Existentialism - Flynn, Thomas (Samuel Candler Dobbs Professor of Philosophy, Emory University, USA)

Thomas Flynn`s pithy account of existentialism and the existentialist movement aims right at the core of the philosophy, revealing and explaining the key themes and key thinkers. Sets the philosophy in its political context, explaining its various connections with National Socialism, Communism, and Feminism. Explains the philosophical development of the movement, from the often overlooked early phenomenologists, to its rise in the `40s and `50s, and its relevance to philosophy and our lives today. Few philosophies have had greater impact on literature and the arts than existentialism, with its overarching emphasis on human freedom. Existentialism was one of the leading philosophical movements of the twentieth century. Focusing on its seven leading figures, Sartre, Nietzsche, Heidegger, Kierkegaard, de Beauvoir, Merleau-Ponty and Camus, this Very Short Introduction provides a clear account of the key themes of the movement which emphasized individuality, free will, and personal responsibility in the modern world. Drawing in the movement`s varied relationships with the arts, humanism, and politics, this book clarifies the philosophy and original meaning of `existentialism` - which has tended to be obscured by misappropriation. Placing it in its historical context, Thomas Flynn also highlights how existentialism is still relevant to us today.