Essentialism is a philosophical doctrine, which says that all things have an essence that is independent of their existence. This essence is a set of attributes and characteristics that determines the nature of things even before they come into existence; they are fixed archetypes or templates upon which the existence is shaped.
For example, how can we say that a triangle is a triangle? This is easy. Triangles need to have three sides. If it did not have three sides, then it would not be a triangle. Therefore, the essence of the triangle is the characteristic of having three sides.
But what about a human being? What makes a man... a man, and not a vegetable or a rock? In other words, the question is, what is the essence of a human? Esssentialists argue that there are certain traits that identify a human being – a man or a woman, for instance – and such essence is eternal, unchangeable and fixed. So, even if there are no human beings alive, the idea of a human continues to exist as a model.
Essential vs. Accidental Properties
In order to understand Essentialism, it is necessary to establish the difference between essential and accidental properties. Although there are many different interpretations and theories surrounding this topic, the basic idea is this: there are certain characteristics that something must have in order to be identified as such, and there are some other characteristics that something happens to have but they are not the traits that determine what something really is – this is really not as difficult as it sounds. Here is a simple example:
A triangle has three sides. Can you conceive a triangle with four sides? No, as this would be a square and not a triangle. So, this means that having three sides is an essential property of the triangle. Now, can you conceive a yellow triangle? What about a red triangle? If a triangle continues to be a triangle no matter the color, this means that the color is not an essential property of the triangle, it is an accidental property.
Of course, things become more complicated as we try to determine the essential properties of more complex things, such as humans. For example, is there a fixed archetype of male and female? While some modern schools of thought reject this idea and defend the thesis that such models are subjected to changes and reinterpretations, some ancient traditions such as the Greek and the Roman, argued that the male and female ideals are universal and eternal, and the changes are just a result of the human imperfection.
Plato's Essentialism
Plato theorized that the ideal realm contains all universal essences and the physical plane is an imperfect copy of this essential realm. Since the human senses are incapable of perceiving the essences as they really are, the projections of the archetypes into the physical realm do not correspond exactly to their original form. This is why the world is not perfect. This idea not only applies to concrete things such as people, animals, plants, etc; but also to concepts like beauty, justice, love and so on.
So, according to Plato, as humans evolve and progress, their ability to perceive the essences as they are become better, and this is why Plato suggested that the process of evolution is a process of purification of the senses.
Essence Precedes Existence
When essentialists say that essence precedes existence, they are saying that the principle of things do not start existing in the moment they are created/made. They exist eternally as an idea and then they come into existence.
Mystical traditions throughout history have used the concept of Essentialism in order to demonstrate that the universe is eternal. If all planets were destroyed, and all humans were killed, would that be the end of the world? No, it wouldn't because only physical things can be destroyed. No tragedy can harm the essences. So, for as long as the essences exist, there will always be the latent potency for a new existence, and at some point in time and space, the universe will re-create itself.
Sources:
Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
Plato (360 B.C), translated by Benjamin Jowett. Timaeus . Online version retrieved on April 12, 2011.
Plato (360 B.C), translated by Benjamin Jowett. Philebus . Online version retrieved on April 12, 2011.
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