existentialism
- n (philosophy) a 20th-century philosophical movement chiefly in Europe; assumes that people are entirely free and thus responsible for what they make of themselves
- When existentialism first became the rage in Paris, she was a slinky creature with a dubious reputation.
- The first was the Flore (1865), celebrated as the headquarters of existentialism.
- The aftermath of World War II spawned no identifiable Lost Generation, but it did bring a word for intellectuals to play with: existentialism.