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Real generosity towards the future lies in giving all to the present.

Albert Camus, The Rebel, 1951

Philosophy

The story behind the card

From the final chapter of The Rebel (1951), Camus's long argument against political thinking that sacrifices living people for a promised future. He had in mind revolutionary movements, the Soviet system among them, that justified terror in the name of history. The book led to a bitter public break in 1952 with his friend Jean-Paul Sartre, who was far readier to defend revolutionary violence. For Camus, generosity towards the future means not killing or dying for it, but giving everything to the people and the work of today.

Türkçe oku
Geleceğe karşı gerçek cömertlik, her şeyi bugüne vermektir.
Albert Camus, Başkaldıran İnsan, 1951

Başkaldıran İnsan'ın (1951) son bölümünden. Camus bu kitapta, vaat edilen bir gelecek uğruna yaşayan insanları feda eden siyasi düşünceye karşı çıkar. Aklında, Sovyet düzeni de dahil, terörü tarih adına haklı gösteren devrimci hareketler vardı. Kitap, 1952'de yakın dostu Jean-Paul Sartre'la herkesin gözü önünde sert bir kopuşa yol açtı; Sartre devrimci şiddeti savunmaya çok daha hazırdı. Camus'ye göre geleceğe cömert davranmak, onun için öldürmek ya da ölmek değil, her şeyi bugünün insanlarına ve bugünün işine vermektir.

Sources and further reading

Background reading: Albert Camus
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