Short editorial introduction

Transcendence and transgression

Ronnie Lippens

James Hardie-Bick

pp. 347-349

in: Ronnie Lippens, James Hardie-Bick (eds), Transcendence and transgression, Human Studies 35 (3), 2012.

Abstract

Transcendence, the condition of being that is outside or beyond, is an essential characteristic of Sartre’s philosophy. In Being and Nothingness (1943) Sartre makes an important distinction between being-in-itself and being-for-itself. Being-in-itself refers to being that simply is what it is and refers to all non-conscious being that can be defined by its essence. It exists independently in-itself. The other type of being posited by Sartre, being-for-itself, describes self-conscious beings that are distanced from being in their unique ability to question their own existence. Unlike being-in-itself, being-for-itself has no fixed or essential essence to determine its character.

Cited authors

Sartre Jean-Paul