The ethics of ambiguity: Simone de Beauvoir and existentialism

Existentialism is a philosophy that deals with human subjectivity and freedom of existence. Ethics, on the other hand, presents laws to man outside his own existence. Thus, it is very difficult to consider ethics and existentialism together. It is also accepted by Beauvoir that existential ontology does not allow an ethics. However, Beauvoir succeeds in establishing an existential ethic with notions such as the human world and the want freedom. According to Beauvoir's ethics, the will to freedom is not a notion without content. Someone who wants their freedom must also respect the freedom of others. Because the will to freedom and the liberation movement are the same thing. Only then will the liberation movement be realized. Beauvoir thinks that ethics that do not come out of existentialism fail to explain human reality. According to Beauvoir, an ethics based on abstract laws ignores the ambiguity of existence. An ethics that takes into account the ambiguity of existence can only emerge from existentialism. Therefore, she establishes her own ethics as a theory of action that is not based on abstract laws. In this thesis, it is tried to explain how Beauvoir brings together existentialism and ethics. At the same time, it was questioned whether this ethics should be classified as a unique type of ethics or under other types of ethics. Thus, it is aimed to understand what Beauvoir's ethics is and to explain his position in ethics types.