Is life meaningless? And other absurd questions - Nina Medvinskaya

Prevodilac: Milenka Okuka Lektor: Ivana Korom

Albert Camus grew up surrounded by violence.

Alber Kami je odrastao okružen nasiljem.

His homeland of Algeria was mired in conflict between native Algerians

Njegova domovina Ažir se bila zaglibila u konfliktu između domaćih Alžiraca

and colonizing French Europeans.

i kolonizatora, francuskih Evropljana.

He lost his father in the First World War,

Izgubio je oca u Prvom svetskom ratu

and was deemed unfit to fight in the second.

i ocenjeno je da je nesposoban da se bori u drugom.

Battling tuberculosis in France and confronting the war's devastation

Boreći se sa tuberkulozom u Francuskoj i suočavajući se sa ratnim razaranjima

as a resistance journalist, Camus grew despondent.

kao novinar otpora, Kami je postajao malodušan.

He couldn’t fathom any meaning behind all this endless bloodshed and suffering.

Nije mogao da pojmi bilo kakav smisao iza sveg tog beskrajnog krvoprolića i patnje.

He asked: if the world was meaningless,

Zapitao se: ako svet nema smisla,

could our individual lives still hold value?

da li individualni životi i dalje mogu da imaju vrednost?

Many of Camus’ contemporaries were exploring similar questions

Mnogi Kamijevi savremenici su istraživali slična pitanja

under the banner of a new philosophy called existentialism.

u okvirima nove filozofije nazvane egzistencijalizam.

Existentialists believed people were born as blank slates,

Egzistencijalisti su verovali da se ljudi rađaju kao neispisane table

each responsible for creating their life’s meaning amidst a chaotic world.

i da je svako odgovoran za stvaranje sopstvenog smisla usred haosa sveta.

But Camus rejected their school of thought.

Međutim, Kami je odbacio njihovu školu mišljenja.

He argued all people were born with a shared human nature

Tvrdio je da se svi ljudi rađaju sa zajedničkom ljudskom prirodom

that bonded them toward common goals.

koja ih povezuje ka zajedničkim ciljevima.

One such goal was to seek out meaning despite the world’s arbitrary cruelty.

Jedan od tih ciljeva je traženje smisla uprkos proizvoljnoj okrutnosti sveta.

Camus viewed humanity’s desire for meaning and the universe’s silent indifference

Kami je gledao na žudnju čovečanstva za smislom i tihu ravnodušnost univerzuma

as two incompatible puzzle pieces,

kao na dva neuklopiva delića slagalice

and considered trying to fit them together to be fundamentally absurd.

i smatrao je potrebu za njihovim uklapanjem suštinski apsurdnom.

This tension became the heart of Camus’ Philosophy of the Absurd,

Ova tenzija je postala središte Kamijeve filozofije apsurda,

which argued that life is inherently futile.

koja je tvrdila da je život po svojoj prirodi uzaludan.

Exploring how to live without meaning

Istraživanje života bez smisla

became the guiding question behind Camus’ early work,

je postalo vodeće pitanje iza Kamijevog ranog dela,

which he called his “cycle of the absurd.”

koje je naslovio „ciklus apsurda”.

The star of this cycle, and Camus’ first published novel,

Zenit ovog ciklusa i Kamijev prvi objavljeni roman

offers a rather bleak response.

pruža krajnje sumoran odgovor.

"The Stranger" follows Meursault, an emotionally detached young man

„Stranac” prati Mersoa, emocionalno obamrlog mladića

who doesn’t attribute much meaning to anything.

koji ne pridaje mnogo smisla bilo čemu.

He doesn’t cry at his mother’s funeral,

Ne plače na majčinoj sahrani,

he supports his neighbor’s scheme to humiliate a woman,

podržava komšijinu intrigu da ponizi ženu,

he even commits a violent crime — but Meaursault feels no remorse.

čak i vrši čin nasilja - ali Merso ne oseća grižu savesti.

For him the world is pointless and moral judgment has no place in it.

Za njega, svet je besmislen te za moralne sudove nema mesta u istom.

This attitude creates hostility between Meursault

Ovaj stav stvara neprijateljstvo između Mersoa

and the orderly society he inhabits,

i uređenog društva u kom živi,

slowly increasing his alienation until the novel’s explosive climax.

polako uvećavajući njegovu otuđenost sve do eksplozivnog vrhunca romana.

Unlike his spurned protagonist, Camus was celebrated for his honest philosophy.

Nasuprot njegovog prezrenog junaka, Kami je slavljen zbog svoje iskrene filozofije.

