The Myth of Sisyphus

13.50

Title: The Legend of Sisyphus

Author: Albert Camus

Translator: Mahmoud Soltanieh

Publisher: Jami

Subject: French articles

Age category: Adult

Cover: Paperback

Number of pages: 160 p

Language Farsi

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Description

The Myth of Sisyphus is considered the most important philosophical work of Albert Camus. In this article, he writes about his philosophical thoughts and ideologies about emptiness, meaninglessness, and how to deal with them. According to Camus, suicide is the most serious issue of philosophy, and in fact it is the answer to the question of whether life is worth living. The dichotomy between life and suicide is the theme of some of Camus’s works known as the Trilogy of Absurdity: “The Alien” in the novel, “Caligula” in the form of a play and the myth of Sisyphus, which reflects Camus’ views on emptiness and meaning.

The Book of the Legend of Sisyphus
Feelings of emptiness are pervasive in today’s world. Was it worth it as soon as we reach one of the goals for which we have worked so hard? Do we go to university, do we go to the landlord and the family, or do we go to our favorite job and say to ourselves, what next? These questions bother our souls and minds to such an extent that we become too short to continue living and suffer from a crisis of futility and a sense of emptiness. What is the way out of this situation? How can we get rid of emptiness and find the true meaning of life? Albert Camus is one of the thinkers who thought about these questions and gave his answers to his readers in the book Myth of Sisyphus.

Summary of the book The Legend of Sisyphus
Camus’s concern with the myth of Sisyphus is that if life is not worth living, then the only way for man is to end it. But if life is worth experiencing, then there is no need to commit suicide.

In this book, Camus describes his views on absurdity and meaninglessness. He believes that the main need and desire of humanity throughout history has been to seek the meaning of life. All literary and philosophical works also show the search of writers and thinkers for the meaning of life.
In the myth of Sisyphus, Camus describes the lack of value and meaning in the life of Western man and his inability to believe in God. Hence, he looks with skepticism at all the religious and philosophical narratives before him and his time, and becomes a Marxist critic who was one of the common tendencies of his time. In his view, the Marxist is no more than a myth trying to replace Christianity; While by creating a rupture from the meaningful roots to human life, it will act inefficiently and fruitlessly.

Camus’s approach to nihilism
In the absurdity triangle, Camus examines the problem of absurdity from different angles. Facing bitter truths and writing about them is one of the strengths of these works. The description of the concept of emptiness in literature is credited to Camus. In his view, emptiness arises from the confrontation of human desire to create order and meaning with an incompatible world. Camus describes the consequences of this confrontation with various characters in his works. The protagonist of the play “Caligula” is a madman who tries to end his absurd life and take the world around him with him along the way. The narrator of the novel “Alien” comes to his senses after committing a futile crime. He realizes that he has lived his whole life in neglect, and finally consciously accepts his destiny, which has gone to waste. Sisyphus also desperately repeats futile work every day, without having any other choice.

Camus has three answers for facing emptiness. The first and simplest option is suicide. For Camus, this is a solution of denial and a kind of weakness. The second solution is to take refuge in religion and alleviate the feeling of meaninglessness with it. He calls this a kind of philosophical suicide. The third solution and Camus’s suggestion to his readers is to accept the concept of emptiness.
He is more looking for ways to make life more meaningful than making it useless. Camus’s answer to the question of life and death in his works is to live without escaping it. Hope, along with resisting the absurdities of life and accepting its futility, allows a person to understand life with transparency and awareness of his condition and not to accept voluntary death. Sisyphus’s character in Camus’s quest is consciously confronted with a complex situation. He never gives up and every day, knowing the result of his efforts, he continues to work and does not give up his life.

Who was Sisyphus?
Sisyphus is a hero in Greek mythology who is sentenced to a terrible punishment for opposing the gods. He has to lift a large piece of rock every day, and every time he gets closer to his destination, the rock rolls and returns to the beginning of the path. The legend of Sisyphus is a symbol of emptiness and futility. In his book, Camus praises Sisyphus. The mockery of the gods and Sisyphus’ desire for life is a response to the futility of life. He faces the truth with courage without escaping his fate. Sisyphus, despite feeling tired and lonely, proves to be stronger than stone. Sisyphus gives the answer to emptiness by living with full awareness of its bitterness.

“Happiness and emptiness are both children of one mother, this world,” Camus denies suicide. They are inseparable. This does not mean that the discovery of emptiness will necessarily lead to happiness, but the appreciation of emptiness leads us to acknowledge the weakness and instability of humanity, to become aware of its limitations, and, most importantly, to accept the fact that we can not wish. Let the impossible become possible one day. “These are all signs of being alive.”

Take a look at the life and works of Albert Camus
Albert Camus Albert Camus (1990-1913) is an Algerian writer and philosopher who made important contributions to philosophy and literature. Camus was born into a working class family. He was young when his father was killed in the war. After graduating, he entered Al-Jazeera University to study philosophy, sociology and psychology. Camus, who wrote as a teenager, became world famous with the publication of “Alien” in 1942. Camus won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1957 for his writing on conscience, emptiness and alienation. Alienation was pervasive as a psychological problem after World War II.

“Plague”, “Misunderstanding”, “Fall”, “Rebel” and “Conquered” are some of Camus’ most important novels. It is possible to download the book of Sisyphus myth on this page.

Albert Camus writing style
The book Myth of Sisyphus contains four main chapters entitled The Absurd Argument, The Absurd Man, The Absurd Creation, and The Myth of Sisyphus. Camus used words succinctly and shortened speech. His simple, intimate expressions and melodic tone are the strengths of his works.

Camus’s works can be divided into three categories: his novels, his plays, and his notes. The legend of Sisyphus is written in the form of an essay. Essay is a literary, non-fiction style in which the author expresses his or her ideas and thoughts on a subject without the need to document or validate his or her words. In fact, research is a way to show the author’s personal thoughts and analysis.

A review of translations of the book The Myth of Sisyphus
Following the good fortune of Iranian readers in Albercamo’s works, his books have been published with numerous translations. Sisyphus’s book is one of the most famous and well-read works of Camus in Iran, which has been translated by various translators such as “Mohammad Ali Spanloo”, “Ali Sadoughi”, “Akbar Afsari”, “Mahmoud Soltanieh” and “Shahla Shariatmadari”. The Bahraini poet and translator Mahasti has translated many French works. He has a doctorate in Persian literature, which has enabled him to translate accurately from the source language to the destination with a mastery of the Persian language. “Bahraini” values ​​the author’s style and context and tries to reflect the author’s style during the translation. He believes that translation is like a work of art and considers the translator to be a trustee whose mission is to present the language as close as possible to the language of the author.

In a part of the book, we read the myth of Sisyphus
If you want, I must say that pure hearts can see the exact location of human and inhuman encounters everywhere. If Faust and Denkishot are eminent creators of art, it is for the infinite greatness that they show us with their earthly hands. However, there always comes a time when the human mind denies the truths that these groups can touch. The moment comes when creation is no longer involved in the tragic, but only in serious matters. Then one hopes and is entertained. But this is not his job. His job is to turn away from the tricks. Nevertheless, at the end of Kafka’s passionate lawsuit against the whole world, we meet him again. His incredible vote finally acquits the disgusting and sad world in which even blind mice turn to hope.

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