Existentialism: A Very Short Introduction

by Thomas Flynn

Overview

One of the leading philosophical movements of the twentieth century, existentialism has had more impact on literature and the arts than any other school of thought. Focusing on the leading figures of existentialism, including Sartre, Nietzsche, Heidegger, Kierkegaard, de Beauvoir, Merleau-Ponty, and Camus, Thomas Flynn offers a concise account of existentialism, explaining the key themes of individuality, free will, and personal responsibility, which marked the movement as a way of life, not just a way of thinking.

Flynn sets the philosophy of existentialism in context, from the early phenomenologists, to its rise in the 40's and 50's, and the connections with National Socialism, Communism, and Feminism. He identifies the original definition of "existentialism," which tends to be obscured by misappropriation, and highlights how the philosophy is still relevant in our world today.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780192804280
Publisher:	Oxford University Press
Publication date:	11/06/2006
Series:	Very Short Introductions
Edition description:	5TH
Pages:	160
Sales rank:	543,141
Product dimensions:	6.88(w) x 4.42(h) x 0.37(d)

About the Author

Thomas Flynn is Samuel Candler Dobbs Professor of Philosophy at Emory University.

Table of Contents

1. Philosophy as a Way of Life2. Becoming an Individual3. Humanism, For and Against4. Authenticity5. A Chastened Individualism? Existentialism and Social Thought6. What is Living and What is Dead in Existentialist Thought?