Why are we alive? Who am I? What’s the point of anything? If you have ever found yourself staring at the ceiling at 3 am considering these questions, welcome to the world of existentialism. Humans have been trying to find some semblance of life’s meaning for millennia, and novelists are no exception. Existentialism began as a philosophical school of thought in the 19th century, although the questions asked have likely been debated since the beginning of time. Many of the authors on this list are considered philosophers in their own right, and so their literary work tends to create more questions than answers.
I don’t want to lull you into any false pretense. While these novels do a great job of exploring the idea of life’s purpose, they may do little to help quell your own inner anxieties. The very nature of existentialism is that we embark on our own path of meaning. However, what you may achieve is a sense of; I am not alone on the road.
The Trial by Franz Kafka
Josef K is a wanted man, and while working his 9 to 5 job as a bank cashier, he is arrested. By whom and for what, are questions Josef and the reader will be asking for the entire story. Throughout the novel, Josef experiences a strange and often harsh judicial system, which is more apparent because of his, and often the readers, confusion about why he has been put on trial in the first place. Amongst many other things, Kafka’s novel explores the power and purpose of bureaucracy.
Pages: 206 Where to buy? Waterstones
Nausea by Jean-Paul Sartre
Antonie, the novel’s protagonist, is a historian writing and living in a small seaside town. Estranged from his family and with little intimate relationships, he spends time eavesdropping on stranger’s conversations and silently judging from afar. However, when he does interact with others, he feels a sense of nausea and boredom, which makes him question his relevance in the world. What the novel really asks is if meaning comes from the internal self or the external environment. Want to exasperate your relatives at the next family function? Explain Satire’s philosophical theory on existentialism in Nausea.
Pages: 240 Where to buy? Waterstones
The Mandarins by Simone de Beauvoir
Awarded the Prix Goncourt in 1954, The Mandarins is a novel set after the second world war. It follows a group of French intellectuals who try to discern the political landscape of post-war Parisian society, as well as their own complex relationships with each other. How do we, as a social collective, move forward after such destruction? How does this affect our ability to fall in love or raise a family? Beauvoir is extraordinary in her ability to provoke important and timeless questions about humanity.
Pages: 752 Where to buy? Blackwell's
Waiting for Godot by Samuel Beckett
Beckett famously quoted “You’re on earth, there’s no cure for that.” And this world view is reflected in his tragicomedy masterpiece Waiting for Godot.
This story centers on our two protagonists, Vladimir and Estragon, who spend most of the play engaging in absurd conversations while waiting for the ambiguous character Godot. The play asks us questions about what place God has in our world, the point of life, and how we eventually face death. Its absurdist style is meant to reflect our own absurd existence. But the real magic of this literary work is that it’s entertaining and intriguing without any reliance on plot or character development.
Pages: 96
Where to buy? Foyles
The Stranger by Albert Camus
Meursault, the story’s protagonist, learns about the death of his mother in the novel’s opening. After being unable to express any emotions, much to other’s disapproval, he acts out violently towards another, which eventually leads to his perceived downfall. Meursault’s reaction to death begs the question: is there a right way to grieve? Although Camus rejected the label of existentialism, it hasn’t stopped the canon labeling it as so.
Pages: 98 Where to buy? Waterstones
Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep by Phillip K Dick
This novel takes place in a post-apocalyptic world where outdated androids are hunted down by human bounty hunters. One such is Rick Deckard; he spends the novel pursuing cleverly designed androids that look and act just like humans. So what is the difference between them and us? The novel investigates the question of what makes us human and our intrinsic fear of ‘other’.
Pages: 208 Where to buy? Waterstones
Lila by Marilynne Robinson
Lila is the star of this story, she’s a spirited, uneducated drifter who one day finds herself sheltered in a church from the rain. Her shelter is also occupied by the local pastor, with whom she falls in love with. However, her past experience on the road and present biblical environment muddy together, creating an interesting dialogue about life’s parallels. This is the third novel in Robinson’s trilogy, all of which discuss our relationship with faith.
Pages: 272 Where to buy? Foyles