How to Find Meaning in the Meaningless: The Things They Carried and Existentialist Philosophy
This course for high school and college students explores one of the defining pieces of literature on the Vietnam War, Tim O’Brien’s The Things They Carried, through the lens of existentialism. Each module contains a video lecture, writing/discussion prompts, and readings from existentialist philosophers, such as Camus, Kierkegaard, and more. Students will learn how to make meaning for their lives and hear a veteran’s perspective on why stories help us construct identities through trauma.
The book can be purchased cheaply through Amazon or borrowed for free from your local library.
(18 modules—$39)
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What does it all mean?
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What are the burdens we carry through our lives?
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What happens when love isn’t reciprocated?
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What stories do we tell ourselves to survive?
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How do we decide what choices to make?
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What is the line between friend and enemy?
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How do we tell the truth if the truth is too complicated to explain?
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How do we sometimes deceive ourselves?
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What does it mean to ‘find yourself’?
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How do we know the ‘right’ thing to do?
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Why does our world sometimes seem not to make any sense?
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How can we move on from tragedy?
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Should we revisit bad memories?
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What are the dangers of focusing on vengeance instead of forgiveness?
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What keeps us from giving up?
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How might stories save our lives?
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How do we make life worth it?
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Retake this course?
Retaking this course from the beginning will reset all of your tracked progress.