The Imaginary

About this book

First published in 1940 Sartres The Imaginary is a cornerstone of his philosophy. Sartre had become acquainted with the philosophy of Edmund Husserl in Berlin and was fascinated by his idea of the intentionality of consciousness as a key to the puzzle of existence. Against this background The Imaginary crystallized Sartres worldview and artistic vision. Here he presented the first extended examination of the concepts of nothingness and freedom both of which are derived from the ability of consciousness to imagine objects both as they are and as they are not. These ideas would drive Sartres existentialism and his entire theory of human freedom laying the foundation for his masterwork Being and Nothingness three years later. This new translation by Jonathan Webber rectifies flaws in the terminology of the first translation and recaptures the essence of Sartres phenomenology. Webbers perceptive new introduction helps to decipher this challenging seminal work placing it in the context of the authors work and the history of philosophy.