Title: The Myth of Sisyphus
Author: Albert Camus
First published January 1, 1942
192 pages, Paperback
ISBN: 9780141182001 (ISBN10: 0141182008)
Rating: 4.18
Overview
In the face of financial crises, experts have always claimed that “this time is different.” However, Carmen Reinhart and Kenneth Rogoff’s groundbreaking study proves that financial crises are universal and follow a consistent pattern. Covering sixty-six countries across five continents, This Time Is Different explores the varieties of financial crises that have occurred over eight centuries – from medieval currency debasements to today’s subprime catastrophe.
Reinhart and Rogoff use clear analysis and comprehensive data to show how financial fallouts occur in clusters and with surprising consistency. They examine patterns of currency crashes, high inflation, and government defaults, as well as cycles in housing and equity prices, capital flows, unemployment, and government revenues.
While countries do weather financial storms, Reinhart and Rogoff argue that short memories make it all too easy for crises to recur. This important book exposes centuries of financial missteps and will impact policy discussions for a long time to come.
About the Author
Albert Camus, a French writer born in Algeria in 1913, was a significant figure in non-metropolitan French literature. His early years were spent in intellectual circles with revolutionary tendencies and a deep interest in philosophy.
Although chance prevented him from pursuing a university career in philosophy, he moved to France at the age of 25 and joined the resistance movement during the occupation. After the liberation, he became a columnist for the newspaper Combat, but he retired from political journalism in 1947 to focus on his fiction and essays.
Camus was also active in the theatre, producing and writing plays such as Caligula (1944) and adapting works by Calderon, Lope de Vega, Dino Buzzati, and Faulkner’s Requiem for a Nun.
Camus’s essay, The Myth of Sisyphus (1942), expounds his notion of the absurd and its acceptance with “the total absence of hope, which has nothing to do with despair, a continual refusal, which must not be confused with renouncement – and a conscious dissatisfaction”. His novel, The Stranger (1942), features the central character, Meursault, as the nauseated victim of the absurd orthodoxy of habit who is later tempted by despair, hope, and salvation when facing execution.
In La Peste (The Plague) (1947), Dr. Rieux tirelessly attends the plague-stricken citizens of Oran, enacting the revolt against a world of the absurd and injustice, and confirming Camus’s words: “We refuse to despair of mankind. Without having the unreasonable ambition to save men, we still want to serve them”.
Camus’s other notable works include The Fall (1956) and Exile and the Kingdom (1957).
Camus’s search for moral order found its aesthetic correlative in the classicism of his art. He was a stylist of great purity, intense concentration, and rationality.
Camus was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1959, but he tragically died in a car accident near Sens, in Le Grand Fossard in the small town of Villeblevin on 4 January 1960, at the age of 46.
Editoral Review
The Myth of Sisyphus, written by the French philosopher and author Albert Camus and first published in 1942, is a classic philosophical treatise that explores the concept of the absurd and the meaning of life. Camus was a leading figure in the existentialist movement, and his work is known for its stark portrayal of the human condition in a world that is inherently meaningless.
In The Myth of Sisyphus, Camus starts with a retelling of the Greek myth of Sisyphus, who was condemned by the gods to push a boulder up a hill only to watch it roll back down, ad infinitum. Camus uses this story as a metaphor for the human struggle to find meaning in life, arguing that despite the inherent absurdity and futility of our existence, we must still try to live authentically and find our own sense of purpose.
The book is divided into four chapters, each of which explores a different aspect of the absurd. The first chapter, “An Absurd Reasoning,” lays out the basic premise of the book and introduces Camus’s concept of the absurd.
The second chapter, “The Absurd Man,” explores the role of the individual in the absurd universe, and the third chapter, “Absurd Creation,” looks at the relationship between the artist and the absurd. The final chapter, “The Myth of Sisyphus,” returns to the central motif of the boulder and offers a resolution to the problem of the absurd.
Camus’s writing style is clear and direct, and his arguments are presented with a compelling clarity. He draws on a wide range of philosophical traditions, from the Greeks to Kierkegaard to Sartre, and synthesizes their insights into a coherent and insightful whole.
The book is accessible to both beginners and seasoned philosophers alike, and it remains a classic of existentialist literature. One of the strengths of The Myth of Sisyphus is its relevance to contemporary issues.
Camus’s exploration of the absurd has particular resonance in a world that often feels chaotic and meaningless. His emphasis on the importance of personal authenticity and freedom, as well as his rejection of religious and political dogma, speaks to the challenges of the modern world.
That said, some readers may find the book to be overly abstract or dense at times. Camus’s reliance on philosophical jargon can be off-putting to some, and his argument can sometimes feel circular or self-referential.
Additionally, his comfortable use of gendered language may detract from the overall accessibility of the book. Overall, however, The Myth of Sisyphus is a landmark work of existentialist thought that continues to resonate with readers today.
Its exploration of the absurd, and the lessons it draws from this concept, make it a valuable addition to any reader’s philosophical library. On a scale of 1-10, The Myth of Sisyphus receives a rating of 8 for its insightful exploration of the human condition and its ability to inspire reflection on life’s big questions.
