism and existentialism.
In ''Pessimism: Philosophy, Ethic, Spirit'', Joshua Foa Dienstag outlines the main propositions shared by most philosophical pessimists as "that time is a burden; that the course of history is in some sense ironic; that freedom and happiness are incompatible; and that human existence is absurd."〔Dienstag, pg 19〕
Philosophical pessimists see the self-consciousness of man as bound up with his consciousness of time and that this leads to greater suffering than mere physical pain. While animals live in the present, humans can contemplate the past and future, and this is an important difference. Human beings have foreknowledge of their own eventual fate and this "terror" is present in every moment of our lives as a reminder of the impermanent nature of life and of our inability to control this change.〔Dienstag, pg 22〕
The philosophical pessimistic view of the effect of historical progress tends to be more negative than positive. The philosophical pessimist does not deny that certain areas like science can "progress" but they deny that this has resulted in an overall improvement of the human condition. In this sense it could be said that the pessimist views history as ironic; while seemingly getting better, it is mostly in fact not improving at all, or getting worse.〔Dienstag, pg 25〕 This is most clearly seen in Rousseau's critique of enlightenment civil society and his preference for man in the primitive and natural state. For Rousseau, "our souls have become corrupted to the extent that our sciences and our arts have advanced towards perfection".〔Jean Jacques Rousseau, ''Discourse on the Sciences and the Arts''〕
The pessimistic view of the human condition is that it is in a sense "absurd". Absurdity is seen as an ontological mismatch between our desire for meaning and fulfillment and our inability to find or sustain those things in the world, or as Camus puts it: "a divorce between man and his life, the actor and his setting".〔Camus, Albert, ''The Myth of Sisyphus''〕 The idea that rational thought would lead to human flourishing can be traced to Socrates and is at the root of most forms of western optimistic philosophies. Pessimism turns the idea on its head, it faults the human freedom to reason as the feature that misaligned humanity from our world and sees it as the root of human unhappiness.〔Dienstag, pg 33-34〕
The responses to this predicament of the human condition by pessimists are varied. Some philosophers, mainly Schopenhauer, recommend a form of resignation and self-denial (which he saw exemplified in Indian religions). Some followers tend to believe that "expecting the worst leads to the best." Rene Descartes even believed that life was better if emotional reactions to "negative" events were removed. Others like Nietzsche, Leopardi and Camus respond with a more life-affirming view, what Nietzsche called a "Dionysian pessimism", an embrace of life as it is in all of its constant change and suffering, without appeal to progress or hedonistic calculus. Albert Camus indicated that the common responses to the absurdity of life are often: Suicide, a leap of faith (as per Kierkegaard's knight of faith), or recognition/rebellion. Camus rejected all but the last option as unacceptable and inauthentic responses.〔
Philosophical pessimism has often been tied to the arts and literature. Schopenhauer's philosophy was very popular with composers (Wagner, Brahms and Mahler).〔, The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Winter 2011 Edition), Edward N. Zalta (ed.)〕 Several philosophical pessimists also wrote novels or poetry (Camus and Leopardi respectively). A distinctive literary form which has been associated with pessimism is aphoristic writing, and this can be seen in Leopardi, Nietzsche and Cioran. Writers which could be said to express pessimistic views in their works or to be influenced by pessimistic philosophers include Miguel de Cervantes, Fyodor Dostoyevsky, Joseph Conrad, Charles Bukowski, Thomas Mann, Louis-Ferdinand Céline, Mihai Eminescu, Samuel Beckett, Dino Buzzati, Jorge Luis Borges, HP Lovecraft, Thomas Ligotti, Thomas Bernhard and Camilo Pessanha.
抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 Philosophical pessimism is the related idea that views the world in a strictly anti-optimistic fashion. This form of pessimism is not an emotional disposition as the term commonly connotes. Instead, it is a philosophy or worldview that directly challenges the notion of progress and what may be considered the faith-based claims of optimism. Philosophical pessimists are often existential nihilists believing that life has no intrinsic meaning or value. Their responses to this situation however are widely varied and are often life-affirming.==Etymology==The term pessimism derives from the Latin word ''pessimus'' meaning 'the worst'. It was first used by Jesuit critics of Voltaire's 1759 novel 'Candide, ou l'Optimisme'. Voltaire was satirizing the philosophy of Leibniz who maintained that this was the 'best (optimum) of all possible worlds'. In their attacks on Voltaire, the Jesuits of the ''Revue de Trévoux'' accused him of ''pessimisme''.Dienstag, Joshua Foa. ''Pessimism: Philosophy, Ethic, Spirit'' Princeton University Press, Feb 17, 2009, pg 9==Philosophical pessimism==Philosophical pessimism is not a state of mind or a psychological disposition, but rather it is a worldview or ethic that seeks to face up to the distasteful realities of the world and eliminate irrational hopes and expectations (such as the Idea of Progress and religious faith) which may lead to undesirable outcomes. Ideas which prefigure philosophical pessimism can be seen in ancient texts such as the Dialogue of Pessimism and Ecclesiastes (which maintains that everything is ''hebel'', literally 'vapor' or 'breath', but could also mean 'senseless' and 'absurd'.)In Western philosophy, philosophical pessimism is not a single coherent movement, but rather a loosely associated group of thinkers with similar ideas and a family resemblance to each other.Dienstag, pg 7 Philosophers who can be said to express pessimistic views include Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Giacomo Leopardi, Arthur Schopenhauer, Friedrich Nietzsche, Albert Camus, E.M. Cioran, Albert Caraco, Michel Foucault, Mikhail Artsybashev, Miguel de Unamuno,Dienstag, pg 5 Baltasar Gracián, Philipp Mainländer, Fyodor Dostoyevsky, Eduard von Hartmann, Carlo Michelstaedter, Fyodor Sologub, Peter Wessel Zapffe, Ulrich Horstmann, Ingemar Hedenius and John N. Gray. Philosophical pessimists have often been associated with related ideas such as anti-theism, romanticism, counter-enlightenment, misanthropy, antinatalism and existentialism.In ''Pessimism: Philosophy, Ethic, Spirit'', Joshua Foa Dienstag outlines the main propositions shared by most philosophical pessimists as "that time is a burden; that the course of history is in some sense ironic; that freedom and happiness are incompatible; and that human existence is absurd."Dienstag, pg 19Philosophical pessimists see the self-consciousness of man as bound up with his consciousness of time and that this leads to greater suffering than mere physical pain. While animals live in the present, humans can contemplate the past and future, and this is an important difference. Human beings have foreknowledge of their own eventual fate and this "terror" is present in every moment of our lives as a reminder of the impermanent nature of life and of our inability to control this change.Dienstag, pg 22The philosophical pessimistic view of the effect of historical progress tends to be more negative than positive. The philosophical pessimist does not deny that certain areas like science can "progress" but they deny that this has resulted in an overall improvement of the human condition. In this sense it could be said that the pessimist views history as ironic; while seemingly getting better, it is mostly in fact not improving at all, or getting worse.Dienstag, pg 25 This is most clearly seen in Rousseau's critique of enlightenment civil society and his preference for man in the primitive and natural state. For Rousseau, "our souls have become corrupted to the extent that our sciences and our arts have advanced towards perfection".Jean Jacques Rousseau, ''Discourse on the Sciences and the Arts''The pessimistic view of the human condition is that it is in a sense "absurd". Absurdity is seen as an ontological mismatch between our desire for meaning and fulfillment and our inability to find or sustain those things in the world, or as Camus puts it: "a divorce between man and his life, the actor and his setting".Camus, Albert, ''The Myth of Sisyphus'' The idea that rational thought would lead to human flourishing can be traced to Socrates and is at the root of most forms of western optimistic philosophies. Pessimism turns the idea on its head, it faults the human freedom to reason as the feature that misaligned humanity from our world and sees it as the root of human unhappiness.Dienstag, pg 33-34The responses to this predicament of the human condition by pessimists are varied. Some philosophers, mainly Schopenhauer, recommend a form of resignation and self-denial (which he saw exemplified in Indian religions). Some followers tend to believe that "expecting the worst leads to the