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Great Thinkers Series: Modern and Contemporary Western Thought

5 weekly sessions, on Wednesdays at 6 - 8pm, starting from Wednesday 21 January.

Overview

Have you ever wondered how the world’s greatest thinkers shaped the way we understand truth, morality, existence, and the meaning of life? For the Great Thinkers Series: Thinkers from Western and Eastern Philosophical Traditions invites you on a journey across centuries and continents to explore humanity’s most profound questions through the eyes of philosophers from various traditions.

This three-part series introduces students to influential philosophers and philosophical traditions from both Western and Eastern contexts. Each term concentrates on key thinkers and ideas that have shaped human understanding of knowledge, ethics, reality, and the human condition. Students will critically engage with primary texts and scholarly interpretations, fostering cross-cultural philosophical literacy and analytical skills.

Through lively discussions, close readings of classic texts, and thoughtful debate, you will engage with diverse perspectives and discover surprising connections between East and West.

This course expands on the foundations by exploring key figures in modern and contemporary Western philosophy. It examines shifts towards existentialism, phenomenology, critical theory, and postmodernism.

  • Analyse the evolution of Western thought from Enlightenment rationalism to 20th-century critiques.
  • Critically compare competing perspectives on freedom, existence, and knowledge.
  • Connect philosophical ideas with historical and social context

What happens when reason is questioned, tradition is overturned, and thinkers dare to imagine new ways of living and knowing? Modern and Contemporary Western Thought guides you through the heart of philosophical revolutions that transformed how we comprehend truth, freedom, power, and existence itself. From the critique of reason to challenging morality, calls for radical social change and explorations of power, this course explores the ideas that shaped politics, culture, and daily life. Alongside classic voices, you’ll encounter decolonial perspectives that urge us to ask: whose knowledge matters? If you’re ready to challenge assumptions and view the world differently, this course invites you to think boldly and critically.

Syllabus

Rationality and Its Limits

  • 19th Century: Hegel’s Phenomenology
  • Wollstonecraft: A key feminist response to Enlightenment thought

Existence, Freedom, and Meaning

  • Existential faith: Kierkegaard
  • Existentialism: Sartre

Society, Power, and Revolution

  • Postmodern: Frantz Fanon

Course lecturer

Dr Shereen Hamed Shaw is a Senior Lecturer and researcher at Edge Hill University's Faculty of Education. She holds a double honours BA in English & Comparative Literature and Philosophy from AUC, an MA in Philosophy and Literature from UEA, and a PhD in Philosophy from the University of Liverpool. With experience teaching across secondary, further, and higher education in the UK and the Middle East, her work bridges the gap between philosophy and education, enriching both fields. She is the author of Britishness, Identity and Belonging in Education: Social Justice in Troubling Times. (2024) Springer Nature.

Course fee

  • Standard fee: £80
  • Concession fee: £40