Exploring the meaning of life : an anthology and guide

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Exploring the meaning of life : an anthology and guide

edited by Joshua W. Seachris ; with section introductions by Thaddeus Metz ... [et al.]

Wiley-Blackwell, 2013

  • : pbk

Available at  / 7 libraries

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Note

Section introductions by Thaddeus Metz, John Cottingham, Garrett Thomson, Erik J. Wielenberg, Joh Martin Fischer

Includes bibliographical references and index

Description and Table of Contents

Description

Much more than just an anthology, this survey of humanity's search for the meaning of life includes the latest contributions to the debate, a judicious selection of key canonical essays, and insightful commentary by internationally respected philosophers. Cutting-edge viewpoint features the most recent contributions to the debate Extensive general introduction offers unprecedented context Leading contemporary philosophers provide insightful introductions to each section

Table of Contents

Notes on Contributors viii Preface x Personal Acknowledgments xii Acknowledgments xiii General Introduction 1 Joshua W. Seachris Section I Understanding the Question of Life's Meaning 21 Introduction 23 Thaddeus Metz 1.1 Why 29 Paul Edwards 1.2 Untangling the Questions 40 Garrett Thomson 1.3 Questions about the Meaning of Life 48 R. W. Hepburn 1.4 Philosophy and the Meaning of Life 62 Robert Nozick 1.5 The Concept of a Meaningful Life 79 Thaddeus Metz 1.6 Assessing Views of Life: A Subjective Affair? 95 Arjan Markus Section II What Does God Have to Do with the Meaning of Life? 113 Introduction 115 John Cottingham 2.1 Ecclesiastes 121 2.2 On Living in an Atomic Age 133 C. S. Lewis 2.3 Is the Existence of God Relevant to the Meaning of Life? 138 Jeffrey Gordon 2.4 The Absurdity of Life without God 153 William Lane Craig 2.5 Is Nature Enough? 173 John Haught 2.6 Religion and Value: The Problem of Heteronomy 183 John Cottingham 2.7 Could God's Purpose Be the Source of Life's Meaning? 200 Thaddeus Metz Section III The Loss of Meaning in a World Without God: Pessimistic Naturalism 219 Introduction 221 Garrett Thomson 3.1 On the Vanity of Existence 227 Arthur Schopenhauer 3.2 A Free Man's Worship 230 Bertrand Russell 3.3 The Absurd 236 Thomas Nagel 3.4 Why Coming into Existence Is Always a Harm 245 David Benatar 3.5 Secular Philosophy and the Religious Temperament 262 Thomas Nagel Section IV Finding Meaning in a World Without God: Optimistic Naturalism 275 Introduction 277 Erik J. Wielenberg 4.1 The Human World 282 John Kekes 4.2 Time and Life's Meaning 296 Richard Taylor 4.3 The Meanings of Lives 304 Susan Wolf 4.4 Intrinsic Value and Meaningful Life 319 Robert Audi 4.5 God and the Meaning of Life 335 Erik J. Wielenberg 4.6 The Varieties of Non-Religious Experience 353 Richard Norman 4.7 Emergent Religious Principles 367 Ursula Goodenough Section V The Meaning of Life and the Way Life Ends: Death, Futility, and Hope 371 Introduction 373 John Martin Fischer 5.1 A Confession 380 Leo Tolstoy 5.2 Annihilation 388 Steven Luper-Foy 5.3 Why Immortality Is Not So Bad 404 John Martin Fischer 5.4 The Immortality Requirement for Life's Meaning 416 Thaddeus Metz 5.5 Human Extinction and the Value of Our Efforts 428 Brooke Alan Trisel 5.6 Free Will, Death, and Immortality: The Role of Narrative 445 John Martin Fischer 5.7 Death, Futility, and the Proleptic Power of Narrative Ending 461 Joshua W. Seachris 5.8 Divine Hiddenness, Death, and Meaning 481 Paul K. Moser

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