best." Rene Descartes even believed that life was better if emotional reactions to "negative" events were removed. Others like Nietzsche, Leopardi and Camus respond with a more life-affirming view, what Nietzsche called a "Dionysian pessimism", an embrace of life as it is in all of its constant change and suffering, without appeal to progress or hedonistic calculus. Albert Camus indicated that the common responses to the absurdity of life are often: Suicide, a leap of faith (as per Kierkegaard's knight of faith), or recognition/rebellion. Camus rejected all but the last option as unacceptable and inauthentic responses.Philosophical pessimism has often been tied to the arts and literature. Schopenhauer's philosophy was very popular with composers (Wagner, Brahms and Mahler)., The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Winter 2011 Edition), Edward N. Zalta (ed.) Several philosophical pessimists also wrote novels or poetry (Camus and Leopardi respectively). A distinctive literary form which has been associated with pessimism is aphoristic writing, and this can be seen in Leopardi, Nietzsche and Cioran. Writers which could be said to express pessimistic views in their works or to be influenced by pessimistic philosophers include Miguel de Cervantes, Fyodor Dostoyevsky, Joseph Conrad, Charles Bukowski, Thomas Mann, Louis-Ferdinand Céline, Mihai Eminescu, Samuel Beckett, Dino Buzzati, Jorge Luis Borges, HP Lovecraft, Thomas Ligotti, Thomas Bernhard and Camilo Pessanha.">ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』
■Philosophical pessimism is the related idea that views the world in a strictly anti-optimistic fashion. This form of pessimism is not an emotional disposition as the term commonly connotes. Instead, it is a philosophy or worldview that directly challenges the notion of progress and what may be considered the faith-based claims of optimism. Philosophical pessimists are often existential nihilists believing that life has no intrinsic meaning or value. Their responses to this situation however are widely varied and are often life-affirming.==Etymology==The term pessimism derives from the Latin word ''pessimus'' meaning 'the worst'. It was first used by Jesuit critics of Voltaire's 1759 novel 'Candide, ou l'Optimisme'. Voltaire was satirizing the philosophy of Leibniz who maintained that this was the 'best (optimum) of all possible worlds'. In their attacks on Voltaire, the Jesuits of the ''Revue de Trévoux'' accused him of ''pessimisme''.Dienstag, Joshua Foa. ''Pessimism: Philosophy, Ethic, Spirit'' Princeton University Press, Feb 17, 2009, pg 9==Philosophical pessimism==Philosophical pessimism is not a state of mind or a psychological disposition, but rather it is a worldview or ethic that seeks to face up to the distasteful realities of the world and eliminate irrational hopes and expectations (such as the Idea of Progress and religious faith) which may lead to undesirable outcomes. Ideas which prefigure philosophical pessimism can be seen in ancient texts such as the Dialogue of Pessimism and Ecclesiastes (which maintains that everything is ''hebel'', literally 'vapor' or 'breath', but could also mean 'senseless' and 'absurd'.)In Western philosophy, philosophical pessimism is not a single coherent movement, but rather a loosely associated group of thinkers with similar ideas and a family resemblance to each other.Dienstag, pg 7 Philosophers who can be said to express pessimistic views include Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Giacomo Leopardi, Arthur Schopenhauer, Friedrich Nietzsche, Albert Camus, E.M. Cioran, Albert Caraco, Michel Foucault, Mikhail Artsybashev, Miguel de Unamuno,Dienstag, pg 5 Baltasar Gracián, Philipp Mainländer, Fyodor Dostoyevsky, Eduard von Hartmann, Carlo Michelstaedter, Fyodor Sologub, Peter Wessel Zapffe, Ulrich Horstmann, Ingemar Hedenius and John N. Gray. Philosophical pessimists have often been associated with related ideas such as anti-theism, romanticism, counter-enlightenment, misanthropy, antinatalism and existentialism.In ''Pessimism: Philosophy, Ethic, Spirit'', Joshua Foa Dienstag outlines the main propositions shared by most philosophical pessimists as "that time is a burden; that the course of history is in some sense ironic; that freedom and happiness are incompatible; and that human existence is absurd."Dienstag, pg 19Philosophical pessimists see the self-consciousness of man as bound up with his consciousness of time and that this leads to greater suffering than mere physical pain. While animals live in the present, humans can contemplate the past and future, and this is an important difference. Human beings have foreknowledge of their own eventual fate and this "terror" is present in every moment of our lives as a reminder of the impermanent nature of life and of our inability to control this change.Dienstag, pg 22The philosophical pessimistic view of the effect of historical progress tends to be more negative than positive. The philosophical pessimist does not deny that certain areas like science can "progress" but they deny that this has resulted in an overall improvement of the human condition. In this sense it could