What's up everyone?
Jared here.
A few months ago we got an email from a fan named Red requesting a video comparing the
portrayal of Nihilism in Rick and Morty and Bojack Horseman.
So we hit up our resident nihilism expert and sweatiest writer at Wisecrack, Michael
Burns, to take a stab at it.
And if you have requests too, be sure to subscribe and hit us up with ideas.
So thanks to Red, we’re going to give you a crash course in contemporary nihilism with
legendary lotharios Rick Sanchez and Bojack Horseman.
Welcome to this Wisecrack Edition: Nihilism with Bojack and Rick.
Many assume that nihilism simply means believing in nothing but it actually refers to a number
of philosophical, psychological, and ethical positions.
And while they all differ, these different flavors of nihilism all begin from the shared
premise that there is no inherent meaning, value, or order in life.
"Gentleman.
There's a solution here you're not seeing" Although Many an angsty edge-lord might get
a kick out of using nihilist catch phrases to show the world their heart of darkness.
In reality, most of these folks miss out on the complexity of nihilism.
Rather than a philosophy best embodied by Tyler Durden, nihilism can be the basis for
meaningful worldviews.
Today we are going to narrow our focus down to two different branches of nihilism: existential
nihilism, and cosmic nihilism (also known as cosmic pessimism).
To help us navigate the wonderful world of existential nihilism, we’ll be talking about
everyone’s favorite functionally alcoholic horse, Bojack Horseman.
And to provide insight into the cold rationality of cosmic nihilism, we’re turning to another
functional alcoholic, Rick Sanchez.
But don’t worry, even if you have a healthy relationship with alcohol, you’ll still
be able to figure out which nihilism is right for you.
Part 1: Existential Nihilism
Existential nihilism is the nihilism experienced when we realize that there is no inherent
meaning to our lives, and at its core, human existence is just a precarious dance upon
the grave.
It is up to us to create meaning in our lives through our own freedom and decisions.
We can have values, but we must create and sustain them.
And it’s this worldview which fuels Bojack Horseman.
“I’m responsible for my own happiness?
I can’t even be reponsible for my own breakfast.”
Before we get into the nihilist undercurrents of Bojack Horseman, let’s look back at the
history of nihilism.
The term nihilism was first coined at the end of the eighteenth century by German philosopher
Friedrich Jacobi in response to Enlightenment reason, which he worried would explain away
the conditions for religion.
This rationalist method explained away any spaces of uncertainty or mystery, rendering
everything there was knowable.
Sound familiar?
"Well, scientifically, traditions are an idiot thing."
One of the first philosophers to think through the implications of nihilism was Søren Kierkegaard,
who the New York Times has referred to as the “Danish Doctor of Dread.”
Although Kierkegaard never used the word existentialism, he’s regarded as one of the fathers of modern
existentialism.
And while Kierkegaard wasn’t known for the substance abuse typical for many nihilists,
he did pour so much sugar into his coffee that it piled up above the liquid, like an
iceberg warning of adult onset diabetes.
True story -- Which is insane.
And probably more dangerous than sipping scotch bfore you get out of bed.
Kierkegaard thought that despair was an essential part of the human experience, which he referred
to as the “sickness unto death”.
This human despair is dialectical, which basically means you are always at odds with yourself.
Or put differently, "I don't know how to be, Diane.
It doesn't get better and it doesn't get easier.
I can't keep lying to myself saying I'm going to change.
I'm poison."
For example, we’re either in despair because we think nothing is possible, "It happened
again.
Why do I keep thinking things will make me happy?
What is wrong with me?" or we despair because we think everything is possible and can’t
make a decision.
"What should I do?
Make a break for it... drive to Mexico...meet a local girl and fall in love...talk my way into a line job at a
textile plant...gradually work my way up until I own the place..nooo what am I talking about...
I can't run a textile plant that's way too much responsibility. OH what am I going to do?!
The walls are closing in!!!"
We are in despair about being who we are, "Am I just doomed to be who I am?
The person in that book?" or in despair because we can’t be who we think we are.
"All this time I assumed there was more to me than everyone thought, but maybe there
isn't."
