home Prayers The meaning of human life. Ideas about the meaning of life in the philosophical thought of various historical eras The meaning of life in ancient philosophy briefly

The meaning of human life. Ideas about the meaning of life in the philosophical thought of various historical eras The meaning of life in ancient philosophy briefly

Introduction

The problem of the meaning of human life.

In considering the issue, it is appropriate to identify how this problem was considered in different eras. A number of interpreters of the problem tried to reduce the importance of the intrinsic value of human life by calling for self-denial and sacrifice in the name of future generations. But a person should be happy not in someone else’s life, but in his own life. Happy not at the expense of others and not to the detriment of others. The essence of the problem is succinctly expressed in the form of the question: “Why live?” There is, writes the French philosopher A. Camus, only one fundamental question of philosophy. It is a question of whether life is or is not worth living. Everything else - whether the world has three dimensions, whether the mind is guided by nine or twelve categories - is secondary. Among the many approaches to solving this complex problem, several can be highlighted.

Adherents of the philosophy of hedonism and eudaimonism, today, like many centuries ago, claim as the meaning of life and its highest goal: the first is the achievement of maximum pleasure, the second is the achievement of happiness. Proponents of utilitarianism believe that achieving profit, benefit, and success is precisely the meaning of human life. Proponents of pragmatism argue that the goal of life justifies any means to achieve it.

The modern Christian Orthodox tradition proclaims: “man has no boundaries to his human nature.” If God is a free spiritual person, then man must become the same. Man always has the opportunity to become more and more godlike. Not remaking the world on the basis of good, but cultivating substantial good in oneself. The perfection of human nature within the nature of God turns out to be a source of joy and freedom.

Ideas about the meaning of life in the philosophical thought of various historical eras

philosophy meaning of life

Since its inception, philosophical science has assigned the leading role to the problem of man. At all times, thinkers have strived to comprehend the essence of man, the meaning of his existence. In modern society, this desire has manifested itself in a keen interest in the problem of man, in the development of new ways of understanding man, in the search for a holistic study of this issue, etc.

Throughout the history of philosophical science, a number of different theories about man have arisen, the significant differences of which are due to the characteristics of the historical era, as well as the personal qualities and ideological attitudes of the thinkers who lived at the time in question. These concepts are currently generalized and largely studied, but their consideration is not enough to recreate the real image of a person in each era. If previously the image of a person of a certain historical period was built on the basis of the views of thinkers of the past, then at the present stage of development of philosophical anthropology it becomes obvious to study a specific person, based on the fact that each cultural and historical era forms a specific image of a person as an individual, which reflects the individuality of this era . Due to the fact that a person is a product of the society, era, culture and type of civilization in which he lives, the reconstruction of the specific features of a person, his image and living conditions, social status, and norms of behavior plays an important role for a holistic understanding of the essence of the human personality. For the first time, researchers in socio-philosophical anthropology, the leading direction of modern anthropological thought, drew attention to the significance of the human problem in various historical eras. Currently, there is a need to overcome shortcomings in determining the basic characteristics of a person in different eras. Such shortcomings can be explained primarily by the fact that many philosophical researchers did not take into account, when describing the image of a person in previous centuries, the following fact: each historical era imposes uniqueness on the development of a particular person, whose individual traits are determined by a given cultural and historical era, type of civilization. Socio-philosophical anthropologists consider man as a being that combines the general and the specific, the generic and the specific. Thus, a person is, first of all, a product of an era, society, culture, while pointing out the fact of the preservation of the attributive, so-called generic characteristics of a human being, regardless of what historical era the person belongs to. Each historical and cultural era endows a person with special, unique features inherent only to a given time, therefore, if “you want to judge an individual, then delve into his social position,” way of life, etc.

