The Meaning, Structure and Purpose of Life

Moliere once said, â€Å"We only die once†¦and for so long!†[1] of all the subjects that have remained unclear and marred by uncertainty is the subject of life and death. Very many people have tried to understand what life is and the purpose of our existence on earth. However, there has never been summative explanation generally accepted by all.Advertising We will write a custom research paper sample on The Meaning, Structure and Purpose of Life specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The only thing that remains generally and undoubtedly acceptable is that there is inevitable death and that it is appropriate to prepare for it. This paper tries to explain the meaning, structure and purpose of life. It draws from different writings and personal philosophy and revelation. The question of the meaning of life can be discussed from various perspectives (Christiansen, Baum Bass-Haugen, 2005). Down history lane, the question has bee n a topic of argument from philosophers, in religious cycles, in science and even personal motivations. In ancient Greek philosophy, Plato argued that life is nothing but the pursuit of the apex of knowledge. From this knowledge, the definition of good can be established. It is from this definition that one derives value of goodness and justness. He argued that it is the moral responsibility of man to pursue good. However, it is not possible to attain the apex of this knowledge without applying philosophical reasoning. To Plato, this is the meaning of life. He believes that man came into existence in order to promote good through philosophical reasoning that would later lead to knowledge. Looking into this argument, it is clear that virtuous living forms the foundation of Plato’s argument. It is true that man has a moral obligation of striving towards good. This could be the explanation of what happens when one veers of this moral avenue. Due to the defiance of the original e xpectations and purpose of life, life becomes difficult and unbearable. This argument can be developed further based on philosophers of the Hellenistic period (Seaman, 2005). On their part, Hellenistic philosophers argued that life was nothing but a pursuit of virtues that are compatible with nature. They further argued that it is the sole responsibility of a person to be self sufficient and to hold the reigns of his mental attitude. They argued that happiness would only be achieved if individuals learnt to understand nature and what it expected of them. They would only attain happiness if they were taught on how to control their mental attitudes. They argued against the pursuit of happiness through wealth, fame and power. It is clear that both Plato and the Hellenistic philosophers agree to one point which is the desire for good.Advertising Looking for research paper on religion theology? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More They both believe that the moral obligation of man is to ensure that they strived to achieve goodness. However, their arguments on how this good is acquired are where the difference comes. While Plato believes that good can be attained only through knowledge which is only attained from philosophical reasoning, Hellenistic philosophers argue that good entailed acting upon factors that help the individual to stay in compatibility with nature (Marcellino, 1996). My conception of meaning and purpose of life can be derived from both arguments. I believe that life is founded on the fulcrum of virtue. Virtue, which, according to Hellenistic philosophers is acting in the natural human ways, is the same as good which according to Plato leads to knowledge that would lead an individual into attaining relevant skills for existence on this earth. In the contemporary picture, one can realize that it is natural that an individual learns how to cope in the world. It is necessary that one learns what is necessary in this short life. For instance, one should have the ability to identify the role of simple things in the general pursuit of happiness. Simple actions like helping an old man cross a road, contributing to charity, volunteering to work in orphanages, sending Christmas gifts to the poor, et cetera are actions that bring great satisfaction and sense of happiness within an individual. I therefore tend to believe that man was originally created to be just and virtuous. This argument position is consistent with both the Hellenistic philosophers and Plato. I argue that happiness is derived from doing small things as mentioned earlier. It is therefore not about how much wealth one has but about how much heart one has. This is what the Hellenistic philosophers argue. Of how much benefit will it be to own the whole world when deep inside of you the feeling of guilt and social irresponsibility haunts you? How would one feel if he had everything he needed, a lot of money, luxury car s, real estates et cetera but if he knows that the money was gotten from oppression and theft that subjected some people to sorrow? Without doubt, the person will feel the guilt. He will feel the pain deep inside. A small voice will keep screaming to him whenever he sees the agony of the people he oppressed before landing the wealth. This has meaning. It is a clear indication that life is originally virtuous. Virtue is not meant to be for life but life is virtue itself. Deviation from virtue is as good as deviation from life. One cannot be able to live comfortably if he does not conform to virtue. Trying to live outside of virtue is like trying to live without life. Impossible! Life is