Existentialism

1. Existentialism
The Courage to Be

2. Existentialism
 As a philosophical movement
Existentialism emphasizes-
 Individual existence
 Personal freedom
 Authentic choice

3. Existentialism
 Ontology
 Reality is subjective, Truth is relative
 Epistemology
 We learn by making authentic choices
 Anxiety comes with the total freedom of choice
 To refuse to choose authentically is to live in “bad faith.”
 Axiology
 no universal, rational judgment between right and wrong.
 To do good is to act in good faith
 To do bad is to act in bad faith

4. Philosophers described as
Existentialists
 Soren Kierkegaard
 1813-1855
 Friedrich Nietzsche
 1843-1900
 Jean-PaulSartre
 1905-1980

5. Soren Kierkegaard
Religious Existentialism
 Kierkegaard stressed the ambiguity
and absurdity of the human situation
 An individual must live a totally
committed life, which is only
understood by the individual
 He advocated a “leap of faith” into
Christianity
 Although Christianity is
incomprehensible, it is the only
commitment that will save an
individual from complete and utter
despair.

6. Friedrich Nietzsche
Atheistic Existentialism
 God is Dead
 All external authority blinds the
individual to authentic choice
 The Judeo-Christian moral code
keeps the individual from assuming
full responsibility for his or her
decisions
 The Scientific assumption of an
orderly universe is a useful fiction
that hides the meaninglessness of
existence

8. John-Paul Sartre
Existentialism as a Philosophy
 He wrote the first work that attempted to
make Existentialism into a coherent
philosophy in 1943
 It was written in response to the absurdity of
World War II
 He argued that humans beings need a
rational basis for their lives so they developed
systematic philosophies
 but this is impossible to achieve. The human
life is a “futile passion”.

9. John-Paul Sartre
“existence precedes essence”
 We exist first and then we need
to create our essential being
 Existential dread- “the cry in the
night”
 By refusing to accept full
responsibility for who we are and
the decisions we make, we act in
bad faith

10. Living an Authentic Life
 Authentic existence (essence) can only be achieved
by those who actively seek to discover
purposefulness for their existence
 This happens by making independent choices and
assuming responsibility for consequences
 It is not a natural flow; is easily stifled by outside influences

11. Obstacles to Authenticity
 1) Unawareness
 Awareness can be stifled through conformity during
the formative years
 Students not allowed to make choices are denied the
opportunity to accept responsibility for their choices
 2) Fear
 Individual fear of accepting the burden of
responsibility
 To refuse to choose is to make a choice

12. Implications for Education
 The learner should feel valued as an individual and
encouraged to develop his or her personal style and
creativity.
 Existentialist educators are generally against the
concept of teaching as showing, guiding, or directing
 Rather, the teacher should ‘prize’ the learner and make
the learner feel worthwhile.

13. Teacher Contamination
 Teachers who fail to recognize that
reality is experienced subjectively will
likely impose on their students an
external reality, one contaminated by
personal and societal biases
 -Gary Hunter

14. Encouraging the Pursuit of Authenticity
 Teachers must celebrate student authenticity and what
existentialists call “the courage to be”
 Teachers should help students internalize the world and
make it their own
 Teachers must strive to reach each student individually,
although each comes from different backgrounds and
experiences

15. Cultivating Creativity
 Allow students to make their own choices about
individual projects
 Suggest projects that encourage the
imagination
 Put student work on display for other students
and teachers to see

16. Addressing the “courage to be”
 Make students responsible for completing their
work on time- use contracts
 Have students decide classroom rules with the
understanding they will be responsible for
following them
 Let students choose personal ways to express
themselves

17. Why Should We Encourage Students to Follow
Lead Authentic Lives?
 “How many times have we read or heard about
successful writers, athletes, musicians, or artists who
rejected attempts by parents, teachers, counselors, and
peers to dictate and control their destinies by insisting
that they pursue a more conventional line of work? What
would the destinies of these successful people have
been had they succumbed to these external influences?”
(Hunter).