William Barrett- " Irrational Man: A Study in Existential Philosophy"

Irrational Man subtitled "A Study In Existential Philosophy" is an influential book by William Barrett published in 1958 which served to introduce existentialism to the English speaking world. His writing style is conversational, and he takes time to define terms and give the reader background on philosophical terms and concepts, so this book is aimed at a general reader curious about the topic.

Organization of the book

In the four parts of the book, Barrett explains in brief the philosophical tradition to which existentialism was a reaction, and then the main concepts of existential thought.

Part one – "The Present Age"

This part shows the impact that existentialism has had on culture even without being a widely known philosophical school of thought.

Part two – Sources of Existentialism

This part traces the development of philosophy (and is a good overview of the subject) as it pertains to being, ontology, and metaphysics. This serves to show the contrast between existentialist thought and other forms of philosophy.

Part three – The Existentialists

The four main philosophical thinkers are introduced, along with their primary thoughts and terminology.

1. Kierkegaard
2. Nietzsche
3. Heidegger
4. Sartre

The discussion of each philosopher serves as a road map for those seeking an entre into the primary works of each, which can be dense with unique terminology. (Particularly Heidegger and Sarte.) The material in each of these four sections summarizes the main points each philosopher contributed to existentialism. The reactions of one philosopher to another is also explored. (Again, particularly Heidegger and Sartre.) The philosophers are also situated in the larger history of philosophical investigations outside of existentialism itself.
Barrett concentrates on these main philosophers and avoids an in-depth discussion (although he does mention some) of the many of the existentialist artists, writers, etc.

Part four – Integral vs Rational Man

This last, short part applies existentialist thought to the world of the late 1950s, during the Cold War.


William Christopher Barrett (1913 – 1992)