No Excuses: Existentialism and the Meaning of Life

By: Robert C. Solomon, The Great Courses

Narrated by: Robert C. Solomon

What is life? What is my place in it? What choices do these questions obligate me to make? More than a half-century after it burst upon the intellectual scene - with roots that extend to the mid-19th century - Existentialism's quest to answer these most fundamental questions of individual responsibility, morality, and personal freedom has continued to exert a profound attraction.

Now, in a series of 24 probing and thoughtful lectures, you can enrich your own understanding of this unique philosophical wave, the visionary thinkers it brought together to ponder and debate these questions, and the prominent role it still plays in contemporary thought.

"Existentialism is, in my view, the most exciting and important philosophical movement of the past century and a half," says Professor Solomon. "Fifty years after the French philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre gave it its identity and 150 years after the Danish philosopher Søren Kierkegaard gave it its initial impetus, it continues to win new enthusiasts and, in keeping with its still exciting and revolutionary message, vehement critics." Plumbing both sides of the debate, these lectures examine a wide range of Existentialist thought. You'll be exposed to the religious approach of Kierkegaard; the bold fiction of Camus; the warrior rhetoric and often-shocking claims about religion and morality posed by Nietzsche; the radical and uncompromising notion of freedom championed by Sartre; and the searching analysis of human historicity and finitude offered by Martin Heidegger. And you'll encounter the reluctance - often angrily expressed - of many of Existentialism's major figures to be thought of as part of any philosophical movement or even as intellectual allies!

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying reference material will be available in your Library section along with the audio.

©2000 The Teaching Company, LLC (P)2000 The Great Courses

Brilliant Life changing

Where does No Excuses: Existentialism and the Meaning of Life rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

For non-fiction it is one of the best I've listened to. Clear, interesting.

What was the most compelling aspect of this narrative?

It explains a complicated subject surrounded by much colloquial mystery simply. It also gives philosophical reasons why we really don't have excuses and why doing what we need to do just is...so get on with it!

What does Professor Robert C. Solomon bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Intonation and some personal comments that give thoughtful support

What’s the most interesting tidbit you’ve picked up from this book?

A clear explanation of what this philosophy actual is and how it really applies to normal modern life

Any additional comments?

It changed my life and when I start over thinking things, wondering why something is, I listen to parts of it and feel much better about what choices I have and that I just need to get on with it. Being human isn't as complicated as we make out sometimes!

Great introduction to Existentialism

Pros of the lectures:
- intuitive examples
- connects each philosopher's work with another
- full of insights for present day

The most memorable part is about Sartre ideas about choice, particularly that we can choose our emotions at any given moment.

However I found the ideas of nothingness a bit complicated to grasp in the first listening. I confess I had to go back to a few chapters a couple of times. For which the Audible version is very convenient.

Overall I highly recommend these lectures!

Great Overview

Great exposition of the thrusts of Camus and Kierkegaard and a fair rehabilitation of Nietzsche. After a minor glossing over Kafka, Hesse, Dostoevsky, and Husserl, the thrust of the course is on Sartre by way of Heidegger. Solomon's explanation of Heideggar and his development of phenomenology fell flat for me and made the ensuing exploration of Sartre that much more difficult. That said, I do find that I am able to grasp Sartre much better than I did before listening to this but so much more can still be expounded upon that the time allotted here is not quite enough. Overall, Solomon seems a capable and knowledgeable expert that thankfully stays on topic with an even delivery. An excellent course and it is just as likely the shortcomings I encountered were my own and not Solomon's.

Real, and Practical ...as should be expected.

Nietzsche, Kierkegaard, Sartre, and Camus explained in great detail with excerpts and notes on "The Myth of Sisyphus" and "The Stranger" (my favorites). The lectures focus on how these great thinkers relate to and compliment each other despite their differing views on other matters. A down-to-earth and at times funny explanation of existentialism and why it's still relevant after the great wars.

Solomon Delivers

Solomon gives an engaging tour through existentialism. He is clear, passionate, and deeply knowledgeable. I did wish, though, he incorporated (any?) direct quotes from these authors. If he did, they were so few and far between that my impression is one of pure interpretation without more grounding in the literature itself. Again, this is seriously top notch interpretation, so this doesn't detract much.