A person, in relationship with a certain type of society to which he belongs, be it ancient or medieval man, has properties, interests, aspirations that are determined by the specifics of the historical period under consideration. Only by studying the basic characteristics of a person in different historical eras is it possible to form the most complete picture of a real individual. For this reason, deepening knowledge about the characteristic features of a person in various periods of the history of human society, their analysis becomes necessary and obvious at the present stage of development of anthropological thought. This necessity is also explained by the fact that only by thoroughly studying the actually existing person of a particular individual and his inherent qualities; problems that most worry a person in a given era and which he is interested in solving, the social reality surrounding him, his attitude towards it, towards nature and, finally, towards himself - only after a detailed consideration of these issues can we talk about more large-scale philosophical problems with an anthropological orientation. Only on the basis of studying a person as a subject and object of social relations, considering the unity of his attributive, essential and individual, personal traits, is it possible to reconstruct the image of a person who once really lived. It is the social reality of the time in question that makes a person unique and determines its distinctive features.

Before we begin the study of ancient man, it should be noted that each historical era has not one, but several images of man; in addition, we must not forget that the individual was constantly changing, therefore there is no man of the primitive era as a single, unchanging being , to the same extent, there is no single “ancient man.”1 For these reasons, in this study we will talk only about the most characteristic properties of the human personality, one way or another present throughout the era.

So, the historical conditions of a particular period determine the main features of a person, his way of life, norms and patterns of behavior.

Primitive man is characterized by complete submission to “the hostile and incomprehensible surrounding nature,” which is reflected in the naive religious ideas of the primitive era. The undeveloped production characteristic of this period and, consequently, the extremely rare population over a vast area, placed man in conditions of dependence on nature and the need for survival, in this sense, primitive man was “completely immersed in nature” and was not far removed from the animal world. The guarantee of preserving life in this situation was the unification of people, the creation of tribes.

Primitive man did not think of himself outside the tribe and did not separate himself from other people. A symbol of the unity of people is also indicated by the fact that the primitives identified themselves with some animal, finding in it certain traits inherent in their tribe. The association of an individual person with an animal also indicates the dissolution of man in nature. Man, in the full sense of the word, fought for existence, achieving through incredible work some kind of security in life. The constant threat to human life from predators and various natural disasters has led to the perception of death as a typical, natural phenomenon. Man of the primitive era, struggling with nature, at the same time learned from it to survive. The man looked closely at everything that surrounded him and it all amazed him. Man in the lower stages of development makes many of the greatest discoveries and often endows them with supernatural properties.

An infinite number of centuries have passed, during which an infinite number of people have been born; they have contributed to the development of the human personality. The degree of this development and the surrounding conditions influenced, in turn, the speed of transition from one historical period to another. The division of labor between agriculture and crafts, the development of shipping and trade, “the struggle for the best lands, the growth of purchase and sale determined the birth and formation of the ancient slave era.” The era of antiquity lasted for more than a thousand years and passed through several different eras. With the passage of time, people changed, their way of life, their psychology changed. Thus, it makes no sense to talk about ancient man as unchanged throughout the millennium. As I.D. Rozhansky notes, “the difference between the person of the so-called archaic Greece and the Greece of the developed polis or the Hellenistic person is too great.”2

Therefore, we will try to describe some of the features of the ancient Greek, especially the Athenian.

The individual at that time did not oppose society as something special and unique, she was part of it and did not realize that she was more than just a part. The personality of a person, that is, his individuality, according to the ideas of the ancient Greeks, is contained in the soul and is determined by it. In the ancient consciousness of the Greek there is still no clear distinction between body and soul. The ancient Greeks understood the harmony of body and soul in a completely different way from the everyday consciousness of modern times, which was due to the peculiarities of ancient culture. To this consciousness, the body seems to be something inspiritual, purely physical, and the psyche - something ideally incorporeal, and they are just as dissimilar from each other that they cannot be mixed. In the everyday consciousness of the Greeks, soul and body were not separated from each other with subsequent clarity; their fusion was syncretic, undivided; the harmony of soul and body was their complete dissolution in each other. A person in the classical period of Greece already distinguishes between his intentions, the motives of his actions and the conditions and results of actions independent of him, however, in the worldview and psychology of ancient Greek man, the conviction that human life is completely dependent on the will of chance still prevails. luck, gods and fate. Moreover, in contrast to Christian predestination, which has a higher meaning, ancient Greek fate is thought of as blind, dark, and powerful. For the Greeks of that era, life is full of secrets, and its clearest driver is the will of the gods. This dependence of man on fate and the gods can be explained by the fact that people were still “completely immersed in nature and it in them.” Man explained inexplicable natural phenomena by the actions of divine forces. The ancient Greeks knew the fear and horror of existence and in order to “be able to live, the Greeks had to create gods.” The man of the ancient era was convinced that there is nothing more beautiful than man, his bodies and gods can only be similar to him.

