nothingness definition - Dictionary

Dictionary

noth·ing·ness [ núthingnəss ] (plural noth·ing·ness·es)

noun

Definition:

1. absence of everything: the absence of life, existence, and all discernible qualities

2. vacuum: space with nothing in it

3. complete worthlessness: complete worthlessness or insignificance

4. somebody or something completely worthless: somebody or something without any worth or significance

5. philosophy lack of apparent meaning: the condition of lacking any apparent meaning

Cultural Note


	Being and Nothingness, an extended essay (1943) by French philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre. The fullest expression of Sartre's existential philosophy, it suggests that humans can be distinguished from the simple being or "thing-ness" of objects and other creatures by their consciousness or "no-thingness." This awareness provides humans with their freedom, but it also leaves them searching for meaning in life.