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Developing Camus’s Philosophy of Communication
Like Albert Camus, human beings today live in an age of recognized absurdity. As previously noted, Lyotard referred to the present historical moment as postmodern; but whether one refers to this moment as postmodern or absurd, it is definitely a moment defined by contradiction and by the contention of the narrative and virtue structures of the past. This study begins with three specific ways in which Camus can be considered a philosopher of communication for an age of absurdity (Sleasman, “Albert Camus”). Living in such a time, one can be greatly informed by the passionate voices of those who have navigated similar circumstances; it is fitting that as Camus sought to make sense of his own historical moment, he drew upon the work of many who had preceded him. Among those he sought out were Dostoevsky, Kafka, Kierkegaard, and Nietzsche. Many voices from such moments in human history provide firsthand insights into how to navigate such an absurd time; these thinkers approached life with radically different agendas from those of their contemporaries while living through their own eras of uncertainty and contradiction. His effort at building upon the voices of the past is one characteristic of Camus as a philosopher of communication for an age of absurdity (Sleasman, “Albert Camus”).
Living in an absurd historical moment challenges one to steer clear of implementing a template from a past narrative in the contemporary, and often very different, narrative structure. It is not uncommon to find many people in today’s American culture who become overly concerned with convenience and finding a “quick fix,” unwilling to take the time to find an appropriate and ethical response to everyday situations. What the life and writing of Camus suggest is not that the world should always be viewed through the lens of the metaphor of the absurd but that one should allow space for the emergence of metaphors that help make sense of the moment one is living.
Camus recognized the absurdity of his own historical moment and sought out voices that helped him make sense of that moment. Arnett and Arneson wrote, “applying concepts [metaphors] from a historical