The Myth of Sisyphus
The Myth of Sisyphus by Albert Camusby Albert Camus
Shares rank 2 of 3 philosophy essays by recommenders
Recommended for its account of the absurd hero, especially the third and fourth parts. Critics find the conclusion that Sisyphus is happy forced and call it a rehash of Stoic and Taoist teaching.
Recommended for its account of the absurd hero, especially the third and fourth parts. Critics find the conclusion that Sisyphus is happy forced and call it a rehash of Stoic and Taoist teaching.
7 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 6
- criticize it
- 1
- approval share
- 86%
Recommended in 4 of 13 months
- November 2025: not recommended
- December 2025: not recommended
- January 2026: not recommended
- February 2026: recommended
- March 2026: not recommended
- April 2026: not recommended
- May 2026: not recommended
- June 2026: not recommended
- July 2026: not recommended
- August 2026: recommended
- September 2026: recommended
- October 2026: recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it doesn’t carry the badge
- 6 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, not met.
- 6 recommenders for every criticNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
- Recommended in 4 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Explains the absurd hero
“I reccomend reading _The Myth of Sisyphus_, especially the third and fourth parts, for Camus' explanation of the absurd hero.”
Comment from 1 Aug 2026 in “The Absurdity of Albert Camus” Imagery of fulfilled tedium
“imagining Sisyphus fulfilled by the tedium of pushing the boulder up the hill”
Comment from 11 Oct 2026 in “Terence Tao: Math 2.0 [pdf]” Underrated second-last line
“Even the second-last line is underrated”
Comment from 1 Aug 2026 in “The Absurdity of Albert Camus”
What people warn about
Each mark is one comment
Forced conclusion about Sisyphus's happiness
“the conclusion that Sisyphus is happy feels yet a bit forced”
Comment from 1 Aug 2026 in “The Absurdity of Albert Camus” Tedious, rehashes Stoic and Taoist teaching
“I found it tedious and boring. Sort of a rehash of stoic and Taoist teaching.”
Comment from 17 May 2026 in “Fame! A Misunderstanding: A new translation of Albert Camus's complete notebooks”
Other philosophy essays people recommend
The two most recommended other philosophy essays, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
| Product | Recommend | Criticize | Approval | Months | Owned | Badge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| What Is It Like to Be a Bat?by Thomas Nagel | 10 | 4 | 71% | 5 | — | Approved |
| The Myth of Sisyphusby Albert CamusThis page | 6 | 1 | 86% | 4 | — | — |
| The Unreasonable Effectiveness of Mathematics in the Natural Sciencesby Eugene Wigner | 6 | 0 | 100% | 5 | — | — |
What people said
5 of the 7 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“imagining Sisyphus fulfilled by the tedium of pushing the boulder up the hill”
“the conclusion that Sisyphus is happy feels yet a bit forced”
“I reccomend reading _The Myth of Sisyphus_, especially the third and fourth parts, for Camus' explanation of the absurd hero.”
“Even the second-last line is underrated”
“I found it tedious and boring. Sort of a rehash of stoic and Taoist teaching.”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.