How to deal with the absurd life?

Question

Philosophy was quite enjoyable in the my own self study, that was until I got onto Camus and the myth of Sisyphus, I have to stay it has really depressed me lately. My main question is how does one deal with the fact that our lifes may be meaningless? Do I have to distract myself from it? Make up my own meaning? And if life is meaningless is suicide a logical answer? Why is it looked down on? I apologize for the loaded question but this has bothered me for quite some time.

See this question: https://philosophy.stackexchange.com/questions/21342/why-and-how-is-camus-against-nihilism — rudolph1024, Nov 28 '16 at 05:28
The idea of meaning presupposes the capacity of apprehension, and the idea that life can be meaningful presupposes that the capacity extends beyond our finite existence. Those who assume that no such capacity exists have denied the only thing that could provide meaning. But for those of us who know God, there's no problem at all. — , Nov 28 '16 at 08:55
In reality, aren't sports meaningless? But we enjoy watching and participating in sports. God is just have sport with us. We are sporting with God. Enjoy the sport, we are all just having fun with God. — Swami Vishwananda, Nov 28 '16 at 15:15
@SwamiVishwananda. But life is *not* meaningless, and it's not just a game. I think your idea that God is merely "sporting" with us is rather disturbing. — , Nov 28 '16 at 16:06
Just for context: Camus, does not, in fact, come down on the side that says the Sisyphus' life is meaningless, and his choice not to die is unwarranted. He finds empathy with Sisyphus and resonates with a way in which the apparently empty form creates its own unarticulated meaning. E.g.: http://philosophy.stackexchange.com/questions/36624/is-sisyphus-actually-happy-or-is-he-content — , Nov 28 '16 at 18:20
@PédeLeão Virtually no one presupposes this and there is no logic at all behind that being the *only thing* that provides meaning. Proof: Very few absolute physicalists find their lives completely meaningless. You are asserting contentious nonsense that directly contradicts the everyday experience of normal humans for no good reason. — , Nov 28 '16 at 18:23
@PédeLeão: sport doesn't just have the meaning of a game; games are played to be enjoyed; and in that context one can consider Derridas jouer & jouissance, usually translated as play; God or gods sporting with men is a common enough trope, I've seen it in Shakespeare for example. — Mozibur Ullah, Nov 29 '16 at 07:05
@MoziburUllah. But he said "aren't sports meaningless?" which would suggest that God treats us as if life were a meaningless game. That sounds to me like a defamation of the character of God. — , Nov 29 '16 at 08:12
@PédeLeão: Jouissance to me has a positive connotation, but I take it the commenter was taking his cue from Camus and the question which both used the word 'meaningless'; the OP does say that the question was 'loaded' which doesn't help matters. — Mozibur Ullah, Nov 29 '16 at 08:18
@MoziburUllah. Treating the trial and sufferings of life as a meaningless game to me has a negative connotation. — , Nov 29 '16 at 08:26
@jobermark. The denial that apprehension is presupposed suggests a theory of inapprehensible meaning. If meaning is not apprehended, it seems that it would be ineffective, impotent and isolated. Why do you believe that most physicalists adhere to such a theory? From what I've seen, even atheists cling to the hope that their lives will be remembered. Such memory is the apprehension of their deeds beyond the finitude of their existence, isn't it? — , Nov 30 '16 at 09:26
@PédeLeão Many idealists have presupposed meaning is not taken in from outside forces. There is no problem with the notion that 'apprehension' is not truly necessary, and that meaning comes first and attaches itself to the world. Physicalists often displace that idealist theory onto evolution, and imagine that our meaning comes from finding a satisfying fit between our internal genetic nature and the outside world that formed it. So the meaning is not apprehended, it grows naturally and supplies itself. Alienation causes us to lose access to that process, and so we 'seek' meaning. — , Nov 30 '16 at 16:07
@PédeLeão Stereotyping atheists is nonproductive. In know very few people in modern society who can hope their deeds will be remembered, and atheists are no more deluded in that manner than anyone else. — , Nov 30 '16 at 16:11
@jobermark. I have no idea what you're talking about. I apprehend words in order to understand them, and I apprehend what my sense of vision provides to know what I'm seeing. That's seems so basic I don't how to imagine it to be otherwise. You must be talking about something else. Meaning grows, but we don't apprehend it? How can we access it with the mind without apprehension? And stop accusing me of things like stereotyping. That's just obnoxious. — , Nov 30 '16 at 17:05
@jobermark. Most people want to be remembered, even atheists. You're just being obnoxious. I was hoping you could simply answer my question without all this nonsense. — , Nov 30 '16 at 17:54
@PédeLeão Well, do you 'apprehend' the other biological things of which you are completely unconscious, like the pressure of your clothes on your skin? If appetitive drives are not fully conscious, they need not be apprehended in order to be effective. — , Nov 30 '16 at 17:54
Let us [continue this discussion in chat](http://chat.stackexchange.com/rooms/49384/discussion-between-jobermark-and-pe-de-leao). — , Nov 30 '16 at 17:58
This was my attempt at an answer - https://philosophy.stackexchange.com/questions/6141/how-is-it-possible-to-re-apply-subjective-meaning-to-any-belief-given-a-starting — Chris Barry, Aug 21 '17 at 16:21

score 6 · Answer 1 · answered Nov 28 '16 at 17:42

How to live a meaningful life in a world where the received wisdom of religion and culture is no longer taken for granted is one of the defining problems of the modern age, and the central question of the philosophy called "existentialism." In fact, however, people have been wrestling with it since antiquity. The Biblical book of Ecclesiastes is basically an extended meditation on the same problem (you might find it useful, it's a quick and easy read, and doesn't really assume any particular religious orthodoxy).

