PHL 366K Existentialism Spring 2014
LECTURE TIME: Tuesdays and Thursdays, 3:30-4:30 p.m. Third hour on Fridays (time and location listed below)
UNIQUE NUMBERS 43435, 43440, 43445, 43450, 43455, 43460
LECTURE LOCATION: CAL 100 (TTH 3:30-4:30 p.m.) Third hour indicated below under “Sections”
INSTRUCTOR: Prof. Kathleen Higgins
OFFICE: Waggener Hall, Room 203 471-5564
OFFICE HOURS: Tuesdays and Thursdays, 10:45-11:45 a.m. and by appointment
E-MAIL:
TEACHING ASSISTANTS: TBA
COURSE DESCRIPTION:
“Existentialism” was hardly a philosophical movement in the traditional sense, for few of its major figures would have described themselves as existentialists. And yet the existentialists do represent a movement in the sense that they sharing certain concerns, such as emphasis on how reflective thought relates to our actual lives, skepticism regarding reason, reevaluation of traditional approaches to ethics, and insistence on passionate engagement as essential for a meaningful life. Among the figures we will consider are Søren Kierkegaard, Friedrich Nietzsche, Jean-Paul Sartre, Albert Camus, Martin Heidegger, and Simone de Beauvoir.
TEXTBOOKS: Albert Camus, The Stranger Albert Camus, The Fall Robert C. Solomon, ed. Existentialism, 2nd edition Friedrich Nietzsche, Thus Spoke Zarathustra Robert C. Solomon, From Rationalism to Existentialism
Recommended (Optional): Robert C. Solomon, Introducing the Existentialists
GRADING: Grades will be computed using the plus-minus system. The breakdown is as follows:
A 92-100 A- 90-91 B+ 87-89 B 82-86 B- 80-81 C+ 77-79 C 72-76 C- 70-71 D+ 67-69 D 62-66 D- 60-61 F 0-59
THIS COURSE WILL NOT HAVE A FINAL EXAM.
Your comprehension of readings late in the term will be assessed by means of directed journal entries.
This course carries the Ethics and Leadership flag. Ethics and Leadership courses are designed to equip you with skills that are necessary for making ethical decisions in your adult and professional life. You should therefore expect a substantial portion of your grade to come from assignments involving ethical issues and the process of applying ethical reasoning to real-life situations.
POLICIES:
ATTENDANCE IS REQUIRED FOR BOTH THE LECTURES AND THE DISCUSSION SECTIONS.
Late journal assignments will automatically receive ten fewer percentage points than they would otherwise have received, and will not be accepted more than one week after the date due. Late assignments will not be accepted after Friday of the last week of class.
Makeup exams or extensions will be arranged only in situations of an emergency, illness, or other serious circumstance. The instructor may ask for evidence.
Students with disabilities may request appropriate academic accommodations from the Division of Diversity and Community Engagement, Services for Students with Disabilities, 471-6259. IMPORTANT DATES:
February 13, 2014 Exam I 25%
March 4, 2014 First Half of Journal Due Included in participation (with Directed Entries grade marked)
March 20, 2104 Exam II 25%
April 17, 2014 Exam III 25%
May 1, 2014 Second Half of Journal Due Included in participation (with Directed Entries grade marked)
Throughout the Term Participation* 25%
*Participation includes a daily journal, attendance, directed journal entries, involvement in sections, possible pop quizzes, and possibly other activities.
SECTIONS
UNIQUE NUMBER TIME LOCATION TEACHING ASSISTANT 43435 Friday, 12:00 noon-1:00 GAR 1.134 TBA p.m. 43440 Monday, PAR 303 TBA 1:00-2:00 p.m. 43445 Friday, GAR 1.134 TBA 1:00 -2:00 p.m. 43450 Monday, MEZ 2.122 TBA 2:00-3:00 p.m. 43455 Friday, GAR 1.134 TBA 2:00-3:00 p.m. 43460 Monday, MEZ 2.122 TBA 3:00-4:00 p.m. SYLLABUS
Existentialism = Solomon, Existentialism TSZ = Thus Spoke Zarathustra RE = Solomon, From Rationalism to Existentialism IE = Solomon, Introducing the Existentialists
Recommendations beginning with “See” refer to films with themes related to topics under discussion.
