An Existentialist Meaning of L
Arguably one of the most pondered questions in philosophical thought has been, "What is the meaning of life?" Humans have been put on this earth with the knowledge of self awareness and the ability to manipulate the environments that they inhabit to a greater extent than any other species on the planet. Ultimately one must wonder what purpose there is to one's own existence and define what it means for them to be. Presupposing the existence of different human beings in the external world, there would undoubtedly be varying opinions regarding the ultimate purpose of existence. Several key thinkers in modern existentialism provide the necessary framework for establishing a so-called "meaning of life". Marcel, Sartre, Heidegger and Camus, refer to the theoretical frameworks of subjectivity, freedom, responsibility and purpose, in modern existentialism. With reference to the theoretical frameworks, established by these reputable thinkers, one could propose an answer to the age old question, "What is the meaning of life?". That being, the meaning of life is "to live a good a good life". The existence of the external world and other human beings: Perhaps Descartes made the most powerful argument in the form of the Cogito, w
hen he stated, "I think therefore I am." Historically, the certainty of the external world has been called into question, at various times, in philosophical thought. The whole Platonic tradition is one such example. Camus carries this notion a step further by saying, "This heart within me I can feel, and judge that it exist. This world I can touch, and likewise I judge that it exists. There ends all my knowledge, and the rest is construction." (Camus, pg. 19) Sartre elaborates on this point claiming, "Contrary to the philosophy of Descartes, contrary to the philosophy of Kant, when we say "I think" we are attaining to ourselves in the presence of the other, and we are just as certain of the other as we are of ourselves." (Sartre, pg. 45) Even if one were to accept Descartes evil genius hypothesis, they would still have to admit that beings in the outside world still affect them. Regardless of whether other human beings are actually "real"or not is irrelevant, since we would still have to treat them as such. The consequences of not doing so would inevitably be similar one way or the other. For example, if I decided to go about shooting everyone at random, claiming that I am the only real human being on the planet, I would inevitably be thrown in a psychiatric prison. Besides, existentialists would not waste their intellectual efforts arguing about the existence of the external world, and beings of comparable consciousness to one's self, in it. Although this was a central question in philosophy for some time, it is now generally regarded as nonsense. (Madison, Sept. 17, 1998) "Assured of his temporally limited freedom..and of his moral consciousness, he lives out his adventure within the span of his lifetime." (Camus, pg. 66) By first balancing freedom and responsibility, one can establish purpose and more closely define what it subjectively means to live a good life. Although the exact details of each individual's purpose may be different, the ends are essentially the same. Everyone should strive to ensure that they live a good life and take efforts to ensure that other individuals do the same. Marcel, Gabriel (1962) Man Against Mass Society Chicago: Regnery Gateway inc.
Some common words found in the essay are:
Madison Sept, Madison Dec, Republic VI, Madison Oct, Heidegger Camus, God Technology, , Gabriel Marcel, Madison Nov, Sartre Camus, sartre pg, meaning life, camus pg, external world, one's own, madison sept, madison dec, heidegger pg, marcel pg, assert freedom, existence external world, dec 3 1998, madison sept 24, madison dec 3, sartre pg 45,
Approximate Word count = 3624
Approximate Pages = 14 (250 words per page double spaced)
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