The way of life of ancient Greek man, his attitude towards nature, society, and himself changed with the beginning of the collapse of ancient syncretism; the first steps of this collapse could be seen in the classical era. The underdevelopment of personality and the narrowness of human connections are gradually becoming a thing of history. The division of labor is growing, society is increasingly fragmented into layers, social and private life is becoming more complicated, the competitiveness of people and their struggle between them is growing. Unlike the ancient warrior, the classical Greek, living in an atmosphere of constant competition, already knows the feeling of loneliness, his experiences have become much more subtle, causing the need to share them with someone else, to find a soul kindred to his own. The centrifugal forces tearing apart society are increasingly growing. And along with this isolation, such relationships between people as love and friendship sharply deepen and become more valuable. But instead of friendship based on common interests comes friendship-comradeship, when like-minded people are called friends, so it did not satisfy the growing need for intimacy. The private life of the individual is made sovereign. In the polis of man, the individual's personality was suppressed by the citizen of the polis. This was the time of greatest political power of Athens. At the same time, this was the heyday of Athenian culture. The establishment of the principles of the democratic structure of the polis, such as equality before the law, freedom of speech, equal participation in government, had a significant impact on the personality of the Athenian. The positive side of this system was the increased sense of responsibility among ordinary citizens, because any of them could participate in state-important affairs. The Athenian citizen, as such, received certain rights and new legal protection also in the new territory where he was a foreigner. A prerequisite for political success in Athens, as indeed in any other city, was the ability to speak well and convincingly, i.e. possess oratory skills. “The Athenians of this time were characterized by all-round talent, energy, and mobility. One of the most remarkable traits of the Athenian character is patriotism, love for the native city.” This feeling was inherent in all Greeks, and it manifested itself especially clearly during the Greco-Persian wars. The spirit of competition played a special role in the life of any Greek.” Fear of shame, fear of appearing stupid or funny in front of fellow citizens were among the most important motives determining the behavior... of a Greek in society”; the other side of this was the desire for primacy, to become the best among many.

Thus, in the classical period, the dominant type of person was the citizen, for whom the interests of the polis were higher than personal ones. In the Hellenistic era (IV-I centuries BC), a person ceased to be a citizen.” In the conditions of the huge Hellenistic monarchies, which laid down the former policies, state life no longer depended at all on the ordinary person. Such a person was forced to withdraw into his private life, to isolate himself in purely interpersonal relationships. The socio-political cataclysms of the era confront the individual with the need for self-determination, choosing his own life path, and searching for the meaning of life. The world of Hellenistic man is no longer limited to the polis. “His civic activities and his “personal” life overlap only partially.3

Historical changes, the results of which were the formation and collapse of Ancient Rome, could not but bring significant changes to human personalities. The absolute power of the father in every family gave rise to the same absolute power in the state. The custom of our ancestors was the main guide of political life; any innovation was perceived, unlike the ancient Greeks, with displeasure.” In Rome, first of all, courage, courage, cruelty were valued, that is, all those qualities that are inherent in a warrior. Rome demanded from citizens only military virtues, which were the ideal of all virtues. The hard-heartedness of the Roman character manifested itself in all areas of life.

This illustrates especially clearly the attitude towards slaves. If in Greece, as noted earlier, this attitude can be described as humane, then in Rome the situation of slaves was extremely difficult.

In the early days in Rome, a slave was considered almost a member of the family, but later the power of Rome developed cruelty.

