Existentialism
Here’s what you should have completed thus far:
- Read the course syllabus
- All supplies should be in place
- Registered for class website
- Posted a response to the Welcome and Existentialism is a Humanism threads on the class forum
- Completed in-class essay on Man’s Search for Meaning
- Read and annotated Existentialism is a Humanism
- Read the guidelines for precis and annotating
- Critical discussion of Frankl
- Read and Discussed Kierkegaard
You should have the following handouts printed and in your binder:
- Course syllabus
- Existentialism is a Humanism
- Precis Handout
- Annotating Guidelines
- Kierkegaard, Ethics and Religion
- Kierkegaard, That Individual
Completed Last Class Period:
That Individual
Spend the first half of class outlining Kierkegaard’s argument in this essay. Start with his thesis and then outline how he develops the thesis.
Conclude class with a small group discussion. Practice intellectual accountability by ensuring that everyone in the group understands his argument. Then, move into a critical discussion.
9/26: To be completed in class today. One of the keys to success in this class is to make connections between the philosophers read. In this case we have read Frankl, Sartre, and Kierkegaard. Working in pairs, identify points of agreement and disagreement between and among them. The most intriguing discussions are the ones born out of nuanced philosophical observations. Write out your thoughts. Spend the last half of class discussing in small groups.
HW:
- Print out, read and annotate the following sections on Albert Camus:
- Suicide, Absurdity, and Happiness: The Myth of Sisyphus
- The Limits of Reason
- Criticism of Existentialists
- Happiness in Accepting One’s Fate
- The Stranger–If you would like to buy your own copy, buy this one!