virtue. There is a design to life. There is some formula that must be adhered to for any chances of happiness and deep satisfaction. A design or model offers guidelines upon which something can be defined (Hua, 2003; Baggini, 2004). As Hellenistic philosophers argue, happiness can be achieved if human beings try to live natural to human beings (Walker, 2000). This statement carries a lot of weight in my conception of the design of life. The originator of life gave a definite design to this phenomenon.Advertising We will write a custom research paper sample on The Meaning, Structure and Purpose of Life specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More There is an aspect of naturalness that must be adhered to. This naturalness is maybe what we are calling virtue. But there is a design which, to me, is incompatible with every artificial thing. It has been argued in almost every quarter of the society that money is the root cause of every problems of man. On its part, industrialization has led to development of certain diseases directly or indirectly. The same industrialization has led to destroyed ozone layer leading to global warming that has led to diseases, hunger, flooding, et cetera. Human philosophy and cultural beliefs that do not have th eir roots in the original designers’ expectations have led to problems within human circles. For instance, the definition of success has led capitalism and individualism, which are not within the original design. Deviation from the design would automatically lead to strife. This brings up the question of alienation. Charlton (2002) argues that human beings feel alienated from the world. They tend to find themselves as strangers in a world that is also strange to them. They feel like they don’t belong in this world. It is like they were dropped here by some one who later left them without telling them where they are or what they are supposed to do. It is evident that this feeling has assumed an upward trend in the contemporary times (Kubler-Ross, 1969). Why is it that more people than ever are continuously getting to see life as a meaningless venture that is incomprehensible and a riddle that cannot be solved. What was it in the older days that people lived satisfactori ly without much ado? Borrowing from Charlton’s argument, the feeling of alienation is an, â€Å"accidental and harmful side effect of useful mental abilities†[2]. These mental abilities are a result of man’s adaptation to survival. Charlton clearly points out that the sense of alienation and meaninglessness of life can be traced down to man’s deviation from hunting and gathering way of life. There is a lesson here. A great proof that life has a design which was originally imparted upon man can be identified from this argument. Initially, the creator of man designed a particular design for life upon which adherence could guarantee satisfaction and happiness. Again, this leads to Hellenistic philosopher’s approach to life. There is a natural way that man was expected to live. This is the design. This natural way is what Hellenistic philosophers identify as the natural human nature that leads to happiness (Jewell, 2003).Advertising Looking for research paper on religion theology? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Having understood the design of life, what then, is the purpose of life? Iris (2002) gives a beautiful picture that can be used by an individual to define the purpose of life. Unlike most people perceive it; the word purpose is not what you do but what you are. In her words, it is not the doing-ness but the being-ness. Finding the purpose of life through doing-ness can lead to alienation and further confusion. After excelling in career, in sports, in wealth creation et cetera, one might not find solace. They eventually prove meaningless (Byock, 1998). Therefore, purpose of life is not what one eventually does. It is the being-ness. It is taking purpose as a vessel (expensive and prestigious) which holds inside of it life itself. Therefore purpose, which is the vessel, determines the value of the content, which is life in this context. Therefore, purpose of life is the being-ness. She further points out the components of the being-ness. The three components are who you believe and kn ow you are deep down inside of you, your values and vision of the world and what you believe is possible for the world. The purpose of life is therefore, being the true you, having a vision that is defined by the true you and believing that the world can be good for every individual. In conclusion, looking around all the arguments above, one thing stands out, the questions of what life is, what the purpose of life is and what is the design of life tend to drive towards a single explanation. That life was creatively designed and was given a purpose and a design upon which deviation can lead to sorrow. From Plato to Hellenistic philosophy up to the contemporary arguments, there is a need for promotion of virtue naturally. There is need for identifying the natural part of human-ness which Iris refers to as the purpose and vessel of life. Any deviation from the original purpose leads to suffering and sorrow and that is what is visible nowadays. Many unnatural philosophies and physical a ctivities like desire for wealth have led to the deviation from the natural design. Happiness will only be achieved in the world if people understand the relationship between life, purpose and design. By understanding this, they will be able to live within the design of life and thus live happily. Reference List Baggini, J. (2004). What’s It All About? Philosophy