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Introduction to humanistic theory
Introduction to humanistic approach
Introduction to humanistic theory
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Steve Jobs once said "No one wants to die. Even people who want to go to heaven don't want to die to get there. And yet death is the destination we all share. No one has ever escaped it. And that is as it should be, because Death is very likely the single best invention of Life.
Like many people in the West, religion in the story was an escape from someone’s own sins and a safe passage to the afterlife. Death comes up a few times throughout the story and in the old western days, death wasn’t seen as an immoral entity to be afraid of. In the story, the old woman tried to commit suicide when someone she used to know saved her and said “let your death come when it comes” (pg. 611). Japanese culture sees little importance in death and most of the time they welcome it rather than ignore
The question of meaning in life is a problem discussed intensively in different scientific areas such as psychology, philosophy, sociology, and even anthropology. This book by Susan Wolf offers a perspective which approaches the problem from a philosophical point of view. However, her focus is not on the question of the ultimate meaning of human life, as in some previous philosophical works, but on the question of how people seek and maintain meaningful lives. This focus shifts Wolf ’s work more to the psychological point of view, because it does not ask whether the world and human life has a higher purpose; rather, it asks what are the conditions in which a person experiences that his or her life is meaningful? Or, in other words, he or she
One of the most common fears among individuals is the fear of dying. But what is it that makes us so fearful? Above all, people worry they will not be remembered by those who they leave behind. However, they not only worry that their memories will be lost over time, but that their beliefs and traditions will be forgotten as well. Throughout their lives, individuals tend to act a certain way to ensure their morals will be carried on, even when they are gone.
A purpose, or even a sensation of purpose is perhaps a necessary element of human existence. The battle to find a purpose is at the heart of much of philosophy, and whole divisions of thought were dedicated to coping with a feeling of meaninglessness, with various degrees of optimism. Some, such as the French author and existentialist philosopher Albert Camus believe “The literal meaning of life is whatever you’re doing that prevents you from killing yourself,” which necessitates embracing an absence of meaning beyond biology. However, some like Paul Tillich believe that one must have the courage to be despite this apparent lack of meaning to live a life without crippling anxiety about our imminent non-existence.
Heavily influenced by Max Weber, Peter Berger was interested in the meaning of social structures. Berger’s concern with the meaning societies give to the world is apparent throughout his book The Sacred Canopy (1967), in which he drew on the sociology of knowledge to explain the sociological roots of religious beliefs. His main goal is to convince readers that religion is a historical product, it is created by us and has the power to govern us. Society is a human product. Berger made it very clear from the beginning, that society is a dialectic phenomenon; it was produced by us and in return, produced us too.
The progression through history to discover the evolution of man’s interpretation of the meaning of life has come to the horrific possibility of the death of humanity by humanity. Seen through the eyes of philosophers and authors Martin Buber, Emmanuel Levinas, and Elie Wiesel we obtain one step closer to a better understanding of the secular saint. Author and psychologist Victor Frankl offers an alternate view of the progress of human understanding of the meaning of life.
The reason why the majority of individuals avert their focus from death is understandable because death’s eventual occurrence reminds us of the finiteness of existence. While this fear and consequential disguising are understandable, it stunts the emotional progress of our society by not allowing for the acceptance of death, which is necessary for mature growth. Because of the emotionally painful nature of death, we hide behind calming phrases such as “passed away” or “went to a better place,” furthermore, many rationalize with death by accepting an afterlife which they may have previously denied. As Miller expressed in the New York Times article, One Man’s Quest to Change the Way We Die, “Parts of me died early on... And that’s something,
Understandably, the inevitable idea of death is feared by many myself included, however that is exactly why it is important to realize that we need to appreciate every moment we go through, even the bad ones because without that, life would have no meaning to it. The biggest mistake one can make is thinking life has a monetary value. Amanda Ripley’s article What Is a Life Worth? Explains how the
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.
A common questioning of a higher power beyond the physical realm lingers in society: Who and what is God?. However, many of these theological questions cannot be answered until we, of course, die. Due to human’s innate curiosity to understand the forces beyond their own, especially in terms of religion, humans find their own reasons to believe in God in the process of discovery. Religion is a sense of belief and worship to praise a higher power (God), and it provides a guide for human beings to have the opportunity to come together and live as one image of God’s children. “Imagine There’s No Heaven” is an article in which Salman Rushdie, the author, presents an atheistic view where religion is pointless, and a higher being is non-existent.
Young boy who is determined to see the world. He’s content with shepherding, until he has this reoccurring dream. Through many encounters his view on life changes, he becomes more interested in the spiritual meaning of life.
In Monty Python’s The Meaning of Life, there are scenes that trick the audience into thinking that it will give them the movie’s view on the meaning of life. The film, however, never actually gives the audience a real, serious answer to the questions that relate to life’s meaning; by doing this, the people who created the film probably wanted the audience to make up their own views and answers to life’s meanings and purposes (a loosely defined meaning of existentialism). In existentialism, existentialists reject proposed systems that have a definitive answer to the questions involving the meaning and purpose of life; they freely choose standards of values on the human condition, which asks questions, like “Why am I here,” “What does it mean to be human,” or “How should I live my life?” According to Mitchell’s Roots of Wisdom, the idea of existentialism “emphasizes the uniqueness and freedom of the human person as an individual (what makes each life a unique, personal experience) as opposed to the essence of a human being (what makes all of us alive).”
Prof John Lennox started his speech with a consideration of worldviews. Atheistic critics of religion by trying to draw battle lines between science and religion. Prof John Lennox dispels this myth with a pointed argument that worldviews actually shape the way everyone, atheists included, view science, so that the real battle is not between atheism and religion, but between the philosophical system of naturalism (nature is all there is) and the philosophical system of theism. In the process, he takes on the two most popular historical examples often cited to show that there is a “war” between science and religion: Galileo and the church, and the Huxley–Wilberforce debate. He explains that in Galileo’s case, the real problem was the Catholic
However, because we don’t know what death is, it isn’t strange that we fear it. People like to have control over things. And when we can’t control something, we fear it. Throughout the years, we took more and more control over nature, for example, building a dam to protect ourselves from the water, but we still cannot control earthquakes, and therefore we fear them.