Virginia Woolf’s Orlando: Stream of Consciousness, New Biography, and Gendered Experience

 

This blog task is assigned by Prakruti Bhatt Ma'am (Department of English, MKBU).

Virginia Woolf’s Orlando: Stream of Consciousness, New Biography, and Gendered Experience

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Q | 1. What is “Stream of Consciousness”? How has Woolf employed this technique to write Orlando?

 

Introduction:

The Stream of Consciousness is a narrative technique associated with modernist literature that seeks to represent the continuous flow of human thoughts, emotions, memories, and sensations. Unlike traditional narrative methods that focus on plot, action, and chronological order, this technique prioritizes inner psychological reality. Virginia Woolf, one of the most influential modernist writers, employs this technique in Orlando (1928) in a distinctive and experimental manner. Through Stream of Consciousness, Woolf explores complex ideas of time, identity, gender, creativity, and selfhood, transforming Orlando into a deeply philosophical and psychological text beneath its playful surface.

Meaning of Stream of Consciousness:

The term Stream of Consciousness was first introduced by the American psychologist William James, who described human consciousness as a continuous, flowing process rather than a series of isolated or neatly ordered thoughts. According to James, the human mind does not function in fixed steps; instead, thoughts, emotions, memories, sensations, and perceptions merge and overlap, creating an ever-moving mental stream. This psychological understanding of the mind deeply influenced modernist writers in the early twentieth century.

Modernist authors adopted the Stream of Consciousness technique as a deliberate challenge to conventional realist fiction, which portrayed life as logical, orderly, and externally structured. Traditional narratives focused on plot, chronology, and outward action, often ignoring the complexity of inner life. In contrast, Stream of Consciousness writing shifts attention from what happens to how it is experienced, placing the reader inside the character’s mind.

This narrative technique is characterized by several distinctive features:

• A deep focus on inner thoughts, emotions, memories, and mental impressions, rather than external events

• Free and fluid movement between past, present, and future, reflecting how memory naturally intrudes upon the present moment

• Rejection of strict chronological order and logical sequencing, allowing thoughts to appear fragmented or associative

• Strong emphasis on subjective reality, suggesting that truth differs from person to person

• Use of language that mirrors the rhythm, speed, and unpredictability of thought, often lyrical or reflective in tone

Through this technique, writers attempt to represent mental reality as it is actually lived, not as it is conventionally narrated. Stream of Consciousness thus transforms fiction into a psychological space where consciousness itself becomes the central subject. Rather than offering a polished or orderly account of life, it reveals the complex, fluid, and deeply personal nature of human experience, making inner awareness as significant as outward action.

Virginia Woolf and the Modernist Use of Stream of Consciousness

Virginia Woolf’s use of Stream of Consciousness is subtle and refined. Unlike writers such as James Joyce, who often use fragmented and highly complex prose, Woolf maintains clarity, lyricism, and emotional depth.

Woolf’s modernist concerns include:

• The exploration of inner life over external action

• The idea of time as psychological and elastic

• The belief that reality is subjective and personal

• The focus on “moments of being”, where consciousness becomes intensely aware

In Orlando, these concerns shape the narrative and determine how the story unfolds.

Use of Stream of Consciousness in Orlando:

Although Orlando is presented as a mock biography, Woolf deliberately undermines the traditional biographical form by giving priority to Orlando’s consciousness rather than historical facts.

1. Emphasis on Inner Life Rather than External Events:

Throughout Orlando, Woolf frequently shifts from external narration to Orlando’s inner reflections.

• Important historical events are mentioned briefly, while Orlando’s emotional reactions and thoughts are explored in detail.

• The reader gains insight into Orlando’s loneliness, ambition, confusion, and creative impulses.

• This focus highlights Woolf’s belief that inner experience is more meaningful than public events.

Thus, Stream of Consciousness becomes a tool to reveal the psychological truth of Orlando’s life.

2. Psychological Treatment of Time:

One of the most striking aspects of Orlando is its unusual treatment of time. Orlando lives for over three centuries, yet ages very slowly.

• Woolf uses Stream of Consciousness to show that time is experienced internally, not mechanically.

• Orlando’s memories flow into the present, creating a sense of continuity across centuries.

• The past is never fully separate from the present; it exists within consciousness.

This reinforces the modernist idea that time is subjective, shaped by memory and perception.

