Editing Absurdist fiction (section)

== Ideology ==
The term "absurd" has roots in the [[Latin]] "absurdus", meaning "contrary to reason" or "inharmonious".<ref>Gavins, J. (2013). The Literary Absurd. In Reading the Absurd (pp. 1-9). Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press.</ref> The term elaborates on the concept of the modern word corresponding to the identification of the irrational and incongruous nature of everyday life. The ideology and philosophy behind the absurdist fiction genre stems from [[nihilism]] and [[existentialism]] extracted from the 20th-century world. [[Søren Kierkegaard]] (1813–1855), known as the "father of existentialism", was a prolific Danish writer who opposed conventional boundaries of [[philosophy]], [[psychology]], [[theology]], [[fiction]] and [[literary criticism]].<ref>McDonald, W. Søren Kierkegaard, The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Winter 2017 Edition), Edward N. Zalta (ed.)</ref> Kierkegaard's philosophy contends with the plausibility of [[Christendom]], and inherently disputes the sense of purpose it prompts in personal life. The concept of the [[Absurdism|absurd]] was used by Kierkegaard to term the point in which faith becomes indefensible, yet valid for those who employ it, and it alone.<ref name="The Absurd beyond Modernism" /> Kierkegaard heavily influenced the work of [[Jean-Paul Sartre]] and [[Albert Camus]]. [[Existentialism]] as a philosophical approach or [[theory]] emphasises the single individual's [[existence]] and the concept of an individual as a free agent in determining their own meaning or purpose in life. On the other hand, [[nihilism]] is the recognition that life has no intrinsic meaning. Absurdist fiction in relation to [[existentialism]] expresses what happens when human existence has no meaning or purpose, therefore all communication breaks down. Eugène Ionesco's ''[[The Bald Soprano]]'' (1950) is an absurdist fiction text which emphasises in depth the notion of mankind's inability to communicate with each other. [[Friedrich Nietzsche]] (1844–1900) was a cultural critic, composer, poet, philologist, and a Latin and Greek egg scholar who also yielded profound inspiration in [[Western philosophy]] and modern intellectual history. Nietzsche is another primary influencer on the philosophy and ideology behind the absurd. His interest in nihilism, in particular his views on [[Christianity]] and [[God]], alludes to the traditions of the [[Western world]] in their reliance on religion as a "moral compass" and source of meaning.<ref name="Gordon, M.">Gordon, M. (2015). Camus, Nietzsche, and the Absurd: Rebellion and Scorn versus Humor and Laughter. Philosophy and Literature 39(2), 364-378.</ref> Nietzsche claimed that this dependence is now unviable, appearing in his novel ''[[The Gay Science]]'', published 1882, translated in 1974. The writings of Nietzsche influenced absurdist fiction in the influence on Sartre and Albert Camus. Particularly, Camus' understanding of nihilism was heavily motivated by the conception that Nietzsche put forth of life and death and the nihilistic perspectives of such.<ref name="Gordon, M." />

=== Absurdist fiction in novels ===
French writer [[Albert Camus]] is the novelist that most [[Literary criticism|literary critics]] date the concept of absurdist fiction to, with Camus' most famous novel, ''[[The Stranger (Camus novel)|L'Étranger]]'' (''The Stranger'', 1942), and his philosophical essay "[[The Myth of Sisyphus]]" (1942). The [[Bohemia]]n, German-speaking, [[Franz Kafka]] is another absurdist fiction novelist. Kafka's novel ''[[The Trial]]'' was published in 1925 after Kafka's death in 1924. Kafka's novel encompasses mankind's inability to engage in communication in a purposeless world.