ipl-logo

Analysis Of Irving Singer's Love And Meaning

1547 Words7 Pages

Irving Singer discusses both what a meaningful life and what a meaningless life look like in his writing on Love and Meaning. For Singer, a meaningful life is sought out through love and never through any other means. This love can include a love for specific things, ideals or human relationships (Singer 1). For many, the word love is associated with romance and sexual relationships, but Singer takes the term to cover a broader spectrum of anything that has value and importance to a person (2). Humans can find meaning in their lives through many avenues such as: religion, hobbies, work, friendships, family, romance, or anything that they prioritize. The love that gives people meaning does not necessarily need to be returned in order for a meaningful …show more content…

In summary, he defines a meaningful life as a life that perseus love. In his explanation of love he states that it can be towards anything that is of great importance to a person and holds a place as their top priority. He states that, “for a person in love…life is never without meaning. The beloved matters supremely to him or her, even if nothing else does” (Singer 2). Singer finds that people tend to require and give different amounts of love depending on what life stage they are in. Throughout his work his main focus is on romantic love, although he does recognize that other forms of love can bring meaning to a life. However, with changing trends Singer predicts a loss in the meaning of romantic love in people's lives. He notes that people are beginning to avoid romantic love and direct their focus on only satisfying their sexual desires (15). With a widespread decline in romantic love, people must look elsewhere for meaning in their lives. Many can find this through work, projects, friendships, or religious ideals (1). However, those who cannot find love elsewhere will feel a sense of meaninglessness in their lives that is not suppressible through sexual pleasure. The relationship changes occurring in today's society are causing a change in the ways that people define the meanings of their lives and Singer considers this to be a negative change (15). To conclude, Singer believes that people derive the meaning of their lives through the pursuit of genuine

Show More
Related
582 Words | 3 Pages

Arthur Miller’s The Crucible is about the witch trials in ancient Salem, and how one girl’s love interest caused many people, including the one she loves, to be hanged due to being accused as a witch. Half Hanged Mary by Margaret Atwood is about Mary Webster, a woman accused of witchcraft and hanged for the crime, but managed to survive the night. In both of these texts there is evidence of a corrupted leadership. The Crucible has evidence of a corrupted leadership as found in act 4 scene 5, when the text states “Danforth: (in deep concern, raising a hand to Hathome) Pray you.

Read More
346 Words | 2 Pages

In Susan Wolf’s article “The Meaning of Lives” she argues a meaningful life is engaged in positive projects to some degree of success. She also believes that the pursuits with meaning have an objective value that connects with the rest humanity. Susan Wolf’s did not write about her thoughts on the concept of plugging oneself into an experience machine like described by Christopher Grau in “Bad Dreams, Evil Demons, and the Experience Machine”, but her argument for what gives meaning to a life makes it clear that she would argue someone should choose to not plug in. The reason a person would choose to plug into an experience machine is because they could live out all of their fantasies and avoid all the discomfort experienced in real life. But

Read More
334 Words | 2 Pages

Alvarez unfolds how Trujillo impacted her mother in a chronological order in a revealing way. Alvarez explains at first that her mother adores Trujillo. It was the way of life for the Dominican Republic people. She was raised to be this way in a life of her eyes revolving around this dictator who showed to be really good, but was not good at all. An example of a false representation of the dictator is Stalin or Hitler.

Read More
1011 Words | 5 Pages

Zora Neele Hurston once said, “Love is lak de sea. It’s uh movin’ thing, but still and all, it takes its shape from the shore it meets, and it’s different with every shore.” This quotation poses the question, does a failed love experience change a person and their journey to self realization? Society’s expectation of marriage. __________.

Read More
762 Words | 4 Pages

Though I fear he didn’t find his meaning, I believe he lived through it. This story of Mccandless, to me, taught me that a grand life, doesn’t necessarily mean a happy one, at times we must break ties to search for true happiness. It is in that search, is what gives our life “true” meaning, so what does your life mean to you? In the words of Christopher Mccandless, I leave you with this, “The joy of life comes from our encounters with new experiences, and hence there is no greater joy than to have an endlessly changing horizon, for each day to have a new and different sun. I have had a happy life and thank the Lord.

