It seems that the meaning of human nature varies among existentialist philosophers. As a whole, however, existentialism can be characterized as a philosophy that searches for the essential self, or the essential human condition. In this paper, the views of two existentialists will be discussed with the view of human nature.
             Soren Kierkegaard asked himself the question, "What is the human being?" His answer was, "a human being is spirit. But what is spirit? Spirit is the self. But what is the self? The self is a relation that relates to itself. Then, who is it that establishes such a relation? It must be a third party, a reality other than one's own self-and that reality is none other than God Himself according to Kierkegaard. Therefore, the original self is the self that stands before God, Kierkegaard concluded.
             Kierkegaard criticized crowds for their irresponsibility and their lack of conscience, he asserted that, in order for people to actualize their true human nature, they must depart from the world of the public and stand before God all by themselves each as an individual. He explained the stages through which people return to their original selves in terms of three stages of existence.
             The first stage is the stage of "aesthetic existence." Persons in this stage simply follow their sensual desires exactly as they are and live just as they please. The purpose of this kind of life is pleasure. The position of someone in the aesthetic existence is that of a seducer, a pursuer of erotic love. But since the moment of pleasure is not something that can be maintained continuously, persons in the aesthetic stage are trapped by fatigue and dread. They become frustrated and fall into despair-but through making a decision, they can proceed to the next stage.
             The second stage is that of "ethical existence." Persons of this stage seek to live according to their conscience, with good and evil as standards of judgment. They seek to liv...