3. Gender Transformation and Continuity of Consciousness:

Orlando’s transformation from male to female is one of the most revolutionary moments in the novel.

• Woolf presents this change calmly, without dramatic disruption.

• Stream of Consciousness allows Woolf to emphasize that Orlando’s inner self remains unchanged.

• The continuity of thought and memory suggests that identity lies in consciousness, not in physical gender.

Through this technique, Woolf challenges traditional gender binaries and argues that gender is fluid and socially constructed.

4. Blending of Narrative Voice and Consciousness:

In Orlando, Woolf often merges the voice of the biographer with Orlando’s inner thoughts.

• This blurring creates a layered narrative structure.

• The reader moves seamlessly between external observation and internal reflection.

• The technique questions the reliability of objective biography and historical truth.

Stream of Consciousness thus helps Woolf expose the limitations of conventional narrative authority.

5. Exploration of Creativity and Selfhood:

Orlando’s desire to write poetry runs throughout the novel.

• Woolf presents the creative process as a mental and emotional struggle.

• Orlando’s thoughts about writing, failure, and artistic recognition flow freely through the narrative.

• This highlights Woolf’s belief that art emerges from inner consciousness, not from external success.

Importance of Stream of Consciousness in Orlando:

The use of Stream of Consciousness in Orlando serves several significant purposes:

• It deepens psychological realism in a fantastical narrative.

• It challenges traditional forms of biography and history.

• It allows Woolf to explore identity as fluid and evolving.

• It supports Woolf’s feminist vision by privileging inner female experience.

• It reflects modernist dissatisfaction with rigid literary conventions.

Conclusion:

In Orlando, Virginia Woolf employs the Stream of Consciousness technique to move beyond conventional storytelling and explore the inner continuity of the self across time, gender, and social change. Rather than presenting life as a series of external events, Woolf reveals consciousness as fluid, dynamic, and central to human identity. Through Orlando’s thoughts, memories, and perceptions, Woolf demonstrates that the true essence of a person lies not in history, body, or social role, but in the ever-flowing stream of consciousness. As a result, Orlando stands as a unique and powerful example of modernist experimentation and psychological depth.

Q | 2. What did the literary movement of The New Biography emphasize? How can we discuss it in the context of Orlando?

Introduction: 

The literary movement known as the New Biography emerged in the early twentieth century as part of the broader modernist reaction against Victorian realism and positivism. Traditional biography was grounded in the belief that a life could be objectively recorded through factual accuracy, chronological narration, and an emphasis on public achievements. Such biographies aimed to present a coherent, unified self progressing logically through time.

Modernist writers, however, began to question whether this method could truly represent the complexity of human consciousness. Influenced by developments in psychology, philosophy, and aesthetics, they argued that a life consists not merely of external events but of shifting perceptions, emotions, and inner experiences.

Virginia Woolf stands as one of the most influential theorists and practitioners of the New Biography. Her novel Orlando (1928) is both an imaginative biography and a critical commentary on the very idea of life-writing. Through parody, fantasy, and psychological depth, Woolf reshapes biography into a form capable of expressing subjective reality, psychological truth, and inner continuity.

What Did the New Biography Emphasize?

The New Biography does not reject facts entirely; rather, it redefines the function of facts in representing a life. Instead of treating facts as ends in themselves, it views them as tools that must serve a deeper understanding of personality and consciousness.

The key emphases of the New Biography include:

• Inner life over external achievement
  The focus shifts from public events and social success to private consciousness, emotions, and mental states.

• Psychological truth rather than factual completeness
  A life is understood through significant moments that reveal character, rather than through exhaustive documentation.

• Selective and interpretive narration
  The biographer consciously selects and shapes material, acknowledging that subjectivity is unavoidable.

• Elastic and experiential treatment of time
  Time is presented as psychological and fluid rather than strictly chronological.

• Self-aware narrative voice
  The biographer admits uncertainty and exposes the constructed nature of biography.

Woolf famously describes the challenge of biography as balancing “the granite-like solidity of fact” with “the rainbow-like intangibility of personality,” suggesting that neither element alone can truthfully represent a life.

Virginia Woolf’s Theory of the New Biography:

Woolf’s essays such as The New Biography and The Art of Biography provide the theoretical foundation for her experimental practice. She challenges the assumption that objectivity guarantees truth and instead proposes that truth emerges through interpretation.

