1. the existentialist style of philosophizing / what is existentialism? / some recurring themes in existentialsim / diversity among the existentialists / existentialsim and phenomenology / existentialism distinguished from some related types of philosophy -- 2. existentialism and the history of philosophy / the hermeneutics of myth and the dawn of self-understanding / ancient philosophy / from the rise of Christianity to the middle ages / reformation, renaissance, and enlightenment / modern existentialism -- the nineteenth and twentieth centuries -- 3. the idea of existence / essence and existence / how some existentialsists understand the word 'existence' / basic structures of existence / the possibility of existential analysis -- 4. existence and world / existence adn environment / the everyday world / the worlds of science, art, and religion / the body / space and time / nature -- 5. existence and other / being-with-others as fundamentally characterizing existence / interpersonal relations / the body and the other, with special reference to sexuality / inauthentic and authentic being-with-others -- 6. knowledge and understanding / existentialism and epistemology / understanding, projecting, interpreting / the forms of knowing / the problem of truth -- 7. thought and language / thinking / language / the limits of thought and language -- 8. feeling / feeling and philosophy / some general remarks on feeling / anxiety / some other important affects -- 9. action / the existent as agent / freedom / decision and choice -- 10. finitude and guilt / the facticity of existence / death / temporality / guilt and alienation -- 11. in quest of authentic existence / the problem of a true humanity / conscience / the attainment of selfhood -- 12. history and society / from individual existence to the history of mankind / conflicting thoughts on history among existentialist philosophers / existentialism as social and political critique -- 13. existentialist metaphysics / metaphysical dimensions of existentialism / from existence to being / the search for ultimate reality / the desitny of the individual -- 14. existentialist influence in the arts and sciences / philosophy and culture / existentialsim, psychology, and psychiatry / existentialism and education / existentialsim and literature /existentialism and the visual arts/ existentialism and ethics / existentialism and theology -- 15. an evaluation of existentialsim / some criticisms considered / concluding remarks.