Camus and Ecclesiastes arguably come to similar conclusions, that you just solider on, living as best you can, without any particular rational justification. But other thinkers have offered less bleak solutions. Camus' contemporary Sartre counseled imposing your own will and sense of values upon the world, giving it your meaning, rather than seeking meaning from within it.

A very different approach comes from Plato, who teaches us that the meaninglessness and absurdity of the world we live in is a signal that there is another, deeper and more real level of existence that we can and must seek out, rather than aligning ourselves with the absurdities of superficial reality. A similar approach is advocated by existentialist predecessor Kierkegaard, who advocated direct communion with the divine, unmediated by the rules and restrictions of religion, as the only antidote to the drab meaninglessness of everyday life. Finally, we might bring all these together, and claim that being a good person, and doing good in the world is intrinsically meaningful at a deep level, regardless of the realness or rationality of the context, and regardless of the results.

Comments are not for extended discussion; this conversation has been [moved to chat](http://chat.stackexchange.com/rooms/49539/discussion-on-answer-by-chris-sunami-how-to-deal-with-the-absurd-life). — Joseph Weissman, Dec 03 '16 at 19:19

timthelion · Answer 2 · 2016-11-30T09:55:15.320

Writting as someone who went through the tunnel of true nhilism, I can re-assure you that there are solutions to this problem, and it is possible to live as a nihlist.

The first thing that you have to realise, is that "purpose" is a form of impetus. A lack of impetus could never be a reason to do anything, and most forms of suicide are an act. So if there is no purpose or impetus, there is no reason to kill yourself. You might try to lie down and simply cease to live. Stop breathing. Not by holding a bag over your head, but by simply not taking any more breaths. If you do this, your concious will start to dull a bit, and then you WILL breath in again. Your body has impetus without the need for purpose.

You may also fear, that without purpose, happiness has no meaning or value. And this might make you feel sad. But it is important to remember that your sadness is no more meaningfull than happiness.

I live with impetus but without purpose.

But what about being forced (to some degree) to engage with the world in order to survive? And lets say I want to have children, and support a partner (assuming traditional gender roles) then why is it acceptable to both live without meeting & work as a kind of slave to keep the species alive (and that your child may very well resent being brought into existence, given the above) — Chris Barry, Mar 03 '18 at 22:15

Vector Shift · Answer 3 · 2016-12-02T03:58:50.380

It all depends on what you mean by 'meaningless'. Start with what you mean by 'meaning'. We say words have meanings because of their associations in conventional usage. I doubt that you mean this kind of meaning. Other things have meaning to those who know about causal relationships between the stimulus (the thing said to have meaning, say a certain pattern of a footprint)and some other points of interest (It's from a deer, made only in the last hour, and the deer went 'that a way'). The same pattern might have no such meaning to a city dweller who has no experience in such a thing. Both instances of meaning are related whereby some information/experience is said to have meaning because it can tell us more than just a random pattern. I rather doubt that this is the notion of meaning that you are concerned with as well. I think that you mean 'emotional meaning'. This refers to aspects of situations that you personally care about. It is not entirely unrelated to the earlier examples but seems much closer to your concern.

People will say that their lives are meaningless when they are emotionally disconnected from their activities. They are doing things that they don't care much about. Emotional meaning is all about YOU. Figure out what you want to do/ what you think that you should do, at least try to start sorting it out. Given some time, if you think it through, try different things you'll find your own direction, a direction (or directions) that you sincerely care about pursuing. Then as you make progress and suffer failures your life will be full of meaning.

I didn't intend the above as a self help talk although if it sounds like one that's incidental but fine by me."Life" is a word, if you want it to have more meaning than that you are just alienated from your own activities and confusing meaning of a word with personal purpose. I make this as a philosophical point.

I believe it's called a category mistake.

score 0 · Answer 4 · edited Dec 02 '16 at 06:37

First of all, there are many cultures, many myths, and we don't know which are more correct -- a priori.

So, there may be life after death, there may be not. We don't know.

If life has a reason or not, a "meaning" (whatever this could mean), we don't know.

Following our instincts of living in a community, the curiosity to understand the world enough to be happy on it, to have goals to be conquered in order to increase happiness, to learn that make others happy is the ultimate source of our own happiness (and this as is any social animal) -- I think all this give us enough reasons to live. Of course some moments are better, some are worse. Life comes to us as a wave, as tides up and down, up and down...

But if you have come to existentialism, the one that says there's no life beyond this one, then going to a gym, getting an attractive body and indulging in the delicious pleasures of sex looks by far a better choice than suicide, doesn't it?

How to deal with the absurd life?

4 Answers4