Module: An Introduction to Existentialist Philosophy

Latest Module Specifications

Current Academic Year 2025 - 2026

Module Title	An Introduction to Existentialist Philosophy
Module Code	HDE1003 (ITS: HD215)
Faculty	Human Development	School	DCU Institute of Education
NFQ level	8	Credit Rating	5

Description

This module introduces students to developments in 19th and 20th century philosophy with an especial emphasis on existentialism and phenomenology. A task in this module is identifying and deciphering what philosophy is appropriately conceptualized as existentialist philosophy. Accordingly, this module examines earlier philosophers including Kierkegaard and Heidegger before turning to traditional existentialist theorists including Sartre and De Beauvoir. The modules examines key existentialist themes including despair, self, death, authenticity, being, consciousness, freedom and ambiguity. This grounding in existentialist thought will conclude with a consideration of the relevance existentialism offers in understanding human development and identity.

Learning Outcomes

1. Define and describe philosophical accounts of the self, human being, individual in existential and philosophical thought.
2. Critically describe, differentiate and compare alternative existential and philosophical accounts of the self.
3. Appraise and defend a critical analysis of one of the key thinkers on the course.
4. Reflect on and evaluate debates on humanism and its relevance for the study of human development.
5. Critically analyse and reflect on the relevance of existential and phenomenological ideas of authenticity, freedom, despair and ambiguity in their own lives.

Total Workload: 0

Section Breakdown
CRN	20317	Part of Term	Semester 2
Coursework	0%	Examination Weight	0%
Grade Scale		Pass Both Elements	Y
Resit Category		Best Mark	N
Module Co-ordinator		Module Teacher

Type	Description	% of total	Assessment Date
Assessment Breakdown
Assignment	n/a	40%	n/a
Formal Examination	n/a	60%	End-of-Semester

Reassessment Requirement Type
Resit arrangements are explained by the following categories; RC1: A resit is available for both^* components of the module. RC2: No resit is available for a 100% coursework module. RC3: No resit is available for the coursework component where there is a coursework and summative examination element. ^* ‘Both’ is used in the context of the module having a coursework/summative examination split; where the module is 100% coursework, there will also be a resit of the assessment

Pre-requisite	None
Co-requisite	None
Compatibles	None
Incompatibles	None

All module information is indicative and subject to change. For further information,students are advised to refer to the University's Marks and Standards and Programme Specific Regulations at: http://www.dcu.ie/registry/examinations/index.shtml

Indicative Content and Learning Activities

Indicative Reading List

Books:

Albert Camus: 1947, The Plague, Pengiun, (1960), London,
Albert Camus: 1956, The Fall, Penguin (2006),
Hubert Dreyfus & Mark Wrathall: 2006, A Companion to Phenomenology and Existentialism, Blackwell Publishing,
Simone De Beauvoir: 1947, The Ethics of Ambiguity, Citadel Press (1976), New York,
Martin Heidegger: 1927, Being and Time, State University of New York, 2010, New York,
Soren Kierkegaard: 1849, The Sickness Unto Death: A Christian Psychological Exposition of Edification and Awakening, Penguin (2004),
Maurice Merleau-Ponty: 1945, Phenomenology of Perception, Routledge, (2012), London,
Jean-Paul Sartre: 1946, Existentialism is a Humanism, Yale University Press (2007), US,
Jean-Paul Sartre: 1943, Being and Nothingness, Washington Square Press (1993),
Mary Warnock: 1970, Existentialism, Oxford University Press,

Articles:
None

Other Resources

None