| Sartre's Thoughts On Society
Although Sartre says very little
about society in itself, he does talk about certain elements in a society, in the form of
interpersonal relationships. The first one he talks about is shame. He tells us to imagine
that we have just made a vulgar gesture. This gesture in itself is not bad, but when we
realize that someone else has seen this gesture, we feel ashamed. This is one of the
interpersonal relationships that Sartre talks about. Sartre had a bit of a twisted view in
the 1940's, when he believed that our fate is to torment (and be tormented by) others with
whom we live. Sartre talks little about society in a whole, which is very surprising.
However, he does say that, "Every system of values rests on exploitation and
oppression; every system of values effectively negates exploitation and
oppression…every system of values, in so far as it is based on a social practice,
contributes directly or indirectly to establishing devices and apparatuses which, when the
time comes will allow this particular oppression and exploitation to be negated." |
