Absurdity 'is a metaphysical term to distinguish thought from reality, meaning from things, word from the subject and consciousness from the world. Existential philosophy is the profound explicit manifestation of an existential attitude that begins with a sense of disorientation and confiision in the face of an apparently meaningless or absurd world. An important component of existentialist philosophy is the portrayal o f existence as being fundamentally irrational. Whereas most philosophers have attempted to build philosophical systems that produce a rational account of reality, existentialists have focused upon the subjective, irrational character of human existence.