be said that the pessimist views history as ironic; while seemingly getting better, it is mostly in fact not improving at all, or getting worse.Dienstag, pg 25 This is most clearly seen in Rousseau's critique of enlightenment civil society and his preference for man in the primitive and natural state. For Rousseau, "our souls have become corrupted to the extent that our sciences and our arts have advanced towards perfection".Jean Jacques Rousseau, ''Discourse on the Sciences and the Arts''The pessimistic view of the human condition is that it is in a sense "absurd". Absurdity is seen as an ontological mismatch between our desire for meaning and fulfillment and our inability to find or sustain those things in the world, or as Camus puts it: "a divorce between man and his life, the actor and his setting".Camus, Albert, ''The Myth of Sisyphus'' The idea that rational thought would lead to human flourishing can be traced to Socrates and is at the root of most forms of western optimistic philosophies. Pessimism turns the idea on its head, it faults the human freedom to reason as the feature that misaligned humanity from our world and sees it as the root of human unhappiness.Dienstag, pg 33-34The responses to this predicament of the human condition by pessimists are varied. Some philosophers, mainly Schopenhauer, recommend a form of resignation and self-denial (which he saw exemplified in Indian religions). Some followers tend to believe that "expecting the worst leads to the best." Rene Descartes even believed that life was better if emotional reactions to "negative" events were removed. Others like Nietzsche, Leopardi and Camus respond with a more life-affirming view, what Nietzsche called a "Dionysian pessimism", an embrace of life as it is in all of its constant change and suffering, without appeal to progress or hedonistic calculus. Albert Camus indicated that the common responses to the absurdity of life are often: Suicide, a leap of faith (as per Kierkegaard's knight of faith), or recognition/rebellion. Camus rejected all but the last option as unacceptable and inauthentic responses.Philosophical pessimism has often been tied to the arts and literature. Schopenhauer's philosophy was very popular with composers (Wagner, Brahms and Mahler)., The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Winter 2011 Edition), Edward N. Zalta (ed.) Several philosophical pessimists also wrote novels or poetry (Camus and Leopardi respectively). A distinctive literary form which has been associated with pessimism is aphoristic writing, and this can be seen in Leopardi, Nietzsche and Cioran. Writers which could be said to express pessimistic views in their works or to be influenced by pessimistic philosophers include Miguel de Cervantes, Fyodor Dostoyevsky, Joseph Conrad, Charles Bukowski, Thomas Mann, Louis-Ferdinand Céline, Mihai Eminescu, Samuel Beckett, Dino Buzzati, Jorge Luis Borges, HP Lovecraft, Thomas Ligotti, Thomas Bernhard and Camilo Pessanha.">ウィキペディアで「Pessimism is a state of mind in which one anticipates undesirable outcomes or believes that the evil or hardships in life outweigh the good or luxuries. Value judgments may vary dramatically between individuals, even when judgments of fact are undisputed. The most common example of this phenomenon is the "Is the glass half empty or half full?" situation. The degree in which situations like these are evaluated as something good or something bad can be described in terms of one's optimism or pessimism respectively. Throughout history, the pessimistic disposition has had effects on all major areas of thinking.Bennett, Oliver. ''Cultural pessimism.'' Edinburgh university press. 2001.Philosophical pessimism is the related idea that views the world in a strictly anti-optimistic fashion. This form of pessimism is not an emotional disposition as the term commonly connotes. Instead, it is a philosophy or worldview that directly challenges the notion of progress and what may be considered the faith-based claims of optimism. Philosophical pessimists are often existential nihilists believing that life has no intrinsic meaning or value. Their responses to this situation however are widely varied and are often life-affirming.==Etymology==The term pessimism derives from the Latin word ''pessimus'' meaning 'the worst'. It was first used by Jesuit critics of Voltaire's 1759 novel 'Candide, ou l'Optimisme'. Voltaire was satirizing the philosophy of Leibniz who maintained that this was the 'best (optimum) of all possible worlds'. In their attacks on Voltaire, the Jesuits of the ''Revue de Trévoux'' accused him of ''pessimisme''.Dienstag, Joshua Foa. ''Pessimism: Philosophy, Ethic, Spirit'' Princeton University Press, Feb 17, 2009, pg 9==Philosophical pessimism==Philosophical pessimism is not a state of mind or a psychological disposition, but rather it is a worldview or ethic that seeks to face up to the distasteful realities of the world and eliminate irrational hopes and expectations (such as the Idea of Progress and religious faith) which may lead to undesirable outcomes. Ideas which prefigure philosophical pessimism can be seen in ancient texts such as the Dialogue of