DISCLAIMER THIS IS A ROUGH DRAFT PUBLISHED FOR THE PURPOSE OF FINAL PRESENTATIONS. IT WILL BE REMOVED UPON THE UPLOAD OF MY FINAL BLOG POST (if I can figure out how to do that).
For my final report I’m going in a slightly different direction by focusing on not one but two articles and how they are connected. Of the two articles that I chose, one is my original article, Life is short. That’s the point. by Allison Arieff, and my second source is a transcription of the podcast Philosophy Bites: John Cottingham on The Meaning of Life. Both of these articles focus on the topic of human life, however they give different perspectives. Life is short. That's the point. focuses on why the pressure of impending death effects her, and other individuals definitions of living. The podcast Philosophy Bites: John Cottingham features more on the features and ways of leading a meaningful life.
In her article Arieff touches on the idea that it is better to have lived a short and meaningful life, than to live a long life and never really do anything with it. Now, she describes her personal goal to lead a meaningful life as, "...this awareness of the temporal nature of it all leaves me determined to seize, observe, and interact with the days that remain." Arieff says she feels driven to always be present because of how fleeting the world is.
However, the reason that John Cottingham gives is much less straightforward. He says that in order to lead a meaningful life it should be rich in multiple ways. Cottingham argues that you can't just engage in engaging actions and creating memories and such but that you must come to terms with the fragility of humanity.
Both Arieff and Cottingham bring up the point of the frailty of human life. Arieff reflects on it more as the reason behind living a meaningful life. She states that the pressure of realizing how temporary and fleeting everything is made her appreciate every moment more. The manner in which she describes how temporary things feel after an emotional loss or gain, such as the loss of a parent or the birth of a child in the case of the author, gives me the same feeling as when I think of Carl Sagan's Pale Blue Dot. Her description is incredibly brief and if one is simply reading the article, there is a large chance of them missing much of what Arieff writes between the lines. In fact the topic she seems to gloss over is in reality deeply emotional and important to understanding her version of a "meaningful" life.
Where Arieff believes that the infirmity of humanity is what drives her to lead a "meaningful" life, Cottingham believes that in order to lead a meaningful life one must come to terms with the fact that life itself is fleeting and embrace the fact you will one day die. He says that to come to terms with it you must accept that you wont live forever but life itself will go on.
1. What is the difference between the two authors definition of a "meaningful" life?
2. What was the third modern philosopher mentioned?
3. What 2 things does Cottingham believe you need to lead a meaningful life?
4. What pressures Arieff to lead a meaningful life?
Discussion Questions
1. What is you definition of a meaningful life?
2. Do you think the threat of constant death is a term of a meaningful life or a reason to lead a meaningful life?
3. Why do think there is so much pressure to lead a meaningful life on young adults?
"better to have lived a short and meaningful life, than to live a long life and never really do anything with it" - perhaps... but I prefer the George HW Bush philosophy, as his son reported at yesterday's state funeral: "Die young as late as possible" - better to be young at heart. I'll not be jumping from planes at 90, though!
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