January 14 Introduction
January 16 Existentialism – Context, Polemics, and Challenges
Reading: “Introduction,” Existentialism (pp. xi-xx)
January 21 Camus, The Stranger
Reading: Albert Camus, The Stranger
January 23 The Myth of Sisyphus
Reading: Existentialism, pp. 187-198 Recommended: IE, pp. 61-83
January 28 Camus, The Fall
Reading: Albert Camus, The Fall
Recommended (with reservations): See The Plague
January 30 Kierkegaard on Subjective Truth and Christianity
Reading: Existentialism, pp. 1-8 and 17-29; RE, pp. 60-63 Recommended: RE, pp. 69-90
February 4 Kierkegaard and the Existential Dialectic
Reading: Existentialism, pp. 8-14 Recommended: RE, pp. 90-103
February 6 Kierkegaard on Teleological Suspension of the Ethical
Reading: Existentialism, pp. 15-17 and 29-33
February 11 Review
February 13 Exam I
February 18 Nietzsche on Nihilism and Morality
Reading: Existentialism pp. 65-71 and 75-92 Recommended: RE, pp. 105-125
February 20 Nietzsche’s Critique of Traditional Values and Will to Power
Reading: Existentialism, pp. 92-100 Recommended: RE, p. 125-138
February 25 Husserl’s Phenomenology and Heidegger
Reading: RE, pp. 143-166 Recommended: RE, pp. 166-182; IE, pp. 35-59
February 27 Heidegger on Being, Knowing, and Dasein
Reading: Existentialism, pp. 116-123 and 151-152 Recommended: RE, pp. 184-203
March 4 Heidegger on Authenticity
Reading: Existentialism, pp. 123-139 Recommended: RE, pp. 203-223
Recommended: See Fearless
FIRST HALF OF JOURNAL DUE, WITH DIRECTED JOURNAL ENTRIES MARKED
March 6 Heidegger on Technology and the Role of Art
Reading: Existentialism, pp. 139-152 Recommended: RE, pp. 223-244
March 10-15 SPRING BREAK
March 18 Review
March 20 Exam II
March 25 Sartre on Freedom and Responsibility
Reading: Existentialism, pp. 203-214 Recommended: RE, pp. 245-256; IE, pp. 3-33
Recommended: See Closer
March 27 Sartre on Consciousness and Emotion
Reading: Existentialism, pp. 214-218 Recommended: RE, pp. 256-288
April 1 Sartre on Bad Faith and Authenticity
Reading: Existentialism pp. 224-243 Recommended: RE, pp. 288-302
April 3 Sartre on Other People
Reading: Existentialism, pp. 243-256 and 259-270 Recommended RE, pp. 302-313
April 8 Sartre and Beauvoir on Sex, Love, and Ethics
Reading: Existentialism, pp. 256-259 and pp. 291-317 Recommended: RE, pp. 313-323
April 10 Beauvoir on Ethics
Reading: Existentialism, pp. 292-307
Recommended: See Waking Life
April 15 Review
April 17 Exam III
April 22 Indirect Communication and Teaching by Showing: Thus Spoke Zarathustra
Reading: TSZ: “Zarathustra’s Prologue”
April 24 Zarathustra’s Problematic
Readings: Existentialism, pp. 100-102; TSZ: “The Three Metamorphoses” “Despisers of the Body” “On Enjoying and Suffering the Passions” “The Dancing Song” “On Poets” “The Soothsayer” “On Redemption” “The Stillest Hour”
April 29 Eternal Recurrence
Readings: TSZ: “The Soothsayer” “On Redemption” “The Stillest Hour” “On the Vision and the Riddle” “The Convalescent” “The Other Dancing Song” “The Drunken Song” “The Sign”
May 1 Conclusion: Existentialism in the 21st Century
SECOND HALF OF JOURNAL DUE, WITH DIRECTED JOURNAL ENTRIES MARKED.