HSS658-Organized Loneliness in the 21st Century

The course is an attempt to understand the phenomenal dimension of loneliness and examine contemporary loneliness—its causes and consequences. Through texts from political theory, literature and Philosophy, we begin with the fundamental concern of what is loneliness and where does it stem from? What are the different kinds of loneliness? How do we distinguish loneliness from alienation, isolation, and Existential solitude? We examine loneliness as a structural condition of modern subjectivity.

The course participants will be able to grasp the philosophical underpinnings of loneliness and its historical transformations and its various dimensions. They will be able to examine how loneliness intersects with equity and systems—economic, technological, bureaucratic, cultural and ideological—that produce and sustain loneliness in the guise of freedom, productivity, and connectivity. Drawing from various philosophic traditions we shall dwell on developing perspectives on belonging, social inclusion and connectedness that can serve as an antidote to the epidemic of mass loneliness.