Simone de Beauvoir wrote on an immense scale, so this two-hour talk-seminar offers a focused way in. Through five accessible themes, you’ll explore key ideas from her life and work without getting lost in the sheer size of her output.

The course looks at questions of purpose, mortality, philosophy as a way of life, sex and freedom, while keeping the emphasis on connection, discussion and clarity. An inviting introduction for anyone curious about Beauvoir’s thought and its continuing relevance.

DELIVERY MODE

Face to face

COURSE OUTLINE

What Simone says about:

• Living with existential meaning and direction - and of course Second sex,
• Memoirs and omission,
• Facilitated seminar discussion.

LEARNING OUTCOMES

At the conclusion of this course, students should be able to:

• Grasp a practical perspective on a ground-breaking writer of the Twentieth Century.

COURSE RESOURCES/SUGGESTED READING

• A Very Easy Death (1964) – Une morte tres douce, Pantheon NY, ISBN 0394728998
  (Do try and read this – takes about a day)
• Memoirs of a Dutiful Daughter (1959) – Penguin London
• Force of Circumstances (1964) - Penguin London
• Toril  Moi, The Making of an Intellectual Woman - 2nd edition (2008) -Oxford Uni Press