• Unit 5: Martin Heidegger

    Martin Heidegger's (1889-1976) extensive and illuminating meditations on what he described as the ontological "question of being” established his reputation as one of the most original and important philosophers of the twentieth century. Like other philosophers commonly referred to as existentialists today, Heidegger refused to associate his own thinking with the term existentialism. However, his focus on human existence, anxiety, death, and authenticity - themes shared by both his predecessors (Kierkegaard, Dostoevsky, and Nietzsche) and his contemporaries (Sartre and Camus) - place him at the center of this movement. In this unit, you will explore Heidegger's thought, especially the philosophy of existence that he introduced in his most famous work, Being and Time (1927).

    Completing this unit should take you approximately 19 hours.