The Significance Of Purpose Coursework Example

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The significance of purpose
More often than not we have struggled with questions such as, who are we? Or what is the ultimate purpose of living (Studen 1)? No matter how simple these questions seem, we barely have the unerring answer. As humans, we believe that God created us for a superior reason and that we get to live when we discover it. Philosophers from different schools of thoughts have had diverging viewpoints regarding what the satisfaction of life comes from with a good number arguing that it surpasses any personal purpose. I strongly deem a purposeful life as that filled with goals, love, laughter, and meaning. Human life has a meaning that is not dependent on nature, thus, one can only exercise it on a personal level.
The informatively titled article, The Universe Doesn’t Care About Your ‘Purpose’ by the Stone argues that the purpose of living is a universal need without which humans would feel bereft of happiness. He writes the article in an attempt to prove that indeed, a purposeful life is a worthy life. To further his thesis, he reminisces about a car, Ford Thunderbird, which his late father rewarded him with. He said that he had been sad until he inherited the car when the good memories brought him to the right track. He argues that ‘purpose seems beneficial to overcoming substance abuse, healing from tragedy and loss, and achieving economic success’ (Carter 1). He incorporates the philosophies of Socrates that every endeavor possesses an intrinsic drive and that the idea of purposelessness in life devastates people.

He thus springs at the bigger picture arguing that the universe relies on an inherent orderliness as opposed to the fundamental goal of surviving. According to Carter, ‘In the grand scheme of things, you and I are enormously insignificant nut not entirely insignificant (1)’. The universe does not guarantee any happiness but the believes of such existence is beneficial to us. He concludes that purpose is just a notion people create to justify or guide their directives, which are beneficial only to them.
The meaning of life
While this question appears notoriously vague to the reader, it raises concerns on the questions of existence. Aristotle, on the philosophy of human function, argued that life is a complexity formed by tenets like the soul, the spirit, the body, and the intellect and that these need each other to function. Basically, the question boils down to the questions like, who are we, why are we here,. It also serves to answer the question whether we serve a higher purpose above the normal satisfactions of life. Rachels and Rachels argue that who we are cannot be replaced and we lose consciousness in the process of being replaced (87). One can therefore conclude that life only exists on the living being that have the ability to pursue a purpose in life. Their text raises crucial arguments regarding the intelligence quotient of humans and robots. In the explored Turin test, if at any instance, the robot which operates through stored programs, can respond to the questions posed as accurately and fast as a human can, then it can be deemed as intelligent because it has the ‘mental properties of a person’ (Rachels and Rachels 87). We can look at life from the subjective viewpoint, where everything matters, and the objective, where they do not. For people to attain the highest happiness that is the epitome of living, they do not necessarily need wealth, but rather, the good control and running of their own life. However, inasmuch as happiness is crucial, it is not equal to the meaning of life. We should therefore uphold the things we consider beneficial, as they attach meaning.
The philosophical meaning of life
The article meaning of life views life ‘meaning’ from two angles. It wonders whether it is ‘internal to life such that it is inherent to numerous activities of life’ or external such that it is found in a realm outside it’ (Studen 2). When we exude joy and satisfaction from our own acts and happenings, then we can deem this life as ultimately satisfactorily. Looking at it from the externality point of view, one can argue that a supreme being tends to grand meaning to people’s deeds. The believe that God shall in the end assign us rewards based on the tribulation and the good deeds counts as the outside force that governs the essence of life. For instance, Christians believe in their reverence for the higher being that they seek to serve and attain the ultimate payment, which is an eternal life in heaven. The authors argue that every person has a different definition of life therefore, there are, so to say, as many meanings on earth as there are people. It concludes that scholars can best approach the issue from the viewing angle of finding meaning in life. This is because individuals strive to live a life that brings contentment to them. If the utilitarian language is anything to go by, individuals must hope for a life that contains an excess of pleasure over pain.
My own response
This study raises some questions regarding life, and the reasons that we attach. The thesis statement provides sufficient information regarding the lack of dependence the meaning of life on nature. It succeeds in letting the reader envisage the gap between the two aspects and come to the realization that indeed, meaning of life lies within a person. The dreams that we have of how we want life to be gives us the energy that we need to reach for the worthwhile survival. As for the argument regarding the intelligence of Robots, I wish to refute their ability to exist as human beings. Much as they can be programmed to reason like a person at an instance, they cannot set future goals, they cannot create information on their own. This clearly indicates that they are unable to feel and experience the ideal happiness, which comes from attaining set goals. Conclusively, I believe that the principle purpose of existence is happiness. However, we must achieve it through upholding intrinsic attributes like work, friendship, and autonomy.
Conclusion
This research explores the aspects of living that make it candidly purposeful. It does so by exploring an article The Universe Does not Care About Your ‘Purpose which asserts that while nature controls daily happening, it has got nothing to do with our impetus. It concludes that any rational and autonomous thinker prefers to set goals that bring them satisfaction in the end. Death usually counts as a dreadful instance because it terminates our goals and consequently, the happy life. The most explicit way to suppose this thesis is through depicting the person-specific happenings that amount to his or her contentment. As they say that true joy comes from within, people must take charge of their own merriment as whether they do or not, nature must happen.
Works Cited
BIBLIOGRAPHY Carter, Joseph P. The Universe Doesn’t Care About Your ‘Purpose’. 31 July 2017. 3 March 2018 <https://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/31/opinion/the-universe-doesnt-care-about-your-purpose.html>.
Rachels, James and Stuart Rachels. Problems from philosophy. New York: McGraw Hill, 2012.
Studen, Greg. “Meaning of life.” Philosophy now 4 July 2016: 1-2.