Marcel: The playwright philosopher

Renascence, Spring 2003 by Hanley, Katharine Rose

The question of what constitutes an authentic human existence we see explored in Le Coeur des Autres (The Rebellious Heart), Le Quatuor en Fa dieze (Quartet in F#), and Un Homme de Dieu (A Man of God), where people at first envision an authentic fulfilling life in terms of a profession as writer, composer, or pastor, only to tragically discover that authenticity requires more than "role playing."18 Marcel proposes that living authentically occurs in discovering one's true self by living one's interpersonal commitments humbly and generously in the light of truth.

These notions are further explored in The Broken World and examined philosophically in the metaphysical journal, Being and Having (1928-1933),19 and "Concrete Approaches to Investigating the Ontological Mystery." The latter poses the question: "Who am I? - Is Life Empty or Full?" and declares that the answer depends upon whether an individual lives life in terms of "Having" or in terms of one's personal participation in "Being."

He elaborates this notion in relation to three regions and modes of being: the realm of objects or things, the realm of persons or subjectivity and the realm of transcendence or the ultimate horizon of being. Things may be "had" as possessions collected, that remain outside oneself and are in danger of being stolen or overshadowed by the larger collections of others. By contrast, things may be participated in as extensions of one's incarnate being - as a guitar, car, or skis may be participated in with wonder and admiration as presences that enrich, uplift, and inspire one's very being; for example, nature's mountains, sunsets, and lakes, El Greco's studio in Toledo, etc.

In the region of subjects, Marcel says that it is possible to relate to people as things, mere pawns or objects to use, buy, or sell, but this demeans all parties involved. I-Thou relations are properly constituted by a respectful dialogue of freedoms. One relates to the other as another I, not a thing, or a third person - he, she, it - or a stereotype or caricature. One person invites the other to be with and for him or her, and the other may freely respond yes, no, or maybe some other time. If one responds freely to be with and for another, in spirit as well as in some form of incarnate cooperation, then there is the gratuitous and reciprocal gift of co-presence or a "being with and for one another."

Marcel inquires finally how one encounters and relates to transcendence; something that is neither a physical object nor present like a subject who is also a physical object. He observes that transcendence can be encountered by way of inwardness and depth as the transcendent-immanent source ground of one's being, or transcendence can be encountered as the transcendent-immanent source ground manifest in and through others' personal acts. Marcel develops this notion more fully throughout subsequent works, identifying the transcendent as an absolute thou, the ground source of one's personalizing acts of hope, fidelity, creativity and love, and as being one's ultimate recourse.20