Philosophy

Existentialism

Module code: V7084
Level 4
15 credits in autumn semester
Teaching method: Seminar, Lecture
Assessment modes: Coursework

The module critically engages with thinkers such as Nietzsche, Kierkegaard, Heidegger, Sarte, de Beauvoir, Camus, Arendt and Murdoch.

You examine themes such as human freedom, the relation between faith and reason and the absurd. You trace the development of existential ideas in philosophical, religious, poetic and fictional works, asking why this movement in particular seems to have led to such a rich intermingling of philosophy and literature.

You conclude your studies by considering some of the political and ethical consequences of existentialism.

Module learning outcomes

• Become familiar with key issues and movements in the history of existentialism.
• Work critically with philosophical and literary sources relevant to the understanding of existentialism.
• Analyse and summarise the central arguments of existentialist writers and philosophers.
• Present the familiar arguments for and against the existentialist treatment of human freedom, reason, and experience.