Self-foundation would require existing at a distance from oneself, collapsing into for-itself structures.

Evidence

While being is indeed the foundation of nothingness as the nihilation of its own being, that is not the same as saying that it is the foundation of its being. To found its own being it would have to exist at a distance from itself, and that would imply a certain nihilation of the being founded as of the being which founds—a duality which would be unity; here we should fall back into the case of the for-itself. In short, every effort to conceive of the idea of a being which would be the foundation of its being results inevitably in forming that of a being which contingent as being-in-itself, would be the foundation of its own nothingness. — Jean-Paul Sartre, Being and Nothingness, 341

Categorization

• DEFINE: Clarifies the precise sense in which being founds nothingness but cannot found its own being — a key ontological distinction.
• XREF: Connects directly to Beauvoir’s appropriation of the for-itself/being-in-itself distinction as the backdrop for her ethics. — connects to: In possession the for-itself seeks to become its own foundation as in-itself; The for-itself desires to be its own foundation without annihilating its consciousness. — Jean-Paul Sartre, Being and Nothingness: An Essay on…, 361; Self-justification sought outside oneself collapses into perceived absurdity. (+4 more)

Broader Connections

• In possession the for-itself seeks to become its own foundation as in-itself #corroborates (0.90)
• The for-itself is the in-itself’s failed self-founding that nihilates it #corroborates (0.85) — Jean-Paul Sartre, Being and Nothingness, 346
• The for-itself desires to be its own foundation without annihilating its consciousness. #qualifies (0.80) — Jean-Paul Sartre, Being and Nothingness, 361
• The for-itself is originally dispersed outside itself and must seek its being elsewhere #corroborates (0.80)
• Self-justification sought outside oneself collapses into perceived absurdity. #expands (0.75)
• The for-itself’s relation to its future is a project toward its own suppression #expands (0.75) — Jean-Paul Sartre, Being and Nothingness, 615
• The for-itself becomes itself only by assuming its alienated being-for-others #complicates (0.75) — Jean-Paul Sartre, Being and Nothingness, 777