BA Philosophy

Existentialism is an approach to philosophical questions that can be found in the writings of Nineteenth Century authors such as Kierkegaard, Dostoyevsky, and Nietzsche, and more explicitly in Twentieth Century Philosophers Heidegger, Sartre, and de Beauvoir. Existentialist thought focuses on the meaning—for our individual lives—of lived experience, value, freedom, responsibility, and commitment, and is often associated with an ethics of authenticity. In this unit we will consider a selection of writings by these authors, looking at how existentialist ideas have been represented in both philosophy and literature.

The unit aims to:

• introduce students to the philosophical writings of Nineteenth & Twentieth Century existentialists;
• present the historical, philosophical, and literary context in which existentialism was developed;
• explore in detail some central concepts of existentialism: meaning, value, lived experience, authenticity, mortality, etc;
• show how existentialism relates to issues in ethics, epistemology and the philosophy of mind.  

There will be a mixture of lectures and tutorials.

Please note the information in scheduled activity hours are only a guidance and may change.

• identify the main philosophical questions arising in a variety of texts by Kierkegaard, Nietzsche, Heidegger, Sartre, de Beauvoir, and Fanon
• clearly articulate existentialist philosophical claims

• evaluate the claims and arguments of Kierkegaard, Nietzsche, Heidegger, Sartre, de Beauvoir, and Fanon
• relate existentialist philosophy to other areas of philosophical inquiry
• evaluate existentialist philosophy's lasting significance

• interpret and criticise both primary and secondary texts 

• undertake independent research and apply theoretical knowledge to complex issues 

Two written assignments (inc essays)  100%

Reading list: 

The following reading list is indicative, and students are not required to read all of the publications listed.                                                                                               

Smith, Joel. 2022. Existentialism: A Philosophical Inquiry. London: Routledge 

Webber, Jonathan. 2018. Rethinking Existentialism. Oxford: Oxford University Press. 

Dreyfus, Hubert L. and Mark A. Wrathall (eds.). 2006. A Companion to Phenomenology and Existentialism. Oxford: Blackwell. 

Daigle, Christine. 2010. Jean-Paul Sartre. London: Routledge. 

Arp, Kristina. 2001. The Bonds of Freedom: Simone de Beauvoir’s Existentialist Ethics. La Salle, IL: Open Court.