What is the point in living, really?
Hmmm. Maybe I'm just having an existential crisis. I'm in no way suicidal, perhaps I'm just apathetic. But surely I'm not the only one who has had these thoughts. Life to me doesn't seem to have much purpose - we seem to go through life with certain goals in mind. Maybe we want kids, maybe we want a successful career, maybe we want to get into that uni, maybe we want to be with that girl. What happens whenever we achieve one of these goals? You enjoy it a short while, then it stops meaning a lot to you - you're restored back to how you were before, relentlessly focusing on the next goal, driven onwards as if you're in the same position you were before. It seems the fall we have from failing to reach these goals far outweighs the happiness we receive when they're achieved. We almost forget the things that go well in life and take them for granted, yet when things don't go our way, we remember it and it disturbs us.
And then you have to ask why we even attach meanings to these things, why we aim for them in the first place? Is it built in us, inherent in human mentality? Is it society, where herd mentality convinces us that we want this or that thing? Now, really, what meaning does it have apart from that which we arbitrarily assign it? It feels like I could achieve whatever I wanted, but eventually I just wouldn't care - there is nothing innate in its value, simply what I see it as being worth. Nothing is everlasting in that way. And if I achieve something amazing, I'll just have higher expectations of myself, and when I fall short of that, the previous successes just don't matter relative to what I've lost out on.
Something in a lecture today got me thinking. "All the world's a stage, and all the men and women merely players". All of us perform a certain role in society that we want to play. Is it possible that this is just an illusion - everything we do or say is simply an individual's way of expressing themselves to the outside world, even if this doesn't reflect their inner self? I mean, I know personally that how I act outwardly doesn't truly reflect who I think I am internally, the more I think about it, the more it seems like it's my own way of reacting to the society we live in, that I decide to pursue a certain persona because of the way society is. Yet when I'm 'performing' this role it seems totally natural - like this is how I am. But is it real? On this basis, it almost seems like all the goals we have and everything we do in life only has some arbitrary purpose that we assign to it because of dominant discourses in society - and when I get right down to it, nothing really means anything it seems.
Whenever I complain, some people are quick to point out that on the surface my life is pretty easy and I have it pretty good. Yeah, I guess it does sound pretty good on paper. Of course, it doesn't take a genius to work out that most things 'on paper' often hardly affect long term happiness. And what of happiness? Why should we be happy, why do certain things make us happy and unhappy - surely this in itself could just be an illusion created by dominant discourses in society?
Sorry this post is laid out quite illogically and is mostly just a ramble... I feel like I'm in a weird place right now. Maybe I've finally started to wake up from the life I live and I'm now framing it in much more honest terms rather than how it is projected by society and its norms. Maybe those having the existential crises are actually having a temporary moment of sanity, rather than the opposite - and it is everyone else who is deluded?
And then you have to ask why we even attach meanings to these things, why we aim for them in the first place? Is it built in us, inherent in human mentality? Is it society, where herd mentality convinces us that we want this or that thing? Now, really, what meaning does it have apart from that which we arbitrarily assign it? It feels like I could achieve whatever I wanted, but eventually I just wouldn't care - there is nothing innate in its value, simply what I see it as being worth. Nothing is everlasting in that way. And if I achieve something amazing, I'll just have higher expectations of myself, and when I fall short of that, the previous successes just don't matter relative to what I've lost out on.
Something in a lecture today got me thinking. "All the world's a stage, and all the men and women merely players". All of us perform a certain role in society that we want to play. Is it possible that this is just an illusion - everything we do or say is simply an individual's way of expressing themselves to the outside world, even if this doesn't reflect their inner self? I mean, I know personally that how I act outwardly doesn't truly reflect who I think I am internally, the more I think about it, the more it seems like it's my own way of reacting to the society we live in, that I decide to pursue a certain persona because of the way society is. Yet when I'm 'performing' this role it seems totally natural - like this is how I am. But is it real? On this basis, it almost seems like all the goals we have and everything we do in life only has some arbitrary purpose that we assign to it because of dominant discourses in society - and when I get right down to it, nothing really means anything it seems.
Whenever I complain, some people are quick to point out that on the surface my life is pretty easy and I have it pretty good. Yeah, I guess it does sound pretty good on paper. Of course, it doesn't take a genius to work out that most things 'on paper' often hardly affect long term happiness. And what of happiness? Why should we be happy, why do certain things make us happy and unhappy - surely this in itself could just be an illusion created by dominant discourses in society?