"The Stranger" catapulted him to fame, and Camus continued producing works

„Stranac” ga je vinuo u zvezde i Kami je nastavio da stvara dela

that explored the value of life amidst absurdity

koja su istraživala vrednost života usred apsurda,

many of which circled back to the same philosophical question:

a mnoga od njih su se vrtela oko istog filozofskog pitanja:

if life is truly meaningless,

ako je život uistinu besmislen,

is committing suicide the only rational response?

da li je samoubistvo jedini racionalan odgovor?

Camus’ answer was an emphatic “no.”

Kamijev odgovor je bilo nedvosmisleno „ne”.

There may not be any explanation for our unjust world,

Možda nema objašnjenja za naš nepravedni svet,

but choosing to live regardless is the deepest expression

ali odabrati život uprkos svemu je najsuštinskije ispoljavanje

of our genuine freedom.

naše istinske slobode.

Camus explains this in one of his most famous essays

Kami ovo objašnjava u jednom od svojih najčuvenijih eseja

which centers on the Greek myth of Sisyphus.

u čijem je središtu grčki mit o Sizifu.

Sisyphus was a king who cheated the gods,

Sizif je bio kralj koji je varao bogove

and was condemned to endlessly roll a boulder up a hill.

i bio je osuđen da beskonačno kotrlja kamen uz brdo.

The cruelty of his punishment lies in its singular futility,

Okrutnost njegove kazne počiva u njenoj jedinstvenoj uzaludnosti,

but Camus argues all of humanity is in the same position.

ali Kami tvrdi da je čitavo čovečanstvo u istoj situaciji.

And only when we accept the meaninglessness of our lives

I tek kada prihvatimo besmisao naših života

can we face the absurd with our heads held high.

možemo da se suočimo sa apsurdom sa visoko uzdignutim glavama.

As Camus says, when the king chooses to begin his relentless task once more,

Kako Kami kaže, kada kralj odabere da još jednom otpočne neumoljivi zadatak:

“One must imagine Sisyphus happy.”

„Moramo da zamislimo Sizifa srećnog.”

Camus’ contemporaries weren’t so accepting of futility.

Kamijevi savremenici nisu bili toliko otvoreni za uzaludnost.

Many existentialists advocated for violent revolution

Mnogi egzistencijalisti su bili zagovornici nasilne revolucije

to upend systems they believed were depriving people of agency and purpose.

kojom bi se svrgnuli sistemi

za koje su verovali da lišavaju ljude aktivnog učešća i svrhe.

Camus responded with his second set of work: the cycle of revolt.

Kami je odgovorio svojim drugim skupom dela: ciklusom pobune.

In "The Rebel," he explored rebellion as a creative act,

U „Pobunjenom čoveku” je istraživao pobunu kao čin stvaranja,

rather than a destructive one.

a ne kao čin destrukcije.

Camus believed that inverting power dynamics

Kami je verovao da bi izokretanje dinamike moći

only led to an endless cycle of violence.

samo dovelo do beskrajnog ciklusa nasilja.

Instead, the way to avoid needless bloodshed

Umesto toga, način da se izbegne bespotrebno krvoproliće

is to establish a public understanding of our shared human nature.

je da se postigne razumevanje javnosti o našoj zajedničkoj ljudskoj priorodi.

Ironically, it was this cycle of relatively peaceful ideas

Ironično, baš je ovaj ciklus relativno miroljubivih ideja

that triggered his fallout with many fellow writers and philosophers.

pokrenuo njegovo razilaženje sa mnogim kolegama piscima i filozofima.

Despite the controversy,

Uprkos kontroverzi,

Camus began work on his most lengthy and personal novel yet:

Kami je započeo rad na svom najdužem i najintimnijem romanu do tad:

an autobiographical work entitled "The First Man."

autobiografskom delu naslovljenom „Prvi čovek”.

The novel was intended to be the first piece in a hopeful new direction:

Planirao je da roman bude prvi deo u optimističnijem novom smeru:

the cycle of love.

ciklusu ljubavi.

But in 1960, Camus suddenly died in a car accident

Međutim, 1960. godine, Kami je iznenda umro u automobilskoj nesreći

that can only be described as meaningless and absurd.

koja bi jedino mogla da se opiše kao besmislena i apsurdna.

While the world never saw his cycle of love,

Iako svet nikad nije ugledao njegov ciklus ljubavi,

his cycles of revolt and absurdity continue to resonate with readers today.

njegovi ciklusi pobune i apsurda i dalje imaju odjek kod današnjih čitalaca.

His concept of absurdity has become a part of world literature,

Njegov koncpet apsurda je postao deo svetske književnosti,

20th century philosophy, and even pop culture.

filozofije 20. veka, pa čak i pop kulture.

Today, Camus remains a trusted guide for moments of uncertainty;

Danas, Kami ostaje vodič od poverenja za trenutke neizvesnosti;

his ideas defiantly imbuing a senseless world with inspiration

njegove ideje prkosno prožimaju nerazumni svet inspiracijom,

rather than defeat.

a ne porazom.