According to Woolf:

• Facts provide structure, but not meaning

• Personality is fluid, complex, and often contradictory

• The biographer must capture “moments of being” intense flashes of awareness that reveal the essence of the self

This theoretical stance directly informs the narrative design of Orlando, where psychological insight consistently takes precedence over historical precision.

Orlando as an Experimental New Biography:

Although Orlando presents itself as a biography, Woolf deliberately destabilizes the form. The novel’s playful tone, impossible lifespan, and fantastical elements expose the artificial conventions of traditional life-writing. At the same time, its sustained focus on consciousness and memory exemplifies the core principles of the New Biography.

Thus, Orlando functions both as:

• a practice of the New Biography, and

• a critique of conventional biographical authority.

Key Aspects of the New Biography in Orlando:

1. Emphasis on Inner Life over Historical Facts:

In Orlando, historical events are often mentioned briefly, while Orlando’s thoughts, emotions, and creative struggles receive sustained attention.

• Public events serve as background rather than narrative focus

• Orlando’s loneliness, ambition, artistic frustration, and self-reflection dominate the text

• The novel suggests that inner experience constitutes the true substance of a life

Woolf explicitly articulates this view when she writes:

“A biography is considered complete if it merely accounts for six or seven selves, whereas a person may have as many thousand.”

This statement underlines Woolf’s belief that identity is multiple and inward, resisting simple documentation.

2. Psychological and Elastic Treatment of Time:

One of the most striking features of Orlando is its unconventional handling of time.

• Orlando lives for over three centuries while aging very slowly

• Time flows according to memory, mood, and consciousness rather than calendar years

• Past experiences remain active within the present moment

Woolf observes:

“The mind of man, moreover, works with equal strangeness upon the body of time.”

This reflects the New Biography’s modernist view that time is lived internally, not measured mechanically.

3. Identity Beyond Gender and Biology:

Orlando’s transformation from male to female challenges essentialist notions of identity.

• The change occurs without psychological rupture

• Orlando’s memories, temperament, and creative impulses remain continuous

• Identity is located in consciousness rather than physical form

Woolf famously declares:

“In every human being a vacillation from one sex to the other takes place.”

Through this, Woolf aligns the New Biography with a fluid, non-fixed understanding of selfhood.

4. Questioning Biographical Authority:

The biographer-narrator in Orlando frequently admits doubt and limitation.

• The narrative voice oscillates between authority and uncertainty

• Gaps and silences are openly acknowledged

• The illusion of objective biography is dismantled

As Woolf states:

“The biographer must depend upon others for facts, but upon himself for judgments.”

This self-awareness embodies the New Biography’s intellectual honesty.

5. Creativity as the Core of the Self:

Orlando’s lifelong desire to write poetry runs throughout the novel.

• Artistic creation is shown as a psychological and emotional struggle

• Success and failure are internalized rather than socially measured

• Creativity becomes a central marker of Orlando’s identity

Woolf writes:

“For nothing thicker than a knifeblade separates happiness from melancholy.”

This line captures the fragile emotional terrain of the creative consciousness.

Conclusion:

The New Biography redefines life-writing by rejecting the illusion of complete objectivity and embracing subjective, psychological truth. In Orlando, Virginia Woolf transforms biography into a modernist experiment that captures the fluidity of identity, the elasticity of time, and the primacy of inner life.

Through parody, innovation, and narrative self-awareness, Orlando not only exemplifies the New Biography but also theorizes it in fictional form. Woolf ultimately demonstrates that a life cannot be fully recorded through facts alone it must be interpreted, imagined, and understood from within.

Q | 3. How, according to Woolf, do men and women experience the world differently? Are these differences the result of biology or social practice? 

Introduction:

Virginia Woolf’s Orlando – A Biography is not merely a playful fantasy or a mock biography; it is a serious philosophical and feminist inquiry into gender and human experience. By allowing Orlando to live across centuries and to transform from a man into a woman, Woolf creates a unique narrative experiment. This experiment enables her to question whether the differences between men’s and women’s experiences arise from biological sex or from social and cultural conditioning. Woolf’s answer is clear: while the body may change, the inner consciousness remains continuous, and it is society not nature that determines how men and women encounter the world.