Sorry this post is laid out quite illogically and is mostly just a ramble... I feel like I'm in a weird place right now. Maybe I've finally started to wake up from the life I live and I'm now framing it in much more honest terms rather than how it is projected by society and its norms. Maybe those having the existential crises are actually having a temporary moment of sanity, rather than the opposite - and it is everyone else who is deluded?
Original post by Bulbasaur
Hmmm. Maybe I'm just having an existential crisis. I'm in no way suicidal, perhaps I'm just apathetic. But surely I'm not the only one who has had these thoughts. Life to me doesn't seem to have much purpose - we seem to go through life with certain goals in mind. Maybe we want kids, maybe we want a successful career, maybe we want to get into that uni, maybe we want to be with that girl. What happens whenever we achieve one of these goals? You enjoy it a short while, then it stops meaning a lot to you - you're restored back to how you were before, relentlessly focusing on the next goal, driven onwards as if you're in the same position you were before. It seems the fall we have from failing to reach these goals far outweighs the happiness we receive when they're achieved. We almost forget the things that go well in life and take them for granted, yet when things don't go our way, we remember it and it disturbs us.
I suppose different people have different outlooks on things. The experiences you describe are true for many people but I wouldn't say that they are universal. For me personally it as much about enjoying the journey as it is about the final destination.
I am quite driven and ambitious but at the same time I am not fixated on achieving things all the time. Having fun and enjoying the moment is just as important. Let's take career for example. I have got long term plans where I want to be in 10 years time. In the meantime though I enjoy what I do at the moment. I like my job, I like interacting with people. It serves useful purpose (or so I would like to believe), pays well but also it's something that I genuinely enjoy doing. I have a 10 years plan for family life including getting married, having kids etc but at the same time I simply love my partner and cherish the time we get to spend together. I don't feel that my life needs to have a grand purpose to it. I try to do my best of each day, including enjoying simple pleasures and making sure I fit in small acts of kindness here and there. Whilst I like planning for the future I make sure that I enjoy the present and make the most of it.
No point 
There isn't much point, really. 
Life's just a serious of obstacles and stress, one after the other, until you die.
Sometimes I wonder if life is just a test, and then the real, good life is waiting for us when we die
Life's just a serious of obstacles and stress, one after the other, until you die.Sometimes I wonder if life is just a test, and then the real, good life is waiting for us when we die
You hit the nail m8.
Deep down I think everyone knows this is the truth but we all delude ourselves.
That being said it is still possible to enjoy life , so you should aim to
Deep down I think everyone knows this is the truth but we all delude ourselves.
That being said it is still possible to enjoy life , so you should aim to
Original post by alea iacta est
There isn't much point, really. Life's just a serious of obstacles and stress, one after the other, until you die.
Sometimes I wonder if life is just a test, and then the real, good life is waiting for us when we die
Life's just a serious of obstacles and stress, one after the other, until you die.Sometimes I wonder if life is just a test, and then the real, good life is waiting for us when we die
I suppose that could explain why so many people have faith? They have nothing else to hold onto to give their lives meaning...
Original post by belis
I suppose different people have different outlooks on things. The experiences you describe are true for many people but I wouldn't say that they are universal. For me personally it as much about enjoying the journey as it is about the final destination.
I am quite driven and ambitious but at the same time I am not fixated on achieving things all the time. Having fun and enjoying the moment is just as important. Let's take career for example. I have got long term plans where I want to be in 10 years time. In the meantime though I enjoy what I do at the moment. I like my job, I like interacting with people. It serves useful purpose (or so I would like to believe), pays well but also it's something that I genuinely enjoy doing. I have a 10 years plan for family life including getting married, having kids etc but at the same time I simply love my partner and cherish the time we get to spend together. I don't feel that my life needs to have a grand purpose to it. I try to do my best of each day, including enjoying simple pleasures and making sure I fit in small acts of kindness here and there. Whilst I like planning for the future I make sure that I enjoy the present and make the most of it.
I am quite driven and ambitious but at the same time I am not fixated on achieving things all the time. Having fun and enjoying the moment is just as important. Let's take career for example. I have got long term plans where I want to be in 10 years time. In the meantime though I enjoy what I do at the moment. I like my job, I like interacting with people. It serves useful purpose (or so I would like to believe), pays well but also it's something that I genuinely enjoy doing. I have a 10 years plan for family life including getting married, having kids etc but at the same time I simply love my partner and cherish the time we get to spend together. I don't feel that my life needs to have a grand purpose to it. I try to do my best of each day, including enjoying simple pleasures and making sure I fit in small acts of kindness here and there. Whilst I like planning for the future I make sure that I enjoy the present and make the most of it.
