Schopenhauer
Apr 05, 2005Arthur Schopenhauer, the great Nineteenth Century philosopher, had a pessimistic vision of the world as "will and idea.
Arthur Schopenhauer, the great Nineteenth Century philosopher, had a pessimistic vision of the world as "will and idea.
The ancients believed in an enchanted universe – a universe suffused with meaning and purpose.
Does life have a meaning? If we were created by a powerful God, would that give our lives meaning?
All there is in the world is physical stuff. That is the fundamental assumption of the materialist standpoint, and the picture given to us by science.
Albert Camus is most famous for his existential works of fiction including The Stranger as well as his philosophical essay The Myth of Sisyphus.
Imagine that the world will end in thirty days. Would your life have meaning anymore? Would anyone’s?
Arthur Schopenhauer, the great Nineteenth Century philosopher, had a pessimistic vision of the world as "will and idea.
The ancients believed in an enchanted universe – a universe suffused with meaning and purpose.
Does life have a meaning? If we were created by a powerful God, would that give our lives meaning?
All there is in the world is physical stuff. That is the fundamental assumption of the materialist standpoint, and the picture given to us by science.
Albert Camus is most famous for his existential works of fiction including The Stranger as well as his philosophical essay The Myth of Sisyphus.
Imagine that the world will end in thirty days. Would your life have meaning anymore? Would anyone’s?
Comments (1)
Harold G. Neuman
Friday, August 11, 2017 -- 10:11 AM
Taking walks and readingTaking walks and reading philosophy have always been favored pass times for me. These and other undirected, unintended, or non-essential activities are superb for recharging one's batteries. Meaning has been re-invented so many times that it is often mistaken for a new and trendy outlook (i.e., social media "friendships"; text-messaging; mindless video games, and so on...). In a recent paper on language and meaning, my friend, P.D. Van Pelt offered the following notion regarding what is (or is not) meaningful, saying in essence: meaning is whatever we believe it to be, in the moment or according to current popular/populist opinion(s). This is not to say that ALL meaning is now plasticized and malleable to the wishes of each of us. But, meaning does change, for better or worse. I skipped the midlife crisis. It seemed like a waste of time AND effort better expended on something, uh, meaningful. If you know what I mean...