Humans are born, make decisions through life, and then die.
In this life, the decisions that are made define who we are. Through trials and
tribulations decisions made dictate the outcome, whether that is a positive or
negative outcome remains in the eye of the beholder. Philosophers have
squandered the beginning of life in every aspect imaginable, to develop an
explanation for “the meaning” of life. From mathematical equations explaining
the possibilities of movement to earthly elements of air and water being the
basis for life, proposed theories of the beginning were set to set the
foundations for this meaning of life.
After the foundation of WHERE
humans came from became more concrete with reason and logic, further questions developed
as to WHY humans have a life. Two
primary theories developed as to how we can answer the questions to the meaning
of life. The first theory is humans must go through the stages in life to find
a constant, which will deliver us our self -gratification and a fulfilled life.
The other theory is that instead of finding our constant, we must undergo
choices that force change and allow us to grow. Whether you take life on to
find the constant or growth in it, both theories illustrate that one must live
a life through obstacles to find meaning in it. Based on the challenges and
choices made, true meaning for the life lived will be revealed.
Through time, everything changes. In a simple sense, fashion
and technology change radically every year. However, more complex ideals take
longer to change, and sometimes, not necessarily for the better. Take the way
humans learn as an example. Days long ago, students learned primarily though
word of mouth form there teachers and with the aid of books. In today's
classroom however, there is a push with technology to make learning more
proficient with the use of computers, laptops, and tablets. The problem with
changing the medium in which we learn is that computer screens cause a dumbing
down effect. Screens cause a different chemical reaction in the brain and so
the information is stored differently, which makes whatever was learned easily
dismissed and forgotten.
With the changing of the times, because the way
we learn has changed the way that we view life has also changed. Our priorities
are different and so, the life that we live is different. To test this theory
of mine, set this scenario yourself. Go a week without your modern technologies
and see how different your everyday normalcy changes. Most people in today’s society would not be
able to survive with out the comfort and artificial security that these devices
provide. The new meaning of life is so dependent upon our devices because it is
more comfortable to have them. Everything is instant, fast, and easy so that
life is easier to live, but does this necessarily make life easier or harder.
Can we truly find the meaning to life, or find who we are through endless hours
of Google searches and Wikipedia?
The "real answer" to life
The "Answer" according to Raymond
By: Eric Hebert
Like you, in my blog I wrote about “The Meaning of Life.” I really enjoyed reading your post although it is a lot different than what mine is. I believe you put your thoughts together very well and it was not hard to understand the point you were trying to express. As I read yours though, I see that you have chosen to write more about why humans are a life and the two primary theories developed as to how we can answer the questions to the meaning of life, which is very different than what I decided write about. I choose to write mine about what the meaning of life was according to me and according to ancient philosophies such as the Greek Philosophy and the East Asian Philosophy and religions views such as Christian and Muslim. In case you haven’t read mine; in my opinion the meaning of life is being complete and done what I wanted to do during my life time. What about you, what is life’s meaning according to you? Another difference between our two blogs is the videos we included. The recordings you have chosen are from a show and a movie, and they are very humors, while the video that I posted is a documentary which asked everyday people about what their opinion was on the meaning of life. However, we do have one similarity and that is the picture of the two guys having a dialog, which I found very funny. In the end, there is not right or wrong answer, but I am glad that I learned about the meaning of life according to different people and different views.
ReplyDeleteBy Nevena Ronell (group3)
I like what your thoughts have brought to me as a reader from reading this blog. I wrote about what the general meaning of life was by it being determined by the philosophers, to people, and everyone beliefs from time to time. The video choices were great, and I always love to read comic pictures. You have gotten personal with the your blog, I did not get to personal because I was not really speaking on what I believe more so over to where I was agreeing how everyone's reason had a form of similarity with each other. What ever can strive your life and that you can explain your strive to someone else for them to relate and create their own strive and happiness for life to have some sort of meaning. It very opinionated, we all know there is no right or wrong answer just a lot of different ways to approach this question that one day will have an answer. Thanks for writing and I enjoyed reading
ReplyDeleteBy Samuel Jones (group 2)
I thought there were a lot of really good points in this section of the blog and it focused on a different aspect of the question than I did in my post on the same topic. The only thing I thought it lacked was examples of we have learned about over the course to support the opinion stated. For example, according to the ancient Greek philosophy, in Platonism, the meaning of life is in attaining the highest form of knowledge. Human beings are duty-bound to pursue the good. According to the East Asian philosophy, Legalism, finding the purpose of life was a meaningless effort. These kinds of examples help define the big picture and show diversity among different cultures throughout time. This question was difficult because it is very opinion based, but it definitely leaves room for some comparisons of how the meaning of life has changed. The meaning of life has to do with each person’s individual interpretation but usually is closely tied with one’s religion. I personally think “the meaning of life” doesn’t have much to do with technology but I do see the point that was made in that it aids in hindering deep intellectual thought. It seemed as though this section supported the idea that because of technology and everyone being used to things happening so fast and instant, it makes it less likely for people to sit down and think about what their meaning of life is and goals in life. I can agree with that and I think in order to have a meaningful life, you need to define what you feel makes your life meaningful and strive to achieve whatever that is. I really liked where it said “one must live a life through obstacles to find meaning in it.” That is something I had not thought of and I think it’s a very good point. One of my favorite sayings has a similar message: “Don’t pray for life to be easy, but pray for yourself to be strong.” Overall, it was a good article and I loved the Everybody Loves Raymond video at the end. It added humor and made the topic more enjoyable to read about.
ReplyDelete