Department of Global and Interdisciplinary Studies

Back to List

PHL300ZA(哲学 / Philosophy 300)
Existentialism

Joel Van Fossen

Class code etc
Faculty/Graduate school Department of Global and Interdisciplinary Studies
Attached documents
Year 2024
Class code A6302
Previous Class code
Previous Class title
Term 秋学期授業/Fall
Day/Period 金1/Fri.1
Class Type
Campus 市ヶ谷 / Ichigaya
Classroom name 市外濠‐S603
Grade 3~4
Credit(s) 2
Notes
Open Program
Open Program (Notes)
Global Open Program
Interdepartmental class taking system for Academic Achievers
Interdepartmental class taking system for Academic Achievers (Notes) 制度ウェブサイトの3.科目別の注意事項(1)GIS主催科目の履修上の注意を参照すること。
Class taught by instructors with practical experience
SDGs CP
Urban Design CP
Diversity CP
Learning for the Future CP
Carbon Neutral CP
Chiyoda Campus Consortium
Duplicate Subjects Taken Under Previous Class Title
Category (commenced 2024 onwards) 300-level Advanced Courses(上級)
Category (commenced 2020-2023) 300-level Advanced Courses(上級)
Category (commenced 2016-2019) 300-level Advanced Courses
Arts and Literature

Show all

Hide All

Outline and objectives

Existentialism is a branch of philosophy that confronts some of the most problematic aspects of existence. These include the value of freedom and rationality, whether living an authentic life is achievable, whether life can be meaningful, the nature of absurdity, whether modern life is nihilistic, and the role of emotions in ethics. This course is an in-depth exploration of several themes from existentialist thought. This course focuses on the philosophical writings of Fyodor Dostoevsky, Albert Camus, Søren Kierkegaard, Friedrich Nietzsche, Jean-Paul Sartre, Simone de Beauvoir, and Iris Murdoch.

Goal

This course has four primary learning goals. First, students will learn about various and diverging views on the philosophy of existentialism. Second, students will improve critical thinking skills when engaging with abstract reasoning. Third, students will improve their reading skills when confronting nuanced and challenging philosophical and literary texts. Finally, students will improve their writing skills to communicate complex ideas clearly and confidently.

Which item of the diploma policy will be obtained by taking this class?

Will be able to gain “DP 1”, “DP 2”, “DP 3”, and “DP 4”.

Default language used in class

英語 / English

Method(s)(学期の途中で変更になる場合には、別途提示します。 /If the Method(s) is changed, we will announce the details of any changes. )

Each meeting will include an interactive lecture with slides and a discussion period. The lectures will occupy roughly one hour of each meeting. Each class will end either (1) with a discussion about the course content or (2) an open discussion about the paper prompts. Students will prepare questions for the discussion period as homework before coming to class. Students will receive feedback from the instructor on short papers and the final exam via Hoppii.

Active learning in class (Group discussion, Debate.etc.)

あり / Yes

Fieldwork in class

なし / No

Schedule

授業形態/methods of teaching:対面/face to face

※各回の授業形態は予定です。教員の指示に従ってください。

1[オンライン/online]:Introduction

What is existentialism?

2[対面/face to face]:Albert Camus

Life without objective meaning

3[対面/face to face]:Søren Kierkegaard 1

The paradox of faith

4[対面/face to face]:Søren Kierkegaard 2

Infinite resignation

5[対面/face to face]:Friedrich Nietzsche 1

The death of God

6[対面/face to face]:Friedrich Nietzsche 2

Eternal recurrence and the affirmation of life

7[対面/face to face]:Jean-Paul Sartre 1

Existence precedes essence

8[対面/face to face]:Jean-Paul Sartre 2

Bad faith

9[対面/face to face]:Keiji Nishitani

Buddhism and Existentialism

10[対面/face to face]:Simone de Beauvoir 1

Existentialist ethics

11[対面/face to face]:Simone de Beauvoir 2

Existentialism and politics

12[対面/face to face]:Iris Murdoch 1

The selfishness of existentialism

13[対面/face to face]:Iris Murdoch 2

Love and existentialism

14[対面/face to face]:Final Exam

Review, wrap-up, and final exam

Work to be done outside of class (preparation, etc.)

Students should complete weekly readings before coming to class. Students should also review their own notes and course slides after every class. Preparatory study time for this class is 3-4 hours, and review time for this class is 2 hours.

Textbooks

There are no required textbooks for this course. All readings will be provided by the instructor either in print or online.

References

The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy is a great resource for delving further into any topics discussed in class: https://plato.stanford.edu
The philosopher Jim Pryor has created helpful guides for writing and reading philosophy papers.
Writing: http://www.jimpryor.net/teaching/guidelines/writing.html
Reading: http://www.jimpryor.net/teaching/guidelines/reading.html

Grading criteria

Class Participation (15%), Discussion Questions (15%), Short Papers (30%), Final Paper (40%)

Changes following student comments

In previous iterations of the course, all short paper grades were recorded. Considering student comments, the lowest grade on a short paper will be dropped when calculating the final course grade.

Equipment student needs to prepare

Please bring a computer for in-class surveys.

Prerequisite

None