I suppose that's also true. The point of a journey is not to arrive. Yet, that doesn't really help me get closer to realizing what the journey is about :/
Original post by Bulbasaur
I suppose that could explain why so many people have faith? They have nothing else to hold onto to give their lives meaning... I suppose that's also true. The point of a journey is not to arrive. Yet, that doesn't really help me get closer to realizing what the journey is about :/
I'm guessing that you are probably in your early 20s. It's the usual trajectory of personality development to be asking those questions. Erikson called it 'Identity vs. Role Confusion' stage. There are no quick and ready answers for those questions. Everyone's journey is unique (yes, I do love the journey metaphor and use it a lot :P) and you will have to figure out by yourself what is the final destination you want, how to get there and what sights you want to see along the way. The meaning of the particular stretch is often not obvious until you arrive at that precise moment or sometimes can become apparent only years later.
For me my job is very meaningful. Helping people is what makes me feel like I have a purpose and gives me a strong sense of belonging. I don't particularly thing about it so much on day to day basis but there are moments when it strikes me. I don't delude myself to think that I'm very important or could not be replaced or that I'm going to change the world one day. I know that I make a positive difference to the lives of some of the people I cross paths with and that's enough for me to feel that my journey has a meaning.
So my advice would be to question, to explore, to try as many different things as possible and just enjoy the ride for the time being. The answers will come.
I think that I'm going to fail everything no matter how much or how little i study. I know I'm only doing AS' but I'm constantly thinking about if I fail these I can't do A2. If I can't do A2 then I cant get into uni. If I can't get into uni then what do I want to do? But I have realised that these aren't my goals I'm aiming for. There other peoples. I'm trying to live other peoples dreams because I don't have one for myself. I don't think there is a point in life. Not straight away. I think that we pleasure ourselves from proving other people wrong, or trying not to dissapoint them. When they have an image of you doing X,Y,Z in their head you feel pressured into doing it and by that you feel like you have a purpose. But personnally i don't think anyone has a purpose in life. We're just another thing that people can mess with.
Original post by Bulbasaur
I suppose that could explain why so many people have faith? They have nothing else to hold onto to give their lives meaning...
I always think this is a shame. Believing in something simply because you are incapable of giving your own life any meaning without those beliefs seems somewhat weak minded.
There is nothing wrong with being religious but I wouldn't go into thinking that it is the only thing that will give your life any meaning. There are millions of things you can do to give your life some meaning. Just because you haven't found them yet doesn't mean they don't exist.
Or you could just take my opinion and just say to your self that the only meaning life has is the meaning you choose to give it yourself. No one else can do it for you and it can require some long hard thinking about things. But when you decide what you want to do with your life these questions become less important because you have an aim in life.
Original post by Bulbasaur
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Often these thoughts arise as a result of not being occupied enough. When you're really busy and there is a structure to your life, you don't tend to dwell on the greater purpose of it all.
But that's a cop out response to your post in a way. It's a remedy to thinking the thoughts, but it doesn't actually answer your questions.
Now I'm not going to claim I've figured out the essential meaning of life, but what I believe is that the purpose of every human alive is to contribute to the greater good of humanity to the best of their ability. This does not mean that everyone should pack up and start volunteering in Africa; that's a very myopic reading of 'contributing'. Instead, I mean utilise your skillset to maximise the benefit to society. For example, if you're an excellent scientist and love microbiology, you will do far more in the grand scheme of things by becoming a research scientist and working on cures for diseases than if you were on the ground in Sudan saving 10 lives a month.
Although what exactly the optimal utilisation of your skillset may be is not always going to be obvious, we are fortunate to live under a capitalist system which (by and large) naturally regulates the demand of societal needs with the abilities you have to offer. For example, you may be a far better singer than you are an accountant, but what society really needs right now is not another good singer but instead another average accountant. You'll find that the combined utility (pay+lifestyle+job satisfaction) of being the 10000th best singer in the world is considerably poorer than the combined utility of being the millionth best accountant in the world, and your decision is made for you.
But why is it important to contribute to society at all? Well, if you want to throw a little evolutionary psychology into the mix, we are all programmed to want to procreate and ensure the continuation of our genetic material. One of the most common ways we do this is by having children, of course. But this is not the only way to propagate our genetic material. If you imagine a rational gene making the choice between saving one of its direct offspring and four of its brother's offspring, the rational gene should choose the latter (saving 4x25% of its genetic material over 1x50%). Taking this one step further, humans all share genetic material with each other. Therefore there is a base imperative driving our strive towards improving society as a whole, and maximising the survival potential for as much genetic material as we can.