Social Experience Before and After Transformation:

One of Woolf’s most striking techniques in Orlando is her insistence that Orlando’s personality, intelligence, and creativity remain unchanged after the change of sex. What changes dramatically is the way society responds to Orlando.

Orlando as a Man: Privilege and Freedom:

When Orlando lives as a man, he moves through the world with ease and authority. His experience is marked by:

• Unrestricted mobility, allowing him to travel and explore without fear

• Social credibility, where his ideas and opinions are valued

• Legal and economic independence, including unquestioned inheritance rights

• Creative confidence, as his writing is judged without gender bias

These privileges reveal how patriarchal society associates masculinity with power, legitimacy, and freedom. Orlando’s male experience appears natural only because society has normalized male dominance.

Orlando as a Woman: Constraint and Surveillance:

After Orlando becomes a woman, the world she inhabits suddenly narrows, even though her inner self remains the same. She now encounters:

• Loss of legal and economic authority, particularly in matters of property

• Strict social expectations, demanding modesty, obedience, and decorum

• Reduction to appearance, where beauty is valued over intellect

• Restricted freedom, requiring caution in public spaces

Woolf exposes the injustice of this shift with quiet irony:

“Orlando had become a woman there is no denying it. But in every other respect, Orlando remained precisely as he had been.”

The irony lies in the fact that nothing essential about Orlando has changed only the social meaning attached to her body.

Gender Fluidity and the Inner Self:

Woolf moves beyond simple comparison and challenges the very idea of fixed gender identity. She famously writes:

“Different though the sexes are, they intermix. In every human being a vacillation from one sex to the other takes place.”

With this observation, Woolf suggests that:

• Masculine and feminine qualities are not opposites but interwoven

• Identity is fluid and dynamic rather than stable and fixed

• The human mind transcends biological classification

This vision reflects Woolf’s modernist belief that the self is complex, layered, and resistant to rigid definitions.

Biology or Social Practice?

Woolf’s Argument:

Although Woolf acknowledges physical differences between men and women, she consistently minimizes their importance. Through Orlando, she argues that:

• Biology does not limit intellect, imagination, or creativity

• Gender roles are enforced by social institutions

• History and culture, not nature, produce inequality

Orlando’s unchanged artistic and emotional life across genders becomes Woolf’s strongest evidence that social practice not biology shapes experience.

Feminist Context and Critical Perspective:

Woolf’s argument in Orlando closely aligns with her feminist thinking elsewhere. In A Room of One’s Own, she explains that women’s marginal position in literature results from:

• Economic dependence

• Restricted access to education

• Social discouragement and exclusion

Critics such as Elaine Showalter read Orlando as a feminist critique of gender as a cultural construction, while later theorists like Judith Butler echo Woolf’s ideas by arguing that gender is something socially performed rather than biologically fixed. Woolf’s originality lies in presenting these ideas through wit, fantasy, and narrative experimentation rather than direct polemic.

Conclusion:

According to Virginia Woolf, men and women experience the world differently not because of innate biological differences, but because society assigns unequal meanings, expectations, and limitations to gender. Orlando – A Biography demonstrates that when social rules change, gendered experience changes with them. By dissolving rigid boundaries between male and female, Woolf challenges patriarchal assumptions and imagines a more fluid, inclusive, and egalitarian understanding of human identity.  

Pick any one chapter from the novel. Prompt any AI bot or image generator to generate an image of Orlando based on the gender he/she assumes and the clothes he/she wears throughout the chapter. Share that image in your blog and mention the bot/image generator you used.

I have chosen Chapter 3, which shows Orlando as a male English ambassador in Constantinople, dressed in formal ceremonial attire that symbolizes political power and masculine privilege. Woolf uses these clothes to highlight how masculinity is socially rewarded with authority and freedom. However, Orlando feels inwardly dissatisfied, revealing a gap between public role and inner self. The chapter ends with Orlando’s transformation into a woman, suggesting that while the body and dress change, identity remains continuous and gender is shaped by social practice rather than biology.

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Understanding Existentialism Through a Flipped Learning Experience

This blog is written as part of a flipped learning activity on Existentialism given by Prof. Dr. Dilip Barad. In this activity, we watched videos shared on the teacher’s blog and reflected on important ideas of existentialist philosophy. Here is the link to the professor's Blog for background reading: Click here 

Understanding Existentialism Through a Flipped Learning Experience

Here is Youtube Video on Demystifying Existentialism :

Here is Infographic on Authenticity in the Absurd:

Video 1: What is Existentialism? :

I interpret existentialism as a philosophy that speaks honestly about the confusion and pressure we experience while growing up. What struck me most is that existentialism does not promise comfort or ready answers. Instead, it accepts uncertainty as a natural part of life and asks us to face it courageously.