and the Meaning of Life. New York: Granta Books. Byock, I. (1998). Dying Well: Peace and Possibility. New York: Riverhead Books. Charlton, B. (2002). What is the meaning of life? Animism, generalized anthropomorphism and social intelligence. University of New Castle. Retrieved from https://www.hedweb.com/bgcharlton/meaning-of-life.html Christiansen, C., Baum, M. Bass-Haugen, J. (2005). Occupational Therapy:  Performance, Participation, and Well-Being. SLACK Incorporated. Curtiss, F. (2003). Why Are We Here. CA: Kessinger Publishing. Hua, H. (2003). Words of Wisdom: Beginning Buddhism. New York: Dharma Realm Buddhi st Association. Iris, H. (2002). What is my purpose? Business Know-How. Retrieved from https://www.businessknowhow.com/growth/whatispurp.htm Jewell, A. (2003). Ageing, Spirituality and Well-Being. Boston: Jessica Kingsley Publishers. Kubler-Ross, E. (1969). On Death and Dying. New York: Macmillan Publishers. Marcellino, D. (1996). Why Are We Here?: The Scientific Answer to this Age-old  Question (that you don’t need to be a scientist to understand). Lighthouse Pub. Seaman, D. (2005). The Real Meaning of Life. New York: New World Library. Walker, V.H. (2000). The Physics of Consciousness: The Quantum Mind and the  Meaning of Life. Perseus Books. Footnotes Curtiss, F. (2003). Why Are We Here. CA: Kessinger Publishing Charlton, B. (2002). What is the meaning of life? Animism, generalized anthropomorphism and social intelligence. University of New Castle. p. 1 This research paper on The Meaning, Structure and Purpose of Life was written and submitted by user Harper Holman to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

Forbidden Planet theme analisis essay essays

Forbidden Planet theme analisis essay essays Forbidden planet is a science fiction movie briefly based on Shakespeares The Tempest set in the early 23rd century, on the Fourth planet into the Altair star system on Altair 4. The movie was created in 1956 where the threat of cold war and alien invaders surfaced. Electronic music was beginning to become popular culture nearing to the 60s after Forbidden planet introduced it to the public. All of the themes in the movie play a big part, such as the theme of threat, how everyone thinks that the monster attacking them is an external threat; however it turns out to be an internal threat with Morbiuss desires of his id controlling the monster with the machine bringing it to life. Human weakness is displayed in the film how Morbius couldnt control his id when it killed all his crew and himself later in the film, it shows how unfit and unstable his mind is for that kind of technology. Technology is a big aspect of the film as that is how the monster of the id comes to life, from the big machine that serves who is in control and can create matter with a thought. Greed is displayed when the cook asks Robby to make him 60 gallons of Rocket bourbon, and doesnt let anyone know in case they will all want a share. The major theme that I have chosen is Internal threat and the minor themes are Greed, Morbiuss sub-conscious (id) and Super technology. The theme of Internal Threat is displayed throughout the movie mainly by Robby and Morbius, and how the posters made Robby look like the external threat and how the monster killing everyone is seen as another external threat, which is not the case with Dr Morbiuss mind tapping in to the big machine and creating a monster of his id unconsciously. Internal threat was an important theme to me because the movie is basically based around the theme, if this theme was not in the mo ...

Parenting Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Parenting - Essay Example Nancy talks about different gadgets that help parents make sure that they are protecting their children from danger but since our children know about technology a lot more than parents, thus these gadgets are of no big use. Our children will always know how to escape the security fences that we will build around them. After this, Nancy states that our kids will start cheating us if we will act as if we do not trust them. Nancy ends her article ironically praising how her daughter tells everything to Facebook which she would never have told her mother. In my opinion, parents must restrict themselves from being extra careful about their kids if they really want them to survive in this harsh world. The hard conditions and circumstances life offers later in life take its toll on those persons who have been brought up extra pampered. This is called the â€Å"pampered child syndrome†. For example, when a child gets his parents’ attention all the time, he will grow up into a confused and dependent sort of personality when he will not find his parents’ love to the same extent due to other siblings or unfortunate circumstances. Technology has provided a lot of security tools and gadgets to the parents which Nancy has also talked about in her article. Yet, in my opinion although children might know how to escape those, yet they are quite helpful tools in making sure that the children are safe. This is not about extra-pampering; instead, this is about taking care of your kid sensibly. Children might know how to escape all restrictions but parents must play their part. I agree that children are bigger gurus than their parents in the field of technology, and this is what has made them put trust in social networking sites more than their parents. I remember myself calling my friends late at night because my mother did not like my using the phone. This is all a part of growing up. Our parents might have done the same sort of things in their