SCHOOL OF TEACHERS EDUCATION AND LIBERAL ARTS
SAINT LOUIS UNIVERSITY
BAGUIO CITY
Department of Philosophy
MA Philos Program Offsite
PH 208: EXISTENTIALISM
COURSE DESCRIPTION:
Existentialism is not just a movement in the philosophical realm but a movement as well in the artistic and literary spheres. As a movement, it is essentially focused on the multifarious and manifold threat to the likelihood of human freedom. As a movement, it finds its anchorage on the quest of the human person for meaning, the meaning of human existence.
Furthermore, existentialism as a philosophy gives stress and emphasis on personal or individual existence, freedom, choice, rational decisions, personal responsibility for choices made, and other related matters on human existence and the pursuit of the meaning of human existence. Likewise, while the supreme value of existentialist thought is commonly acknowledged to be freedom, its supreme virtue is authenticity.
Existentialism is commonly recognized as the philosophy of the corporeal and particular individual. Existentialism expouses the basic and fundamental value of what its main advocate Jean Paul Sartre calls the "free organic individual," that is, the flesh and blood autonomous agent/subject. Due to the almost irresistible pull towards conformism in modern society, what is called "existential individuality" is an achievement, and not a permanent one at that. Human beings are born biological beings but must strive to become existential individuals by accepting responsibility for individual actions. This is an application of Friedrich Nietzsche's advice to pursue and "become what you are" as an individual person. A lot of individuals never do acknowledge such responsibility but would rather escape or run away from their existential individuality into the comfort of the faceless crowd.
COURSE OBJECTIVES AND LEARNING GOALS:
1. To become familiar with some of the leading authors as well as concerns/themes of existentialist movement.
2. To cultivate and foster the ability to write clearly and persuasively on philosophical questions that arise on existentialist writing, movie, music or literary piece.
3. To develop their own existential philosophy guided by the common and familiar themes in the existentialist movement using a chosen movie, music or literary piece.
COURSE REQUIREMENTS:
This course will be administered through a combination of face to face interaction and google classroom for a total of fifty-two (52) hrs. Assignments as well as scheduled readings/activities will be posted through google classroom.
There will be short papers, around 2-3 papers through out the duration of the course with 3-5 pages each.
There will be 2 major exams, midterms and finals.
Grades will be be computed at 50-50 percent. 50% for the class standing and 50% for the major exams.
INITIAL TEXTS/READINGS:
1. "Existentialism and the Human Person's Search for Meaning" by Manuel Dy in Philosophy of Man
2. "Existentialism" by Thomas Flyn
3. "Existentialism as Humanism" by Sartre
4. "Letter on Humanism" by Heidegger
5. "Building Dwelling Thinking" by Heidegger
6. "The Human Person as Embodied Subjectivity in its Kabuuan" by Mark Gil Ramolete
7. "On the Way to Freedom" by Robert O. Johann
Furthermore, existentialism as a philosophy gives stress and emphasis on personal or individual existence, freedom, choice, rational decisions, personal responsibility for choices made, and other related matters on human existence and the pursuit of the meaning of human existence. Likewise, while the supreme value of existentialist thought is commonly acknowledged to be freedom, its supreme virtue is authenticity.
Existentialism is commonly recognized as the philosophy of the corporeal and particular individual. Existentialism expouses the basic and fundamental value of what its main advocate Jean Paul Sartre calls the "free organic individual," that is, the flesh and blood autonomous agent/subject. Due to the almost irresistible pull towards conformism in modern society, what is called "existential individuality" is an achievement, and not a permanent one at that. Human beings are born biological beings but must strive to become existential individuals by accepting responsibility for individual actions. This is an application of Friedrich Nietzsche's advice to pursue and "become what you are" as an individual person. A lot of individuals never do acknowledge such responsibility but would rather escape or run away from their existential individuality into the comfort of the faceless crowd.
COURSE OBJECTIVES AND LEARNING GOALS:
1. To become familiar with some of the leading authors as well as concerns/themes of existentialist movement.
2. To cultivate and foster the ability to write clearly and persuasively on philosophical questions that arise on existentialist writing, movie, music or literary piece.
3. To develop their own existential philosophy guided by the common and familiar themes in the existentialist movement using a chosen movie, music or literary piece.
COURSE REQUIREMENTS:
This course will be administered through a combination of face to face interaction and google classroom for a total of fifty-two (52) hrs. Assignments as well as scheduled readings/activities will be posted through google classroom.
There will be short papers, around 2-3 papers through out the duration of the course with 3-5 pages each.
There will be 2 major exams, midterms and finals.
Grades will be be computed at 50-50 percent. 50% for the class standing and 50% for the major exams.
INITIAL TEXTS/READINGS:
1. "Existentialism and the Human Person's Search for Meaning" by Manuel Dy in Philosophy of Man
2. "Existentialism" by Thomas Flyn
3. "Existentialism as Humanism" by Sartre
4. "Letter on Humanism" by Heidegger
5. "Building Dwelling Thinking" by Heidegger
6. "The Human Person as Embodied Subjectivity in its Kabuuan" by Mark Gil Ramolete
7. "On the Way to Freedom" by Robert O. Johann