The fundamental point, then, is to live your life doing the best you can with it, and (on the whole) humanity will benefit from it.
I probably could have put the above better and there's a lot more I could say about stuff e.g. structuring society so that there is a symbiotic relationship between societal improvement and optimal incentivisation, but I'm just quickly paraphrasing stuff I've discussed with friends before off the top of my head.
There is no one point. You can't say I was born to do this, that is what my purpose is....it doesn't work like that.
You make your own goals, you set your own point to life.
For me setting goals, growing and developing and overall self development is my point in life. I want to be the best version of myself that I can become. There is so much point to life....you just have to see it.
I used to think exactly like you and still occasionally do when depression hits, but with a good mental attitude...life is actually the greatest gift and really should be cherished If you know how to 'play the game' so to speak.
You make your own goals, you set your own point to life.
For me setting goals, growing and developing and overall self development is my point in life. I want to be the best version of myself that I can become. There is so much point to life....you just have to see it.
I used to think exactly like you and still occasionally do when depression hits, but with a good mental attitude...life is actually the greatest gift and really should be cherished If you know how to 'play the game' so to speak.
We're just animals. It's not like the other animals on this planet, like cows, pigs, ants etc lead meaningful, interesting lives. So humans wouldn't either.
Original post by Bulbasaur
Something in a lecture today got me thinking. "All the world's a stage, and all the men and women merely players". All of us perform a certain role in society that we want to play. Is it possible that this is just an illusion - everything we do or say is simply an individual's way of expressing themselves to the outside world, even if this doesn't reflect their inner self? I mean, I know personally that how I act outwardly doesn't truly reflect who I think I am internally, the more I think about it, the more it seems like it's my own way of reacting to the society we live in, that I decide to pursue a certain persona because of the way society is. Yet when I'm 'performing' this role it seems totally natural - like this is how I am. But is it real? On this basis, it almost seems like all the goals we have and everything we do in life only has some arbitrary purpose that we assign to it because of dominant discourses in society - and when I get right down to it, nothing really means anything it seems.
Something in a lecture today got me thinking. "All the world's a stage, and all the men and women merely players". All of us perform a certain role in society that we want to play. Is it possible that this is just an illusion - everything we do or say is simply an individual's way of expressing themselves to the outside world, even if this doesn't reflect their inner self? I mean, I know personally that how I act outwardly doesn't truly reflect who I think I am internally, the more I think about it, the more it seems like it's my own way of reacting to the society we live in, that I decide to pursue a certain persona because of the way society is. Yet when I'm 'performing' this role it seems totally natural - like this is how I am. But is it real? On this basis, it almost seems like all the goals we have and everything we do in life only has some arbitrary purpose that we assign to it because of dominant discourses in society - and when I get right down to it, nothing really means anything it seems.
But nothing outside of our 'stage performance' holds any meaning. There is no such thing as 'not being ourselves' because all we are is the sum of our performances; we may perform different characters to different people however they are all part of who we are.
This is the typical interactionist perspective and it's pretty pessimistic if you ask me, but it still holds true to some extent except that it fails to take in to account emotions. They will certainly be expressed as we think is appropriate in terms of the part we are playing in that situation however the meaning in life for me is in the love I have internally for my son and other family members.
Essentially though life doesn't have any meaning unfortunately we live we die life goes on.
Make da world a betta place!
Yes and then again there is the Nanny State and the Consumer Culture to top it all off at the End of the Day, what's the point? Ed Millyband and all that lot want to make prices lower and that's all good and OK but what about course fees ?? And I meant to say good point about the animals such as cows and ants, they are just like us in a way, totally agree.
(edited 9 years ago)
Before i read,
There doesnt have to be a purpose for human existence, unless you believe a greater mind was behind our existence then we are all here by accident. And once youre gone thats it. people stop at the thought of there not being a purpose to find but nevertheless you are alive and as its just once the idea is why not live it?
Couldnt make the last line less yolo sounding, my apologies.
Posted from TSR Mobile
There doesnt have to be a purpose for human existence, unless you believe a greater mind was behind our existence then we are all here by accident. And once youre gone thats it. people stop at the thought of there not being a purpose to find but nevertheless you are alive and as its just once the idea is why not live it?
Couldnt make the last line less yolo sounding, my apologies.
Posted from TSR Mobile
