Is there a crisis of meaning in the contemporary world? Support your argument with reference to at least one critical contemporary phenomenon (geological, environmental, social, political, or economic) and at least two philosophers
Philosophy, Life and Existence
Is there a crisis of meaning in the contemporary world? Support your argument with reference to at least one critical contemporary phenomenon (geological, environmental, social, political, or economic) and at least two philosophers that we have discussed in the course.
In modern day society, an increasing number of people question their purpose, their meaning, and their very existence on this earth. The questioning stems from either a lack of faith, a lack of understanding, lack of knowledge, or the general belief that human life pales in insignificance to the universe, and that, as described in Humanism: A Very Short Introduction, ‘humanity amounts to nothing more then a dirty smudge on a ball of rock lost in an incomprehensively vast universe’(page 119). We must ask ourselves, what causes humanity to constantly question itself? Can it be solely be attributed to the rise of modern day science, which casts itself directly opposite the might and meaning of religion? Or it may be the fact that humans, are a race are more aware of the Earth’s small role in the vast universe; a parallel with humanities own insecurities about their own role in the colossal size of the universe. Personal situations, such as the heartbreak of unrequited love, the despair of losing your job, can evaporate all meaning in an individuals life, thus leading towards a crisis of value.
In the Western world especially, the rise of atheism has also contributed towards an individuals lack of belief and sense of meaning; as one turned to religion and the belief that there was a higher power, which was substantial enough to give the individual meaning and a place in society. However, the rise of atheism, has led people to question the idea of an all powerful God. The seeds of modern day atheism were sown by Karl Marx, who felt that religion was a form of control, and that the idea of a God was an illusion. He also stated that ‘Religion is the sigh of the oppressed creature, the feelings of a heartless world, just as it is the spirit of unspiritual conditions. It is the opium of the people.’ This school of thought gained popularity, as more and more people started to think outside of the institutionalized, rigid ideas of religion. It was thought that the idea of an all loving God, whom people had to worship did not satisfy the developing curiosity of the masses, who still wonder, how an omniscient, omnipotent higher being, can allow atrocities such as the Nazi’s slaughter of millions of Jews in World War 2 occur without trying to stop it, or lets natural disasters such as the Japanese earthquake and tsunami of 2011 take place. Surely if a loving God exists, such pain and suffering cannot be piled on so many people? Certain religions, such as Hinduism, go to great lengths to explain the suffering inflicted upon so many. It is a belief in Hinduism, and various other religions such as Buddhism and Sikhism, that our physical beings are just a shell for our soul, which is derived directly from God itself. This soul is reincarnated within various lifetimes, as punishment for our past sins. This means that the agony and pain undergone by so many is a direct result of our past actions, in previous lives, thus taking the absence of an intervention of God, out of the equation. The lack of a definitive answer however, leads individuals to lose faith in a God, and a religious system, as these questions eventually cannot be answered by anybody, all but leaving either a feeling of emptiness or content inside the person; as they either are satisfied with knowing there’s nothing more to life, or are depressed by the thought that there is no meaning to their existence. Albert Schopenhauer, a philosopher in the 18th century rejected the idea of a God, and that suffering and loss is all of our own making, and not determined by a higher power.
