In “The Myth of Sisyphus” Camus writes of the tragic story of a man stuck in the underworld pushing a boulder up a hill for it only to roll down again. However, despite the clear suffering that Sisyphus experiences, Camus somehow turns the reader into thinking that Sisyphus is content with his situation. Camus writes, “One must imagine Sisyphus happy” (3).
Camus argues that even though his situation isn’t ideal for him, Sisyphus can still value his life by having the mindset of enjoying his presence. This can relate to existentialism because it creates a meaning of life. People have to create a meaning of life in order to live their lives with purpose and happiness. Although the true meaning of life has yet to be found, and most likely will never be found, people can create a fake meaning of life in order to cope with the inevitability of death and curiosity. I also think that happiness is a mindset, and it can be found in any situation despite suffering. This was the argument that Camus writes, and I think that existence as well as the meaning of life is all about perspective.
I watched this Key and Peele skit the other day where they were being tortured and instead of feeling sorry for themselves, they chose to laugh about it and find the good sides of it. As their legs were being chopped off, they talked about how they needed a good break away from their phones. I thought this related to the topic because it is all about how someone perceives something. The skit is called “Key and Peele – Psycho Clown” if you want to watch it. I would very much recommend you watch it and it’s only 3 minutes.
I watched the video and think that this it is a really good example or perspective. Similar to Sisyphus looking forward to the momentary moment of happiness after completing the challenge of rolling the stone up the hill, the guys find the positives out of their situation. For example the guy with his right arm chopped off mentions that he is a lefty, so he still has his dominant hand. Perspective is very important in any story and looking at a story through a different perspective or lens, really helps for a person to further understand a character and give meaning to something that appears insignificant.
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I fell as if the punishment Sisyphus is given within the story provides struggle and pointless towards a goal that is insignificant in the overall large aspect of life. The task is what I believe brings Sisyphus happiness as he believes the struggles his withstanding will bring him success over time. I agree that perspective is what can bring happiness, as happiness can be seen differently through each individual’s perspective. Perspective is only one opinion and different people can grow happy over different concepts and ideas. Sisyphus is happy through his perspective as he has a goal to achieve so I strongly agree with this blog post.
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I think the connection you made to Key and Pelle makes a lot of sense about perspective for Sisyphus. The way most people find meaning in their lives is through illusions and although Sisyphus doesn’t do this, there is still ways for him to be happy.
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Great connection with the Key and Peele skit. I went ahead and linked the video in your post.
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