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PHL 605

Existentialism

For existentialists, freedom is not a given, but something to achieve. Reading authors like Kierkegaard, Nietzsche, Sartre, Beauvoir and Heidegger, we'll ask what aspects of the human condition tend to thwart true freedom: Self-deception? Social norms or religious codes? Anxiety in confronting death? Longing for absolute justification for life's meaning? Alienation arising from an overestimation of reason or technology? We'll also consider what is required for authenticity, responsibility, freedom, and, possibly, the meaning of faith.
Weekly Contact: Lecture: 3 hrs.
GPA Weight: 1.00
Course Count: 1.00
Billing Units: 1
Liberal Studies: UL

Prerequisites

None

Co-Requisites

None

Antirequisites

None

Custom Requisites

None