Title: R. P. 1140 PHILOSOPHY AND THE MEANING OF LIFE
P H N q
Number of units: 3 units (3,2,1)
Prerequisite:Nil
Level:I
Aims:
1. To help students probe their own existential questions about life and its value.
2. To encourage students to examine and to formulate their own value perceptions and to relate
them to issues discussed in class.
Objectives:
1. To introduce students to classical traditions of philosophical thought with focus on the question
about the meaning of human life.
2. To provide students with the intellectual tools necessary for a fruitful exploration of
philosophical texts and the answers they offer.
Subject Description:
The course begins with a broad investigation of the philosophical mind and its quest for meaning and value. It then proceeds to the examination of major questions about goodness, suffering, death and hope that have both fascinated and perplexed humanity throughout the ages and are at the origin and the centre of philosophical investigation. Taking up the challenge they present to all searching for a meaningful and unified life, well lived, the course will connect individual life experiences and existential concerns with the great traditions of thought.
Reference:
1. Baier, Kurt, Problems of Life and Death: A Humanist Perspective, Prometheus Books: Amherst,
N.Y., 1997.
2. Belliotti, Raymond A., What is the Meaning of Human Life?, Rodopi: Amsterdam/Atlanta,
2001.
3. Britton, Karl, Philosophy and the Meaning of Life, Cambridge University Press: London, 1969.
4. Camus, Albert, “The Myth of Sisyphus”, In: Steven M. Cahn/Peter Markie, eds. Ethics: History,
Theory, and Contemporary Issues, Oxford University Press: New York/Oxford, 1998, pp.452-459.
5. Carter, Robert E., Becoming Bamboo: Western and Eastern Explorations of the Meaning of Life,
McGill-Queen’s University Press: Montreal, 1992.
6. Dahl, Norman. “Morality and the Meaning of Life: Some First Thoughts”, Canadian Journal of
Philosophy, 17 (1987).
7. Frankl, Viktor E., Man’s Search for Meaning, Beacon Press: Boston, 1959.
8. Gordon, Jeffrey, “Kurosawa’s Existential Masterpiece: A Meditation on the Meaning of Life”,
Human Studies, 20 (1997).
9. Hollis, Martin, Invitation to Philosophy, Basil Blackwell: Oxford, 1985.
10. James, David, N., “Human Extinction and the Meaning of Life”, Cogito, 3 (1985).
11. Kurtz, Paul, “Is Life Meaningful in a Universe Without God?”, In: Toward a New
Enlightenment: The Philosophy of Paul Kurtz, Transaction Publisher: New Brunswick, N.J., 1994.
12. Landau, Iddo, “Why Has the Question of the Meaning of Life Arisen in the Last Two and a Half
Centuries?”, Philosophy Today, 41 (1997).
13. Lao, Yung-wei, “On Harmony: The Confucian View”, In: Shu-hsien Liu and Robert Allinson,
ed. Harmony and Strife: Contemporary Perspectives, East & West, The Chinese University Press: Hong Kong, 1988, pp. 187- 210.
14. Levine, Michael P., “What Does Death Have to Do With the Meaning of Life?”, Religious
Studies, 23 (1987).
15. Magee, Bryan, “The Search for Meaning”, In: Confessions of a Philosopher, The Modern
Library: New York, 1999, pp. 228-251.
16. Morris, Thomas V, Making Sense of It All: Pascal and the Meaning of Life, E. B. Eerdmans:
Grand Rapids, Mich, 1992.
17. Nagel, Thomas, What Does it All Mean?, Oxford University Press: Oxford, 1987.
18. Nakamura, Hajime, “The Significance of ‘Harmony’ in Buddhist Thought”, In: Shu-hsien Liu
and Robert Allinson, ed., Harmony and Strife: Contemporary Perspectives, East & West, The Chinese University Press: Hong Kong, 1988, pp. 91-112.
19. Nozick, Robert, Examined Life: Philosophical Meditations, Simon & Schuster: New York,
1989.