Read More
765 Words | 4 Pages

One’s impact on the world could be small or large, but every life has an impact. There is no defined meaning of life. One meaning of life is to find their purpose in life and live it. In Homeless, it states, You are where you live. She was somebody ”(Quindlen 370).

Read More
1208 Words | 5 Pages

I don’t want an ordinary life, but I also have to think about what’s best for me and my future. I want my life to be meaningful, I want to exist in this world and most importantly, I want it to be memorable. So, in order for me to pursue a meaningful life that I desire, I have to figure out what I want.

Read More
681 Words | 3 Pages

Even from the dawn of man, with the most basic levels of communication, human relationships have been pivotal to existence, and yet humanity still struggles so. Even Adam and Eve were spared no solace from desire. The first human relationship ever, struggled just the same, ended by and apple, by greed and by curiosity. The true inevitability of struggle that relationships bring is due simply to the nature of humans to be entertained. An animalistic lacking in control of emotions, unable to be satisfied.

Read More
1057 Words | 5 Pages

During the struggle of having a meaningful life, an individual must be able to define what is meaningful and how to obtain it. In the story excerpt “The Signature of All Things” by Elizabeth Gilbert, the protagonist, Alma, explores the part of her childhood where she breaks away from routine and makes the decision to make the most of the moment. To contrast, the poem “Atrophy” by Julia Copus explores the outcome of people who do not make the most of their lives and are stuck thinking of their wasted potential. An individual must routinely reconcile their past and present to obtain the power to make autonomous choices in order to create a meaningful life before the opportunity to grasp this power reaches its expiration date.

Read More
991 Words | 4 Pages

Leading a human life is a full-time occupation, to which everyone devotes decades of intense concern.” (Nagel, 719) Nagel also argues that we all reflect about whether life is worth it or not. To avoid this this absurdity, we try to give meaning to our lives through what we do “seeking fulfillment in service to society, the state, the revolution, the progress of history, the advance of science, or religion and the glory of God.” (Nagel, 720) But this leads to the conflict that if this thing that gives meaning to our life, it must be significant.

Read More
1231 Words | 5 Pages

Irving understands that love is more than a desire to be loved; it explains how love

Read More
1527 Words | 7 Pages

In Victor Frankl’s book, Man’s Search for Meaning, he writes, “Man’s search for meaning is the primary motivation in his life… This meaning is unique and specific in that it must be fulfilled by him alone; only then does it achieve a significance which will satisfy his own will to meaning” (Frankl,

Read More
797 Words | 4 Pages

Seung Woo Lee Ms.Aubrey World Literature September 11, 2014 World Literature Paper To many, the meaning of of life is a constant cycle of searching and failing. Many have attempted to ascertain the true value and meaning of life. People repeatedly question the purpose of life.

Read More
884 Words | 4 Pages

According to this theory, nature of love is changing fundamentally and it can create either opportunities for democracy or chaos in life (Beck & Beck- Gernsheim, 1995). Love, family and personal freedom are three key elements in this theory. This theory states that the guidelines, rules and traditions which used to rule personal relationships have changed. “Individuals are now confronted with an endless series of choices as part of constructing, adjusting, improving or dissolving the unions they form with others” (Giddens, 2006). For instance, marriage nowadays depends on the willingness of the couples rather than for economic purposes or the urge to form family.

Read More
537 Words | 3 Pages

Therefore, When we give meaning to our life, I believe we also have to be realistic and focus on our meaning for living and set concrete goals. If we set our meaning of life to becoming the biggest super model in the world yet you 're not working towards it or you just set an unrealistic goal. Then eventually that 's going to alter your life 's meaning and cause you to live in Denial, and unhappy. Our life 's meaning comes from within us it 's something we have to think hard

Read More

More about Analysis Of Irving Singer's Love And Meaning

Related Topics

Open Document