The Romans permeated various Roman games with an incomprehensible cruelty. Historical conditions have developed in such a way that the Greek Olympic competitions have acquired an immoral character.

One of the most favorite forms of entertainment were the so-called gladiatorial shows, where the fate of the gladiator depended on the mood of the audience. The Romans' view of the gods was completely different from the religious views of the Greeks. “Hellene embodied the gods in human images; His gods fought, made peace, got married,” and even lived among mortals. The attitude of the ancient Roman to his deities is not devoid of a practical utilitarian spirit, that is, prayer to God was a kind of bribe, for which God was obliged to help man.

Comparing the image of a resident of Ancient Rome with an ancient Greek man, it can be noted that the character of the Roman was too cruel, he was distinguished by high superstition, a certain decline in morality, at the same time, he was characterized by such qualities as military valor, patriotism, and courage. Rome and her society, based on military power, held fast in their adherence to traditional obedience to the principles once developed, until the Christian element shook the foundations of the ancient Roman state.

The change of historical eras - the transition from antiquity to the Middle Ages - essentially began within the chronological framework of ancient society itself. Symptoms of the beginning of the decomposition of the slave-owning system were feudal elements, the spread of Christianity and, finally, a change in man himself. The spread of Christianity in regions outside the former Roman Empire went in parallel with the processes of their feudalization. Feudal fragmentation gave way to the rise of royal power and, in the end, a feudal form of ideology emerged, the classic expression of which was the idea of class, corporatism. A characteristic feature of the feudal Middle Ages was the inextricable connection between the individual and the community. The whole life of a person was regulated from birth to death. Medieval man was inseparable from his Environment. Each individual had to know his place in society. From the moment of his birth, a person was influenced not only by his parents, but also by the entire extended family. A period of apprenticeship follows; upon becoming an adult, the individual automatically acquired membership in the parish, becoming a vassal or a citizen of the free city. This imposed numerous material and spiritual restrictions on a person, but at the same time it gave a certain position in society and a sense of belonging and involvement. Medieval man therefore rarely felt lonely, since he was an integral part of the environment in which he lived. The social role he played provided for a complete “script” of his behavior, leaving little room for initiative and originality.” As a result, a person rotated in a strictly observed circle of what was permitted and prohibited, outlined by the unwritten norms of corporate ethics. Along with the commonality of medieval man, he is characterized by a high degree of religiosity and superstition. Truly, there was no place or moment in a person’s life when he felt safe, in dreams and in reality, not only on the road, in the forest, but also in his native village and his own home. In addition to visible enemies, “invisible enemies” lay in wait for him everywhere: spirits, demons, etc. No less and even more real danger lurked for humans in everyday forms of social communication. Feudal anarchy and lawlessness created for everyone who was deprived of a castle and weapons a constant threat of becoming a victim of oppression, terror, and death. If we add to this the degree of isolation of the villages, the pristine condition of the roads and, finally, the predominantly oral method of transmitting information, which gave rise to the most incredible inventions, then it is not surprising that “the people of that era were constantly in a state of heightened excitability, which was characteristic of them.” rapid changes of mood, unexpected affects, superstitions.” So, in a word, medieval man simultaneously lived not even in a double, but, as it were, in a triple dimension: with pious thoughts - about God, about paradise in another world; imagination and superstition - in the world of witchcraft and practical mind - in the world of harsh feudal reality.

The medieval image of the surrounding world and the human mood determined by it, its features began to collapse back in the 14th century. During the Renaissance, culture and people take on new meaning. The world ceases to be “creature” and becomes “nature”; human work ceases to be service to the Creator, and itself becomes a “creation”; man, previously a servant and slave, becomes a “creator”. The desire for knowledge forces the Renaissance man to turn to the immediate reality of things. The process of individualization of personality put an end to the anonymity so characteristic of the Middle Ages: the Renaissance endowed man with individual traits. From the active person who had developed at that time, the titan of thought, “precise calculation, wisdom, prudence, foresight” were required - in a word, constant self-control. The Renaissance man revealed not only creative, positive forces, but also the darkest sides of his personality. It was a time when a person’s looseness and emotions often developed into frivolity, irrepressible joy coexisted with hysteria, secular interests seriously displaced religious ones, and the study of the liberal arts was a more attractive activity than the study of theology.