20. Nussbaum, Martha. C., “Fancy”, In: Poetic Justice: The Literary Imagination and Public Life,
Beacon Press: Boston, 1995, pp. 13-52.
21. Nussbaum, Martha. C., “Socratic Self-Examination”, In: Cultivating Humanity, Harvard
University Press: Cambridge, Mass., 1997, pp. 15-49.
22. Russell, Bertrand, “Value of Philosophy”, In: Steven M. Kahn, ed. Exploring Philosophy: An
Introductory Anthology, Oxford University Press: New York, 2000.
23. Sanders, Steven, and David R. Cheney, eds., The Meaning of Life: Questions, Answers, and
Analysis, Prentice-Hall: Englewood Cliffs, N.J., 1980.
24. Singer, Peter, “How Death Was Redefined”, In: Rethinking Life and Death, Oxford University
Press: Oxford, 1995, pp. 20-37.
25. Stephenson, June, Humanity’s Search for the Meaning of Life: A Brief Survey of History,
Philosophy, Religion, Art, Music, and Architecture, Diemer, Smith Pub. Co.: Napa, Calif., 1990.
26. Taylor, Richard, “Meaning of Life”, In: Steven M. Kahn, ed. Exploring Philosophy: An
Introductory Anthology, Oxford University Press: New York, 2000.
27. Wilson, Edward O., Consilience: The Unity of Knowledge, Alfred A. Knopf: New York, 1998,
pp. 266-298.
28. Wisdom, John, Paradox and Discovery, Blackwell: Oxford 1965.
Assessment:Coursework 50%
Examination 50%
Course work may be comprised of test(s), projects and assignments for discussion. Students will be informed in writing of specifics at the begin of the semester.
Subject Content:
Introduction: The Meaning of Life: What Are We Looking For?
I. Philosophy Keeping Alive the Sense of Wonderment
Introductory text: Socrates’ Apology [excerpts]
A. Wonder, Paradox, and Mystery
B. Socratic Self-Examination
C. Human Greatness and Frailty
D. Wisdom
E. Kant’s Basic Questions
II. Facts, Fancy, and Wonder
Introductory text: Charles Dickens’ Hard Times [excerpts]
A. The economic-utilitarian, the literary, and the philosophical mind
B. What is real? The Quest for Knowledge
(1) Plato’s Cave
(2) Chuang Tzu’s Butterfly
(3) Descartes’ Meditation
C. Science, DNA, and the Decommissioning of Evolution
III. The Quest For a Life Worth Living
Introductory text: Gyges’ Ring [excerpts]
A. Right and Wrong
B. Justice
C. Happiness
D. Harmony: Confucian and Buddhist
E. Logo-Therapy
IV. The Mystery of Death
Introductory text: Leo Tolstoy’s The Death of Ivan Ilyich [excerpts]
A. Death and Dying
B. When is a Person Dead?
C. Philosophy as the Art of Dying
D. The Sickness Unto Death
E. Being, Anxiety, Care, and Death
V. Suffering, Evil, and the Meaning of Life
Introductory text: Albert Camus’ The Myth of Sisyphus [excerpts]
A. Epicurus’ Old Questions
B. War, Massacre, and Torture
C. The Holocaust
VI. What May I Hope?
Introductory text: Viktor Frankl’s From Death-Camp to Existentialism
A. The Religious Dimension in Human Life
B. Ultimate Questions
C. Love, Care, and Human Dignity
Note: Introductory texts are illustrative only and may be amended as appropriate at the beginning of the semester.
Teaching Methods/Approach to Learning:
Lecture type instruction will alternate with (group) discussions. Excerpts from classical literature and multimedia material (e.g. movies, TV) will provide the context for the philosophical exploration of the lecture topics. Assignments will form an integral part of the course and encourage students’ active participation in the process of learning, understanding and critical evaluation. In preparation of assignments and (group) discussions, students will be given a detailed reading list of required texts drawn from the references and other sources as appropriate.
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