Detailed Study Notes on "A Náusea" and the Role of Music

Introduction

• The objective of the study:
  • Analyze and discuss the role of music in Jean-Paul Sartre's novel "Nausea."
  • Focus on the presentation of contingency and the effect of music on the character Antoine Roquentin.
  • Highlight the temporary subjugation of contingency through music as a means of salvation.
• Keywords:
  • Sartre, Nausea, Contingency, Absurd, Music.

Initial Context

• The recurring presence of the song "Some of These Days" in "Nausea":
  • Acts as a nearly mystical experience against the malaise felt by the hero, Antoine Roquentin.
• Importance of music in Sartre's perspectives:
  • Acknowledged by biographical accounts, including Simone de Beauvoir's writings.
  • Notably in "I Discovered Jazz in America" and the prefatory notes to René Leibowitz's work published in 1964.
• Distinction of analysis:
  • The study does not aim to be ethnomusicological or philosophical about music but rather phenomenological.
  • The central question explored:
  • Can music truly subjugate contingency?

Antoine Roquentin's Nauseating Journey

• Fundamental premise of "Nausea":
  • Human existence is absolute contingency and absurdity, devoid of any inherent meaning.
• Roquentin's progressive experiences:
  • Change his relationship with the world, others, and objects, leading to a revelation of existential contingency.
• Quote from Bornheim:
  • "…an ontological experience whose consequences extend beyond human existence and certainly beyond individual lives."
• Transformation through Nausea:
  • Roquentin feels a shift in perception regarding ordinary objects.
  • Example phrases from Sartre:
  • His changed manner in holding everyday items indicates a metamorphosis in his understanding of existence.

The Nature of Objects and Narratives

• The concept of metamorphosis and the instability of existence:
  • Trust in the nature of things diminishes.
  • Encountering the bizarre and unpredictable alters Roquentin's understanding of stability.
• Connection to Roquentin's biographical task:
  • Initially, writing a biography gives a sense of purpose, but ultimately reveals the lack of necessity in life's events.
• Assertion of narrative falsifying life experiences:
  • Sartre's view, as voiced by Roquentin, reflects the shattered connections between life events and meaning.

Transition of Understanding

• Roquentin's recognition of life’s disjointedness:
  • Life consists of atomized, homogenous acts that do not justify one event over another.
  • Reflections on the implications of time's passage without meaningful connections.
• The ultimate realization:
  • Life lacks the stringency of a narrative, and adherence to creating meaning through events is ultimately futile.

Nausea as a Condensed Experience of Existence

• The emergence of the term "Absurdo" within his writing:
  • The absurdity becomes a profound realization tied closely to his being.
  • Roquentin identifies completely with Nausea, suggesting a deep entanglement with existential feeling.
• The effect of Nausea on his perception:
  • The dissolution of meaning in words and the overwhelming presence of "things."

Music as a Temporary Salvation

• Role of "Some of These Days":
  • Offers moments of relief, a temporary suspension from the absurdity of existence.
• Aesthetic experience:
  • Roquentin finds familiarity and a sense of order through the rhythm and structure of jazz music.
• Quotations illustrating Roquentin's experience with jazz:
  • Sartre vividly details moments of being lost in music, highlighting how it momentarily banishes the sense of Nausea.

The Illusion of Order Through Musical Experience

• Temporary illusion of coherence through music:
  • The celebration of structure and rhythm allows Roquentin to escape from the absurdity, albeit briefly.
• Description of the discontinuity when the music ceases:
  • The return to the familiar instability of existence and the ever-present contingency.

Final Thoughts on Music and Existentialism

• Music as a potential escape from absurdity:
  • While music offers temporary refuge, it does not eliminate the underlying realities of contingency.
• Sartre's perspective on salvation through art:
  • Suggests that true salvation stems from recognizing absolute contingency and taking responsibility for one's existence.
• Concluding reflections:
  • The query of whether the experience of salvation through art is feasible remains unanswered.
  • Art, including music, serves as a reflection of the human condition, revealing the tension between the desire for meaning and the pervasive absurdity of existence.

References

• Extensive citations of works by:
  • Sartre (2011), Noudelmann (2012), Silva (2004), and others discussing the existential themes in Sartre's works and the implications of jazz in relation to Sartrean philosophy.