Update: Info about the Spring 2025 class can be found here.
This fall, Mark Linsenmayer, your Partially Examined Life host, will be remotely teaching a new class: The Big Books of Continental Philosophy. You’ll get to sample some of the weirdest, most stylistically baffling, and (I think) most fun books in the philosophical canon. The course is discussion-oriented, with sections of not more than 20 people, and is beginner-friendly.
When is it?
The class consists of a 1 hr, 15 min Zoom call every other week starting in late August and running through mid December. These three section times are currently on offer:
- Fridays 5:30pm US Eastern Time/2:30pm US Pacific Time
- Saturdays 11:30am ET/8:30am PT
- Mondays 1pm ET/10am PT
- Wednesdays 10am ET/7am PT
How do I sign up?
Enroll now at partiallyexaminedlife.com/enrollment.
What are the readings? We will read a manageable selection from the following books (the dates indicate the range of section times currently offered):
- Aug. 23/24/26/28: Hegel’s Phenomenology of Spirit: Self-Consciousness and Master/Slave
- Sep. 6/7/9/11: Schopenhauer’s The World as Will and Representation on Will
- Sep. 20/21/23/25: Kierkegaard’s Fear & Trembling
- Oct. 4/5/7/9: Nietzsche’s Thus Spoke Zarathustra
- Oct. 18/19/21/23: Heidegger’s Being & Time on Dasein (the human condition)
- Nov. 1/2/4*/6*: Sartre’s Being & Nothingness: Nothingness and Bad Faith
- Nov. 15/16/18/20: Merleau-Ponty’s Phenomenology of Perception: The Body
- Sat. Nov. 30/Mon. Dec. 2/Wed. Dec. 4/Fri. Dec. 6**: Camus’ An Absurd Reasoning/Myth of Sisyphus
- Dec. 13/14/16/18: Arendt on the Banality of Evil (Eichmann in Jerusalem)
*International students: Please note that daylight savings time in the US ends prior to the Nov. 4/6 classes. Our clocks fall back, which means your class will be an hour later starting that week unless you have some change yourself, which may not happen on the same day as it does in the US.
**Friday Nov. 29 is the day after Thanksgiving, and I’m not planning on holding class that day. Instead (and this may go for the Saturday session that week too, and for any cases where illness or other issues prevent a session from happening), this session will be held one week later (Dec. 6) at the same time.
Do I actually have to read them? Is there homework? Tests?
Each week has at least one PEL episode associated with it, and I expect you to listen and have some thoughts. You should also try to at least start the readings to get a flavor. The more you’re able to read, the more you’ll learn.
Study questions will be provided. If you’d like feedback on your writing or one-on-one time, you can purchase one-off tutoring sessions (typically $50 for the first hour, negotiated after that).
What if I can’t make it to one or more of the sessions?
Each session is recorded; you can watch them according to your schedule. Too much going on that week? Just skip it and come to the next one, or come to one of the other scheduled sessions that week.
How much does it cost?
$300 for the course. (If this is too steep for you, contact me about a possible payment plan or discount.)
I also expect you to maintain an active PEL Citizenship (whether through our website, Patreon, or Apple) through the duration of the class (so $5/month), as some of the episodes you’ll need to listen to are paywalled, and our Discord server used for optional additional discussion is also restricted to supporters.
Do I have to have taken your Core Texts in Philosophy class? Can I take that instead?
No, and no. I do plan on teaching that course again, but this is definitely not a continuation of that, and should be equally friendly to beginners as that course was. In both cases, the readings are not easy, whether for beginners or even experienced students, but like the podcast, this course is designed so that even a beginner should be able to get some insight into them, and the experience of reading first hand even a short amount of text is very valuable.
Are these classes actually any good?
Here are just a few quotes from last semester’s students:
- “This was the first philosophy class I have taken… Our class has left me with a feeling of success and hunger for more.” -Molly M.
- “It was something I really looked forward to and enjoyed… I also think the price was good, as in, I feel like I got real value from each lesson.” -Eran F.
- “The readings were excellent… the right length for us to get a flavor and understanding of the authors and key concepts while also being manageable.” -Roger D.
- “I owe you a debt of gratitude… You know way more about philosophy than most professors… I appreciated how you encouraged students to share and how you expanded on their thoughts.” – Renee S.
- “My goal with taking this course was to get back in the habit of reading Philosophy and continue to sharpen my critical thinking skills. I’ve definitely achieved that… Your ability to connect anything anyone had to say back to the reading is simply awesome. As well as your facilitation of discussion at large.” -Ben D.