I understand existentialism as saying that life does not give us meaning we have to create it ourselves. This idea feels both frightening and empowering. Frightening because there is no fixed path to follow, and empowering because it means my choices matter. My identity is not something given to me by society, religion, or tradition alone, but something I shape through my actions.

Camus’s idea of the absurd feels especially relevant to student life. We often work hard, dream big, and search for purpose, yet life does not always respond the way we expect. Instead of giving up or escaping reality, existentialism encourages us to continue living consciously, even when things feel meaningless. This attitude feels strong and honest rather than hopeless.

For me, existentialism feels less like a philosophy from textbooks and more like a guide for inner reflection. It helps me understand feelings like anxiety, loneliness, and self-doubt not as weaknesses but as signs of awareness. As a student who enjoys literature and self-thinking, existentialism becomes a way to understand my inner struggles and still move forward with responsibility and freedom. 

Video 2: The Myth of Sisyphus: The Absurd Reasoning (Feeling of the Absurd)

I understand Camus’s idea of the absurd as a way of looking at life honestly without running away from its discomfort. What affected me most is his claim that understanding meaninglessness does not mean life should end. Instead, it means life should be lived with awareness. This idea feels strong because it refuses both false hope and hopelessness.

I interpret the absurd as something that appears when my expectations meet reality. Like many students, I search for purpose, success, and clarity, but the world does not always respond fairly or logically. Camus helps me understand that this gap between what I hope for and what the world offers is not a personal failure it is part of existence itself.

What I find meaningful is that Camus does not blame either humans or the world. The absurd exists only because we think, question, and hope. This makes confusion feel valid rather than shameful. Instead of demanding answers, Camus encourages us to stay conscious, to keep living, and to resist giving up, even when certainty is absent.

For me, the idea of the absurd turns despair into clarity. It teaches that life does not need guaranteed meaning to be lived sincerely. As a reflective student interested in literature and inner thought, I feel that Camus gives permission to live with questions, to accept uncertainty, and still choose life with dignity and awareness. In this way, the absurd becomes not a reason to escape life, but a reason to live it honestly. 

Video 3: The Myth of Sisyphus The Notion of Philosophical Suicide:

I understand philosophical suicide as the moment when a person stops questioning because the truth feels too uncomfortable. It is not about ending life, but about ending honest thinking. When uncertainty becomes difficult to bear, there is a temptation to choose comforting beliefs simply to escape anxiety. Camus helps me recognize this tendency clearly.

I agree with Camus that jumping into faith or absolute meaning after recognizing the absurd feels like avoiding the problem rather than facing it. It may bring emotional comfort, but it closes inquiry. What I find powerful is Camus’s insistence that living without illusion does not mean living without strength. Staying with uncertainty requires more courage than choosing easy answers.

For me, this idea connects strongly with student life. We often look for fixed meanings, guarantees, or authorities to tell us who we are and what our life should mean. Camus challenges this habit. He suggests that real honesty lies in continuing to think, question, and live even when no final answers are available.

I interpret Camus’s refusal of philosophical suicide as an act of resistance. To live without hope, without false belief, and without escape is not despair it is clarity. Remaining in that fragile space before the leap, where nothing is certain, feels difficult but truthful. Through this lens, meaning is not something we escape to; it is something we live through awareness, resistance, and responsibility.

Video 4: Dadaism, Nihilism and Existentialism

I understand Dadaism and existentialism as movements that begin with refusal a refusal to accept inherited meanings without questioning them. What attracts me to both is that they do not pretend the world is stable, fair, or logical. Instead, they respond honestly to historical violence and human suffering.

I do not see Dadaism as meaningless chaos. Rather, I see it as a reaction to a broken world. When old values led to war and destruction, Dadaism chose to tear those values apart instead of respecting them. This feels emotionally honest to me. Before rebuilding meaning, something false must first be dismantled.

I also find the relationship between Dadaism and existentialism psychologically convincing. Dadaism clears space by destroying structures; existentialism enters afterward and asks what an individual should do once those structures collapse. First comes doubt and negation, then comes freedom and responsibility. This sequence reflects how people often experience crisis in real life.