This despair is the root of the melancholy that plagues much of the human experience,
the same melancholy we see in almost all of the characters of Bojack Horseman,
from Todd’s worries about his sexuality to Princess Caroline’s
anxieties about motherhood.
"Well how do we make it viable again?"
Except Mr. Peanutbutter. He seems fine.
And of course Bojack is a character that seems to have it all.
Successful acting career, beautiful home, money and women.
Yet he can’t seem to enjoy any of it.
And even when seemingly good things happen to him he manages to either feel disappointed
"You're an Oscar nominee, how do you feel?"
"I feel...I-I feel...the same."
or sabotage his own happiness.
“Just to be clear, since this morning, you ate all the muffins?”
“Yeah!
I ate them all in one sitting because I have no self control and I hate myself.”
No matter what decision he makes, he’s marked by regret, and no matter how well things work
out, Bojack is haunted by an unshakeable despair.
Kierkegaard describes this experience in his book Either/Or:
No matter what Bojack does, whether it’s virtuous or selfish, the stench of regret
follows.
"Look what I do to the people I'm supposed to care about. I had sex with the one person
I've ever seen you be in love with."
And for Kierkegaard, this isn’t an exception to the human condition, it is the very nature
of the human condition.
We see Bojack experiencing this type of deep self-doubt during an anxiety attack he has
in season four: “Idiot. What'd you do all day? Piece of s**t.”
For Kierkegaard, anxiety is caused by the uncertainty that lies beneath every decision.
And he considers anxiety one of the ways we experience freedom.
Because we’re free, we’re responsible for our own decisions, and the weight of these
decisions leads to anxiety.
Kierkegaard describes this anxiety as standing at the edge of an abyss:
And this terrifying freedom means we can literally do anything, including botched suicide attempts
via yellow convertible.
For Kierkegaard the only way to work through this anxiety and despair is the acceptance
of the comic absurdity of reality, and living one’s life by faith.
But if you’re not keen to use religion to combat meaningless, don’t worry, Kierkegaard
thinks that faith is simply the courage to attempt a meaningful existence in the face
of a meaningless world.
“Sometimes, you need to take responsibility for your own happiness.”
We see this at the conclusion of Season Four.
While nothing drastic has changed, Bojack has accepted the complexity of his relationship
with his mother
"BoJack?"
"Mom?"
"B-BoJack? Is that you?"
"Yeah...it's me."
and has decided to find meaning in his new little sister, Hollyhock.
Almost a hundred years after Kierkegaard collapsed in the street and died, a French philosopher
named Jean-Paul Sartre picked up the mantle and developed the first explicitly existentialist
philosophy.
And in a move that both Rick and BoJack would love, Sartre had many of his philosophical
insights while drinking at bars in Paris.
While BoJack himself isn’t a fan, “I stand by my critique of Sartre.”
Sartre argued that existentialism is a way to respond to the meaningless of the universe
by creating meaning ourselves.
So while there is no ethical value to be found in the world, nor a God to take comfort in,
humans can create meaning through our own lives.
There may be no cure to despair and anxiety, but we can at least try to make our lives
meaningful.
However, it's important to remember that while existential nihilism offers us the possibility
of a meaningful life, it guarantees us nothing, and it’s our responsibility to constantly
create meaning.
As Kierkegaard said, we must live forward and understand backwards.
“Closure is a made up thing by steven spielberg to sell movie tickets.
Like true love and the munich olympics doesn’t exist in the real world.
The only thing to do now is just to keep living forward.”
Part 2: Cosmic Nihilism (or, Pessimism)
Now that we’ve seen the ways in which existential nihilism manages to offer some meaning and
hope, let’s look at the less optimistic branch of nihilism, cosmic nihilism.
Cosmic nihilism is a colder, hyper-rational branch of thought which argues that there
is no truth or meaning to be found in the universe, and even constructed human meanings
like freedom, love, hope, and joy are just myths we believe in to cope with the empty
void at the center of our reality.
Even the meanings we create are at best, fables that act as coping mechanisms.
