Existential Media

Tied to the profundity of life and death, media are and have always been existential. Yet, as they are deeply embedded in the lifeworld on both individual and global scales, they currently capitalize on human existence seemingly without limit, while being mythologized as boundless harbingers of the future and as solutions to the predicaments of a world now poised on the edge. In this situation it is imperative to move beyond either the habitual or the sublime, to recognize that media are in fact of limits--situated both in the middle of our lives and at the limit they constitute the building blocks and brinks of being. In order to remedy the existential deficit in the field, in Existential Media Amanda Lagerkvist revisits existential philosophy through a reappreciation of Karl Jaspers' philosophy, and of his concept of the limit situation: those ultimate moments in life--of loss, crisis and guilt--which we are called upon to seize. Introducing the field of existential media studies in conversation with disability studies, the new materialism and the environmental humanities, the book offers a media theory of the limit situation which brings limits, in all their shapes and forms, onto the radar when we interrogate media. Lagerkvist argues that the present age of deep techno-cultural saturation, and of escalating calamitous and interrelated crises, is a digital limit situation, in which there are profound stakes which heighten existential uncertainty, vulnerability as well as potential fecundity. Placing the mourner--the coexister--at the center of media studies, by entering into the slow fields of mourning, commemorating and speaking to the dead in the online environment, she brings out that existential media ambivalently offer metric parameters, caring lifelines and transcendent experiences which ultimately display post-interactive modes of being digital in slowness, silence and waiting. The book ultimately calls forth a different ethos which powerfully challenges ideals of limitlessness, quantification and speed, and seeks out alternate intellectual and ethical coordinates for reclaiming, imagining and anticipating a responsible future with existential media.

This book explores contemporary existential science fiction media, including film, television, and video games, and their influence on society’s conceptions of memory, identity, and humanity. Most poignantly, Ryan Lizardi argues, are the ways in which a recent cluster of science fiction media, including Gravity (2013), Interstellar (2014), Legion (2017-2019), Westworld (2016-present), Soma (2015), and Death Standing (2019), among others, present a vision of the future that is inextricably tied to an exploration of humanity that is more contemplative and comparative than traditional science fiction. The combination of the existential nature of this current trend in science fiction with the genre’s ability to manifest these abstract concepts in a generic environment that is historically focused on new frontiers and ideas creates a powerful set of media texts that ask audiences to contemplate what it means to exist, think, and connect as human beings. Scholars of media studies, film studies, television studies, genre studies, and philosophy will find this book particularly useful.

Existential semiotics involves an a priori state of signs and their fixation into objective entities. These essays define this new philosophical field.

Throughout life, a person may encounter many questions without having the time to watch and contemplate, to wonder what everything means to them personally.What did I ask for, other than gentle moments of existence, in which I could devote myself to the silence within me, and debate my spirit over real decisions on real issues?For what is the common alternative?To nullify my existence in blind devotion to the choices of the many, who would dictate my way of life, though I had never asked for their advice? Such a choice would be an insult.I then figured that there must be another way to live, before that predetermined script which some are so quick to carve into the spirits of young people.Harsh words of this kind have burst out of me, a defensive storm protecting me from the possible insult of being a leaf, blowing in the wind without any hold or internal decision.That is why I decided to hold an internal discourse with my spirit, over all those great questions which have always haunted my mind, without letting external voices be a determining factor.Moreover, I sought to have a discussion with the old man I will become - to find an appropriate partner for these intimate conversations, so rare in the freezing reality. Such quiet conversations, where thoughts come up uncensored, are at times a worthy reason to still live. To still be human.

In Existential Therapy: Responses to Frequently Asked Questions, the authors address those questions most frequently asked by potential clients of existential therapy or by people beginning their training or by those interested in counselling or psychotherapy. The book is divided into five parts, with each focusing on responding to questions about different elements of existential theory and its practice and applications: Part 1: Existential philosophy Part 2: Existential method and theory Part 3: Existential skills and practice Part 4: Existential applications in different contexts Part 5: Existential relevance to everyday life The Q&A format, presented in accessible language, emphasises commonly unknown or misunderstood areas that are typically overlooked. The book will appeal to a wide audience of potential clients and trainees, practitioners from other approaches, and those outside of the profession who are curious to understand more about existential therapy.

The Existential Leader: An Authentic Leader For Our Uncertain Times invites us to reconsider our preconceptions about leadership, introducing a new model more in line with our uncertain times: existential leadership. Monica Hanaway presents an illuminating overview of existential thinking and describes how an understanding of philosophy can improve leadership, drawing on existing leadership theories to show how this new model is more fitting for the challenges of today. The approach is primarily philosophical, rather than systemic or behavioural. It invites us to re-examine what we think about leaders, whether we really need leaders at all, and, if so, which existential concerns leaders must address. The book offers an introduction to the development of existential thinking and main concerns, including meaningfulness, anxiety, loneliness, freedom, choice and responsibility, authenticity, and values and beliefs. These are explored in the leadership context, with practical approaches for using these in everyday leadership dilemmas. Unique and accessible, The Existential Leader paves a way for modern leadership perfectly suited to the challenging times we live in. Innovative, theoretical and applicable to our changing world landscape, this book will appeal to coaches, HR and L&D professionals, executives, business consultants, and current and future leaders. It will also be of interest to academics and students of coaching psychology, applied philosophy and psychology.

Trends of the last few years, including global health crises, political division, and the ongoing threat to social-environmental survival, have been continually obscured by disinformation and misinformation and therefore created a need for stronger global technological media policy. It is no longer acceptable or moral to support a global communication network based only on market factors and propaganda. The Handbook of Research on Global Media’s Preternatural Influence on Global Technological Singularity, Culture, and Government views preternatural healing of the media-sphere from a variety of perspectives on the dynamic of heart-coherent entertainment. Specifically, it addresses the subject of a healthy media from a variety of fractal perspectives. Covering topics such as collective unconscious, mediated reality, and government media trust, this major reference work is an essential resource for librarians, media specialists, media analysts, sociologists, government employees, communications specialists, psychologists, researchers, educators, academicians, and students.

The articles collected in the present volume were written during a period of more than 30 years, the ?rst having been published in 1929, the last in 1961. They are arranged here in a systematic, not a chronological, order, starting from a few articles mainly concerned with psychological m- ters and then passing on to phenomenology in the proper sense. Within the latter group, the sequence is from articles dealing with more g- eral questions of principle to those in which rather special questions are discussed. The articles are reprinted or translated unchanged except for “phenomenology of Thematics and of the Pure Ego,” in which a certain number of pages have been omitted because the author has long since come to consider them erroneous. Almost all of the articles are in the service of Husserlian phenomen- ogy, which they are intended to advance and to develop further rather than merely expound. When the author made his ?rst acquaintance with Husserl’s philosophy about 40 years ago, he was overwhelmed by the spirit of uncompromising integrity and radical philosophical respon- bility, by the total devotedness which made the man disappear behind his work. Soon the young beginner came to realize the fruitfulness both of what Husserl had actually accomplished and of what he had initiated, the promise of further fruitful work.