Existentialism from Dostoevsky to Sartre: Basic Writings of Existentialism by Kaufmann, Kierkegaard, Nietzsche, Jaspers, Heidegger, and Others (Meridian S) Paperback – 1 Mar. 1975

This is book consisting mostly of excerpts of the writings of the main existentialist writers - as the title says, from Dostoevski to Sartre, including Kirkegaard, Camus and many other important authors. The introduction, by Dr Kaufmann, is very informative, very well written and, in its style, shows us the way in which professional philosophers communicate. Both the introduction and the excerpts are quite complex, at least for a simple mathematician like me. Other than the articles by Sartre, Camus and Kirkegaard, I enjoyed very much working through the Parables by Kafka.On the whole, a great compilation, with an introduction that points the way into the articles. But be aware, the whole thing is quite difficult for the layman!

Having read a few overviews of the subject this was a joy to read introducing as it does to original source material. As a lay reader I found all bar two of the pieces presented readily accessible. Of those that defy understanding I did at least get an idea of what the author stands for. A good primer for further reading.

This is a book of proven merit, bringing together a judiciously composed and multi-faceted assortment of texts giving voice to the existentialist experience of life or describing and analysing existentialism. The brief, to the point introductions by professor Kaufmann properly put the various contributions in context. Unfortunately, the printing quality is inadmissibly low (cheap, porous paper making for a bloated look, the contours of the characters annoyingly vague) and effectively distracts the reader's attention from the text.

Really good overview, and a coherent timeline, of how existentialism developed and how it's key proponents thought.

Great!

Excellent product

The book is good, although it is quite battered, some of the cover is torn, but for the price I paid for it, it is decent. Would have prefered it to be slightly better quality though.

This print version is quite bad-paper, ink quality. Makes for a hard read. In terms of content I did not think the intro was well written, I would recommend other books if you wish to find out more about existentialism.