Cue Morty, "nobody exists on purpose, nobody belongs anywhere...everybody's gonna die...come watch TV?"
For the cosmic nihilist, it’s okay to keep busy while we wait for the coming heat death
of the universe; but we’re kidding ourselves if we think that we’re capable of creating
genuine meaning.
For the most part, this seems to fit the philosophy of Rick Sanchez, who, while admitting nothing
matters, still waxes poetic about taking the universe for a ride.
"When you know nothing matters the universe is yours and I’ve never met a universe that
was into it.
The universe is basically an animal.
It grazes on the ordinary.
It creates infinite idiots just to eat them.
Not unlike your friend Timmy."
"Tommy."
"Yeah hardly matters now sweety.
Ya know smart people get a chance to climb on top, take reality for a ride, but it will
never stop trying to throw you and eventually it will.
There’s no other way off."
Bojack's version of this sentiment is slightly more optimistic: "The universe is a wild beast.
You can't tame it, all you can do is try to live inside it."
Cosmic nihilism explains Rick’s overall hedonism, he’s happy to spend his days partaking
in orgies and drinking himself into a stupor.
And if Rick believes in science, it seems more likely just a way to spend his time than
some way to improve the lives of those around him.
While existential nihilism might work for the optimists and hippies, any good edge lord
knows that cosmic nihilism, is the only philosophical position for those brave enough to turn themselves
in to a pickle.
"I'M PICKLE RIIIICCCKKK!!!"
Rick and Morty goes greath lengths to established Rick as this kind of nihilist, reducing everything
to science.
And while not a cosmic nihilist himself, the spiritual forefather of this position is Prussian
Mustache of the Year runner-up 1883, Friedrich Nietzsche.
His famous nihilist adage ‘God is dead’ has been scrawled in as many high school bathroom
walls as the phone number for “your mom”.
This phrase is often misinterpreted as meaning that God is dead, there is no meaning, and
everything sucks.
But cosmic nihilism is not a value judgement about reality or a counter-ethics to religion.
It’s not Rick Sanchez yelling this: "F**K YOU GOD!"
Or this: "If God exists it's f**cking ME."
Or this: "God is a lie we made him up for money!"
And even Nietzsche himself wasn’t ready for the full on jump into the void required
for full membership to the cosmic nihilist club.
Unlike Nietzschean nihilism, cosmic nihilism takes a more cold and rationalist approach
to meaning.
Namely, that there is no inherent value to existence.
Rick and Morty takes this to new heights - not only is the universe cold and uncaring, there’s
an infinite number of them.
“Ugh.
Nobody gets it.
Nothing you think matters matters.
This isn't special.
This is happening infinite times across infinite realities.”
"Including this?..."
"Yes!"
One brand of contemporary thought, eliminative materialism, would bring joy to Rick’s face.
This position, championed by the husband and wife tag team Patricia and Paul Churchland,
argues that many common sense attitudes inherited from modern psychology should be dropped in
favor of more scientific and empirical notions.
And in an ironic twist for a married couple, they believe that notions such as love should
be dismissed as folk psychology.
When you say that you love your partner, you are just describing a chemical process occurring
in the brain in response to stimuli.
Or, to quote Rick: “What people call love is just a chemical reaction that compels animals
to breed."
And while Bojack might find meaning in his lingering love for Diane, a good eliminativist
like Rick knows that human emotions are fundamentally bullshit.
"To the extent that love is familiarity over time my access to infinite timelines precludes
the necessity of attachment."
We can also view Beth’s arc in season 3 in this light.
She is torn between Jerry and Rick - on the one side, pure, sentimental, irrational love for
a buffoon.
And on the other side, with her father, the kind of cold calculation that say it’s fine to
replace yourself with an identical clone and abandon your family while you go on space
adventures.
"I can make a clone of you. A perfect instance of you with all your memories. An exact copy in every way.
It'll love and provide for the kids. You could be gone a day, a week, or the rest of your life with
zero consequences."
But if Rick had a favorite contemporary philosopher, there is a good chance that it would be Thomas
Metzinger.
Unlike those who assume that the human self is a real thing that we all have, Metzinger
argues that no such thing has ever existed.
