"Existential research is significant in terms of depth and knowledge. Existentialism is a philosophy that emphasizes each person's existence, freedom, responsibilities, and choices, which are lived and applied only in the present. The past is gone; it is a memory. Each memory, even of the same event, is unique to each person. Memories, of course, can be altered. Does that mean history can be altered? As a memory, yes."
"In terms of the future, the contention is that the future is no more than a continuous thought, where the use of the word future is applied as a descriptor.The only parts of time, space, and life where existence and essence are experienced and changed is in the present, the now of now, if you will (Landau, 2012; Sherman, 2006; Steger et al., 2008)."
"How do you know you are living in the present, or that it even exists? This question was put to René Descartes, who eventually declared: "I think, therefore I am," translated into English from the French and Latin. According to Descartes, this statement, beginning with "I think," proved he had the capacity to acknowledge his existence. "I think, therefore I self-reflect." "I think, therefore I perceive myself as well as the external world.""
Existentialism centers existence, freedom, responsibility, and choice as lived only in the present. The past exists as memory, which is subjective and malleable; identical events yield unique memories across individuals. Divergent personal or collective memories raise questions about the status of history as memory versus event. The future functions as a continuous mental projection and a descriptive label rather than an experiential locus. Existence and essence are enacted and transformed only in the present moment. Self-reflection confirms presence, as Descartes' formulation links thought to being and perception of self and the external world.
Read at Psychology Today
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