Both movements also share a deep engagement with the absurd. They do not fear absurdity but accept it as part of modern existence. As a student interested in literature and philosophy, I find this comforting not because it gives answers, but because it removes false certainty. In the space between destruction and creation, I find a way of thinking that allows honesty, freedom, and faithfulness to one’s own experience rather than borrowed truths.

Video 5: Existentialism - a gloomy philosophy 

I do not experience existentialism as a gloomy philosophy but as a realistic one. Life already contains uncertainty, fear, and confusion, and existentialism does not hide these realities. What I find meaningful is that it treats these emotions as starting points rather than final conclusions.

I feel especially connected to Nietzsche’s idea of “becoming who you are.” This idea suggests that identity is not fixed or waiting to be discovered but is formed through choices, failures, and reflection. I like this because it removes the pressure of having to “know myself” completely. Instead, it allows growth to be slow, uncertain, and imperfect.

For me, existentialism emphasizes responsibility without being moralistic. It does not tell me what to believe or how to live, but it reminds me that my choices matter. This makes life feel serious, but also meaningful. Rather than offering comfort, existentialism offers honesty. It encourages me to face fear, contradiction, and freedom directly and still choose to live authentically.

In this way, existentialism feels less like a dark philosophy and more like a practice of becomingone that accepts uncertainty while insisting on responsibility, self-examination, and personal truth.

Video 6: Existentialism and Nihilism: Is it one and the same?

I understand the difference between nihilism and existentialism as the difference between giving up and choosing to respond. Nihilism accepts that nothing matters and stops there. Existentialism begins at the same realization but refuses to remain passive.

What stands out to me is that existential thinkers do not deny meaninglessness; they face it directly. Kierkegaard responds by restoring individuality, Nietzsche by creating new values, and Camus by insisting on rebellion. In contrast, Cioran’s acceptance of futility feels motionless. It recognizes the problem but refuses to act, and this passivity feels emotionally heavy rather than honest.

I find Camus’s idea of rebellion especially convincing. To live without guarantees, without final meaning, and still choose to act feels courageous. It suggests that meaning does not need cosmic approval to matter. Like Dadaism, which destroys false values to make space for freedom, existentialism confronts nihilism by insisting on responsibility rather than resignation.

For me, existentialism feels like an ethical response to emptiness. It does not promise hope, but it refuses despair. It asks the individual not to escape, not to surrender, but to remain engaged with life. This active stance makes existentialism feel alive and demanding, while nihilism feels static and withdrawn. In that difference, I find existentialism not as denial of meaninglessness, but as resistance against letting it have the final word.

Video 7: Let us introduce Existentialism again!

I connect most deeply with existentialism through Fyodor Dostoevsky’s novels, because they show existential ideas through lived psychological suffering rather than theory. In Crime and Punishment, Raskolnikov believes he can define his own moral rules, but his inner collapse reveals that freedom without responsibility leads to anguish. His suffering comes not only from society, but from within himself.

This helps me understand Sartre’s idea that existence precedes essence. Raskolnikov tries to invent an identity through theory, but meaning cannot survive without responsibility. Similarly, in Notes from Underground, the narrator rejects logic, progress, and rational systems simply to prove that he is free even when it hurts him. This shows that human beings are not predictable machines but beings who choose, sometimes irrationally.

What I find powerful is that Dostoevsky does not comfort the reader. He shows the cost of freedom, the loneliness of self-awareness, and the pain of choosing oneself against society. Through his characters, existentialism becomes not just something to understand, but something to endure.

Video 8: Explain like I'm Five: Existentialism and Nietzsche:

I really like this video because it explains Nietzsche in a way that feels playful but serious. Using a Superman figure makes the idea of value-creation understandable without removing its danger. It shows that morality is not just obedience, but something that requires thinking and responsibility.

What interests me most is the children’s reaction. Their discomfort shows that existential freedom is not just personal it affects others. This helps me understand why existentialism can feel threatening. Freedom does not happen in isolation; it creates tension in social life.

For me, this also explains why existentialism speaks so strongly to young people. Adolescence is a time of questioning authority and inherited rules. Nietzsche’s idea of “becoming who you are” reflects this stage of life, where freedom feels exciting but also frightening. The video makes existentialism feel real, not abstract.