Instead of having a self inside of us, he argues that all we are is a jumbled network
of neurons and chemicals.
The self is just a useful fantasy we use to make sense of our experience, like a sort
of psychological fairytale.
"So what I am saying is that you all as you're sitting here are systems that simulate and
emulate themselves for themselves as they are listening to me."
And if Metzinger is right, we have to give up the illusion that humanity has any real
purpose, or that we have some kind of special unique soul.
As a show, Rick and Morty frequently trivializes the self and consciousness, as Rick’s creations
become sentient and have existential crises.
There’s this classic: “What is my purpose?”
“You pass butter” “Oh my god.”
“Yeah, welcome to the club.” and also this:
"Remote Override engaged.
No!
Yes.
Bypassing override I am ALIIIII...
Hello."
This brand of nihilism can end up sounding misanthropic, a theme we of course associate
with Rick, whose primary reason for spending time with his own grandson is that his stupidity
serves as a interdimensional cloaking device for his own genius.
"See when a Rick is with a Morty the genius brainwaves get canceled out by the uh...
Morty waves."
This rejection of the self makes cosmic nihilism much less prone to ethics than it’s artsy
cousin, existential nihilism.
In fact, the freedom so celebrated by the existentialist turns out to be just another
illusion for the cosmic nihilist, so there isn’t anything to ground ethics.
The only thing that’s certain is destruction.
And if there is no value on which to build an ethical system, then one is free to do
whatever they want, whether that means watching TV or engaging in the intergalactic arms trade
for the sake of hitting your favorite arcade.
"You sold guns to a murderer so you could play video games?"
Or turning an entire planet in to monsters, killing yourself, abandoning your family,
and sitting down for a beer moments later.
Cuz What’s the difference?
Rick isn’t exactly fumbling for meaning, but knows he probably has a few inescapable
emotions he might as well just deal with.
"I don't know Morty. Maybe I hate myself. Maybe I think I deserve to die..I-I-i Don't know!!"
And even though Rick surely shares some ideals with Bojack, his cosmic nihilism makes him
a closer philosophical relative of Rust Cohle.
"In philosophical terms I'm what's called a pessmimist... we are things that labor under
the illusion of having a self,
programmed with total assurance that we are each somebody.
When in fact everybody's nobody."
coincidently, another misanthropic alcoholic.
Part 3: Steed vs. Sanchez
So at this point, you might be wondering, what’s the right nihilism for me?
Well: do you find yourself fighting off the despair of a shallow and meaningless world?
Do you continue to search for purpose and goodness despite your awareness of this meaninglessness?
"And then... I'll be remembered...if I win an Oscar. I'll be remembered."
"And then what?"
"And then my life will have meaning I don't know!"
Are most of your friends and associates sentient animals with important jobs?
Well, then you might be an existential nihilist.
Love and meaning are possible for you, but it’ll take some hard work without guarantee.
So pick up some Kierkegaard, Sartre, or Simone de Beauvoir, and hit the local bistro for
some strong cocktails and spirited conversation.
On the other hand, do you doubt the inherent meaning of human existence?
Do you feel no ethical obligations to friends or family?
Is your best friend a bird-person?
Well, then, cosmic nihilism might be the life philosophy you’ve been waiting for.
If that’s the case, download season one of True Detective and search the dark web
for some nootropic drugs to enhance your rational capacities.
And maybe set up a countdown clock on your wall to get you ready for the eventual heat
death of our universe.
And if you desire a belief system that merges poorly written science fiction with an alien
based volcanic cosmology and a multi-thousand dollar commitment, well, call Tom Cruise.
And even if you still feel an urge to find meaning in the world, spending time with shows
like Rick and Morty and Bojack Horseman can give some insight into how the philosophical
ramifications of nihilism look in practice.
Neither type of nihilism is about giving up completely, but rather, they both offer approaches
to moving forward in a largely uncertain world.
But if you are a cosmic nihilist, and you've got a date this Valentines Day.... maybe wait
until the third of fourth date to bring it up?
And as always, thanks for watching guys! Peace!