Pessimism and Ecclesiastes (which maintains that everything is ''hebel'', literally 'vapor' or 'breath', but could also mean 'senseless' and 'absurd'.)In Western philosophy, philosophical pessimism is not a single coherent movement, but rather a loosely associated group of thinkers with similar ideas and a family resemblance to each other.Dienstag, pg 7 Philosophers who can be said to express pessimistic views include Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Giacomo Leopardi, Arthur Schopenhauer, Friedrich Nietzsche, Albert Camus, E.M. Cioran, Albert Caraco, Michel Foucault, Mikhail Artsybashev, Miguel de Unamuno,Dienstag, pg 5 Baltasar Gracián, Philipp Mainländer, Fyodor Dostoyevsky, Eduard von Hartmann, Carlo Michelstaedter, Fyodor Sologub, Peter Wessel Zapffe, Ulrich Horstmann, Ingemar Hedenius and John N. Gray. Philosophical pessimists have often been associated with related ideas such as anti-theism, romanticism, counter-enlightenment, misanthropy, antinatalism and existentialism.In ''Pessimism: Philosophy, Ethic, Spirit'', Joshua Foa Dienstag outlines the main propositions shared by most philosophical pessimists as "that time is a burden; that the course of history is in some sense ironic; that freedom and happiness are incompatible; and that human existence is absurd."Dienstag, pg 19Philosophical pessimists see the self-consciousness of man as bound up with his consciousness of time and that this leads to greater suffering than mere physical pain. While animals live in the present, humans can contemplate the past and future, and this is an important difference. Human beings have foreknowledge of their own eventual fate and this "terror" is present in every moment of our lives as a reminder of the impermanent nature of life and of our inability to control this change.Dienstag, pg 22The philosophical pessimistic view of the effect of historical progress tends to be more negative than positive. The philosophical pessimist does not deny that certain areas like science can "progress" but they deny that this has resulted in an overall improvement of the human condition. In this sense it could be said that the pessimist views history as ironic; while seemingly getting better, it is mostly in fact not improving at all, or getting worse.Dienstag, pg 25 This is most clearly seen in Rousseau's critique of enlightenment civil society and his preference for man in the primitive and natural state. For Rousseau, "our souls have become corrupted to the extent that our sciences and our arts have advanced towards perfection".Jean Jacques Rousseau, ''Discourse on the Sciences and the Arts''The pessimistic view of the human condition is that it is in a sense "absurd". Absurdity is seen as an ontological mismatch between our desire for meaning and fulfillment and our inability to find or sustain those things in the world, or as Camus puts it: "a divorce between man and his life, the actor and his setting".Camus, Albert, ''The Myth of Sisyphus'' The idea that rational thought would lead to human flourishing can be traced to Socrates and is at the root of most forms of western optimistic philosophies. Pessimism turns the idea on its head, it faults the human freedom to reason as the feature that misaligned humanity from our world and sees it as the root of human unhappiness.Dienstag, pg 33-34The responses to this predicament of the human condition by pessimists are varied. Some philosophers, mainly Schopenhauer, recommend a form of resignation and self-denial (which he saw exemplified in Indian religions). Some followers tend to believe that "expecting the worst leads to the best." Rene Descartes even believed that life was better if emotional reactions to "negative" events were removed. Others like Nietzsche, Leopardi and Camus respond with a more life-affirming view, what Nietzsche called a "Dionysian pessimism", an embrace of life as it is in all of its constant change and suffering, without appeal to progress or hedonistic calculus. Albert Camus indicated that the common responses to the absurdity of life are often: Suicide, a leap of faith (as per Kierkegaard's knight of faith), or recognition/rebellion. Camus rejected all but the last option as unacceptable and inauthentic responses.Philosophical pessimism has often been tied to the arts and literature. Schopenhauer's philosophy was very popular with composers (Wagner, Brahms and Mahler)., The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Winter 2011 Edition), Edward N. Zalta (ed.) Several philosophical pessimists also wrote novels or poetry (Camus and Leopardi respectively). A distinctive literary form which has been associated with pessimism is aphoristic writing, and this can be seen in Leopardi, Nietzsche and Cioran. Writers which could be said to express pessimistic views in their works or to be influenced by pessimistic philosophers include Miguel de Cervantes, Fyodor Dostoyevsky, Joseph Conrad, Charles Bukowski, Thomas Mann, Louis-Ferdinand Céline, Mihai Eminescu, Samuel Beckett, Dino Buzzati, Jorge Luis Borges, HP Lovecraft, Thomas Ligotti, Thomas Bernhard and Camilo Pessanha.」の詳細全文を読む
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