Description

The term existentialism refers to the theories of a group of European philosophers who share a critical assessment of the Western philosophic tradition's understanding of human life. This 'school' came to public attention after World War II, not only because of the impact of their ideas on European culture, but also because of the 'scandalous' public lives led by some of them. In the context of the conformity of American life in the 1950's and early 1960's, existentialism offered the promise of a more adequate mode of human conduct. The thinking embodied in this school has its roots in the 19th century.

Although there is no single belief that identifies a philosopher as an existentialist, in general, they are critical of the Western tradition's use of reason to affirm the existence of God and to explain the point of human suffering. In opposition to this tradition, these thinkers affirm human freedom in a world that they claim cannot be understood using the categories of rational thought. In addition, they emphasize the passionate side of human life, including negative as well as positive emotions. Here, too, they seem themselves as correcting inadequacies in the Western tradition.

Although this course will emphasize existentialism as a philosophic movement, it will also include looks at the broader intellectual impact of existentialism on Western culture. The class will begin by looking at the ideas of three nineteenth century thinkers - Søren Kierkegaard, Fyodor Dostoevsky, and Friedrich Nietzsche - in order to see what the central ideas of existentialism are. We will then concentrate on five existentialist thinkers - Martin Heidegger, Jean Paul Sartre, Albert Camus, Simone de Beauvoir, and Frantz Fanon - seeking to understand the distinctive nature of their philosophic visions. We will also look at literature that bears traces of existential thought, including writings by the philosophers themselves as well as others influenced by them. Our goal will be to canvas the various different ways in which existential thinkers challenged the traditional Western manner of thinking about human life.