Video 9: Why I like Existentialism? Eric Dodson 

  

I relate strongly to this video because it presents existentialism as compassionate without being comforting. It does not judge weakness or confusion, but it does not excuse passivity either. It accepts human limitations while still demanding responsibility.

Like Nietzsche’s idea of “becoming who you are,” this view places meaning in the hands of the individual. For me, this honesty makes existentialism feel empowering rather than depressing. It meets people where they are and asks them to live consciously.

Video 10: Let us sum up: From Essentialism to Existentialism

I understand existentialism not as a denial of meaning, but as a demand for responsibility. It does not say life is meaningless; it says meaning is not given freely. We must create it through our choices.

What stays with me is the idea that freedom is unavoidable. Even refusing to choose is a choice. Existentialism feels difficult, but honest. It teaches me that living authentically means accepting uncertainty, taking responsibility, and remaining engaged with life despite the absence of guarantees.

A Personal Reflection on Video 9: Why I Like Existentialism

Video 9 resonated with me because it explains existentialism through real human life rather than abstract philosophy. The speaker shows that existentialism begins from everyday experiences such as confusion about the future, fear of failure, loneliness, loss, and moments when life feels uncertain or unfair. These situations are common in human life, which makes the philosophy feel natural and believable.

Logically, existentialism starts with the fact that life does not come with fixed instructions. For example, when we face academic pressure, career confusion, or personal disappointment, no external rule can fully tell us what to do. The video explains that instead of escaping these situations or blaming fate, existentialism asks us to face them honestly and take responsibility for our choices. This connection between freedom and responsibility makes the philosophy practical.

The video’s idea of radical honesty is also connected to real life. People often hide pain behind social expectations or pretend everything is fine. Existentialism, however, encourages us to admit anxiety, suffering, and fear without shame. For instance, after failure or loss, feeling confused or hopeless is not weakness but part of being human. Accepting this truth allows personal growth rather than denial.

Another important idea in the video is that suffering can become meaningful. In life, experiences like rejection, heartbreak, or failure often force us to reflect on who we are and what truly matters. The video suggests that such moments, though painful, can teach responsibility, empathy, and self-awareness. Meaning is not found in comfort, but formed through how we respond to difficult situations.

Finally, the video presents existentialism as a life-affirming rebellion. This rebellion appears when individuals question social norms, refuse to live mechanically, and choose authenticity over convenience. Simple acts like choosing a meaningful career over a socially approved one, standing by personal values, or living consciously in the present moment reflect this existential attitude. Through these everyday events, existentialism becomes a philosophy that encourages courage, honesty, and full participation in life.

My Learning Outcomes from the Existentialism Activity:

• This activity helped me understand existentialism in a better way than before.

• I learned that feelings like anxiety, fear, and confusion are normal in life, especially when we try to find meaning.

• The videos clearly explained the difference between existentialism and nihilism. Nihilism gives up on meaning, but existentialism asks us to create our own meaning.

• I understood that human beings are free to choose, and every choice comes with responsibility.

• I learned the idea of bad faith, which means avoiding responsibility by blaming society, fate, or rules.

• This activity helped me connect philosophy with real-life experiences like making decisions, facing problems, and understanding myself.

• Overall, this activity taught me that existentialism is not about escaping life, but about accepting reality and still choosing to live with purpose.   

Here is 5 Reflective Questions on Existentialism:

1. If existentialism insists that meaning must be created by the individual, how can this idea avoid becoming isolating or selfish in a world where our choices deeply affect others?
   
   

2. Camus rejects both nihilism and false hope, but can a life lived without ultimate meaning sustain long-term commitment, love, or sacrifice?
   
   

3. If anxiety and confusion are signs of awareness rather than weakness, as existentialism suggests, should modern education and society encourage discomfort instead of certainty?
   
   

4. Does rejecting ‘bad faith’ place an unbearable pressure on individuals to constantly define themselves through choice?
   
   

5. If existentialism values authenticity over comfort, how do we distinguish genuine self-chosen values from disguised social conditioning?

Here is Youtube Video on What is existentialism, and why does it feel so closely connected to human life?

References :

Barad, Dilip. “Existentialism: Video Resources.” Dilip Barad | Teacher Blog, 19 Sept. 2016, blog.dilipbarad.com/2016/09/existentialism-video-resources.html.