| The Meaning of Life
Current mood:  restless This is it. The answer to the great question. What a way to recognise the new year by answering the whole point of why we (some of us) get up and battle through the days. If you seem to think into things too much - then you're probably as bored and demotivated as I am. However if after you read this, you gain just a speck of motivation to keep going in life, then I've done my job. And by the way the meaning of life (unfortunately) is not music. Anyways - here it is: The meaning of life in all its rugged glory. ENJOY!
The Meaningless Life
The meaning of life has been debated amongst philosophers for many years and remains one of the most universally popular discussions in philosophy. A popular theory about the meaning of life is that life is absurd. According to Thomas Nagel, most people occasionally believe that life is absurd but fail to provide any adequate arguments in defence of this (Nagel, 1979). In this essay, I will identify both Nagel and Albert Camus' arguments and motives for the absurdity of life and contest Camus' theory. In conclusion this will provide an enlightening insight into an explanation of life. Nagel's motivation for the absurdity of life is drawn from three common examples that, according to Nagel, are inadequate in explaining how life is absurd, however the examples do serve as natural expressions of this absurdity (Nagel, 1979). The first is the future insignificance example which states that nothing we do in the present will matter a million years from now. Nagel refutes this by stating that if nothing we do now matters in a million years, then nothing that matters in a million years matters now. The second is the dwarfing argument stating we are merely a speck in the vastness of the universe (Nagel, 1979). Nagel states that even if we weren't dwarfed by the universe, then that would not make our lives any less absurd. The third example is the death argument that states that nothing we do in life matters because we die. However Nagel states that this supposes that the meaning of life is found in some final end from which all is directed. Nagel then identifies his proper explanation about the absurdity of life stating that the absurdity of life is present in the idea that we adopt a transcendental point of view and witness things sub specie aeternitatis (from the aspect of eternity). This method of detaching oneself from life and surveying it is a human attribute. By doing this, we see our lives as not only sober but also comical and ironic. Nagel continues to state that we can also question the point of human endeavour and God in much the same way. Therefore from this point of view, all meaning we have given to life disappears. Nagel refers to the original "examples" of life being absurd stating that they express an aspect of absurdity. Albert Camus' motivation for the absurdity of life is drawn from the mythological story of Sisyphus, who created a deceit that allowed him to escape from the underworld. When he was eventually captured, the Gods decided on a punishment. Sisyphus was required to push a large rock up a steep hill, only to have it roll back down again near the very top, requiring Sisyphus to start over, ad infinitum. Camus' interpretation likened Sisyphus' plight to the everyday lives of people working futile jobs. He states that the distress and tragedy of this plight is only noticed in the rare moments this becomes conscious. This could be referred to the supposed thoughts of Sisyphus as he is walking back down the hill to start over. Camus reflects that "all is well" (1955) and that Sisyphus is happy and just keeps pushing because he has accepted the futility of the task is beyond doubt and that the certainty of his fate gives him the ability to recognise the absurdity of his situation and accept it. Camus states that 'scorn' is the appropriate response to the absurdity of life. Both Nagel and Camus agree that life is ultimately meaningless. However Nagel argues that Camus' motivation is much too negative and argues that it is not the absurdity that makes our lives wretched, as Camus suggests, and implies that this is a consequence as humans transcend themselves into thought. Nagel concludes that the idea that nothing matters, doesn't ultimately matter. The only thing that really matters is our own subjective point of view. Thus Nagel's motivation for the "meaning" of life is that people are motivated to find their own meaning based on what matters to them. Camus' theory seems to assume that all people become conscious about the meaningless of life and take an agonising and negative approach, like when Sisyphus is walking back down the hill in the myth. However, Nagel's theory seems more realistic as people may not find any part of their subjective view of life as futile at all, therefore we must adopt Nagel's conclusion rather than Camus'. Both Nagel and Camus' agree that life is meaningless. However, Camus' theory assumes that all people find their lives at least futile at some point and become conscious about the meaningless of life. Nagel's theory about viewing things sub specie aeternitatis allows people to take an ironic look at life and create their own meaning based on what is important to them, as viewing things in this way allows all meaning of life disappears. | 
