Session 4: Gabriel Marcel on Technology and the Mystery of Being Present
One of the most significant religious existentialists, the French philosopher
Gabriel Marcel argues that humanity is now at the mercy of its technology:
we serve what is supposed to serve us. This session will examine why he
believes that we fall into the trap of technology and how we should open
ourselves to a great mystery: the mystery of being present to ourselves, the
people around us, our creativity, and existence itself.
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On this Series: Existentialism, one of the most engaging and important philosophical
movements of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, has special
relevance for the twenty-first century. Its central concerns include dealing
with anxiety, preserving humanity in the face of powerful technologies, and
figuring out how to be free in a messy world. Join the award-winning
philosopher and author Scott Samuelson for any or all of four
sessions—each a lecture with a discussion period afterward—on key
existentialist philosophers and how they can guide us to live more
authentically.