David Egan Philosophy

Online Philosophy Courses

Life is busy. Our days get so filled with practical matters that we can lose sight of the bigger picture. Philosophy is about getting that bigger picture in view and examining it carefully.

I offer ten-week online courses where we discuss important works of philosophy from the ancient world to the present and across a range of philosophical traditions. We meet once per week for 75 minutes over Zoom. These meetings are accompanied by asynchronous video lectures, usually 30 to 50 minutes in length.

My aim isn’t simply to teach philosophy but to create a community where we learn together. The principle that inspires our discussion classes is simple: Socrates discovered 2400 years ago that the best method for doing philosophy is in conversation. The weekly video lectures provide expert guidance, unpacking the arguments and framing the issues for discussion. But those lectures are just a prelude to the main event: a structured conversation between curious and open minds.

These courses don’t promise any practical benefit. The point is to step back from our practical concerns and inquire into the “big questions” about life and its purpose that the demands of daily life so often distract us from.

Summer Courses

How Should We Live? Answers from the Modern World

REMOTE VIRTUAL COURSE

We live in a world of abundant possibility. More than at any other time in history, people are free to choose how to live. But with this luxury of choice comes the burden of decision. How do I know if I’m living right? And how might I find meaning in my life at all? 

In the first half of this course, we confront the question of meaning head-on. We examine arguments that life is fundamentally absurd and consider proposals for how we might find meaning in the modern world. In the second half of the course, we look at thinkers who draw inspiration from ancient traditions and adapt them to the demands of the modern world.

This course is designed to be accessible to people with no prior training in philosophy.

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The Story of Your Life: Life and Narrative

Location: Vancouver, Canada

People sometimes think about their own lives in terms of an unfolding story and make sense of events in their lives by situating them within that narrative. Biographies, autobiographies, and fictions also present lives in narrative form. But what is the relation between a life as lived and the form of a narrative? Are our lives essentially story-shaped? Or could it be that we fundamentally misrepresent our lives when we think about them in this way? What determines whether the stories we tell ourselves are truthful and how strong is the tendency to self-deception? And how do we adapt when the stories we tell ourselves come undone?

This weekend intensive course will take place in person in Vancouver, Canada.

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View sample video lectures from past courses

Past Student Experience

Course Price

Pricing assistance available for a limited number of spots. See FAQs for more information.

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