All these changes, as well as the “intermediate position of man” in the world, cause internal contradiction in a person, an ambivalent attitude towards everything.

The world of albeit narrow but stable social connections and human actions was replaced by a world in which traditional foundations were crumbling, old values were mixed with new ones, and which, finally, demanded an individual choice from a person, that is, when in his decisions he was left alone with himself oneself - such was the price of the formula “man is the smith of his own destiny.”4 Freedom of movement and personal activity deprives a person of the objective point of support that he had in the previous world, and a feeling of abandonment, loneliness and even threat arises.

Individualism and self-reliance entailed the risk of the unknown. Hence the enormous role of fortune in the Renaissance mentality. This was the only way available to the consciousness of that era to explain everything that happens in a person’s life beyond the limits of his calculations and will. Man began to relate to his biological constitution and his natural needs completely differently. For example, human beauty, as in Greece, was perceived as equal to divine beauty. In general, the Renaissance man is distinguished by a vivid manifestation of the inconsistency of character: “two forces beat in a person: one tense, painful - the strength of a half-wild barbarian; the other is the subtle, inquisitive power of thought of a human creator.”

The meaning of human life- this is all for which he lives on earth. But not everyone really knows what makes them live. Every thinking person has a moment when he is faced with the question: what is the meaning of a person’s life, what goals, dreams, desires make people live, overcome all life’s trials, go through the school of good and evil, learn from mistakes, make new ones, and so on. Various sages, outstanding minds of different times and eras tried to find the answer to the question: “what is the meaning of human life?”, but no one, in fact, came to a single definition. The answer is individual for each person, that is, what one individual sees as his meaning of existence may not interest another at all, due to differences in individual characterological characteristics.

The meaning of a person’s life lies in the value he perceives, to which he subordinates his life, for the sake of which he sets life goals and realizes them. This is a component of the spiritual meaning of existence, which is formed independently of social values and constitutes an individual human value system. The discovery of this meaning of life and the creation of a value hierarchy occurs in each individual in his reflections, based on personal experience.

The purpose and meaning of human life social studies sees fully realized only in the case of the necessary conditions of society: freedom, humanism, morality, economic, cultural. Social conditions should be such that a person can realize his goals and develop, and not become an obstacle to his path.

Social science also sees the purpose and meaning of a person’s life as inseparable from social phenomena, therefore it can know what its purpose is, but society may not share it and in every possible way hinder its implementation. In some cases this is good when it comes to the goals that a criminal or sociopath wants to achieve. But when a private small business owner wants to develop, and socio-economic conditions slow him down, and he is not allowed to express his opinion, this, of course, does not in any way contribute to the development of the individual and the implementation of his plans in life.

The meaning of human life philosophy

A pressing issue in philosophy is the meaning of human life and the problem of existence. Even ancient philosophers said that a person can philosophize by getting to know himself; the whole mystery of the existence of a person lies in himself. Man is the subject of epistemology (cognition) and at the same time, he himself is capable of knowing. When a person comprehended his essence, the meaning of life, he had already resolved many issues in his life.

The meaning of human life philosophy briefly. The meaning of life is the basic idea that determines the purpose of any object, object or phenomenon. Although the true meaning may never be fully comprehended, it may lie in such deep structures of the human soul that a person has only a superficial understanding of that meaning. He can know it by looking inside himself, or by certain signs, symbols, but the full meaning never comes to the surface, only enlightened minds can comprehend it.

Most often, the meaning of a person’s life is considered to be the meaning of objects and phenomena with which he endows them himself, depending on his individual perception, understanding and degree of importance of these objects directly for this person. Therefore, the same objects can have multiple meanings, depending on the people with whom they interact. Suppose some thing may be completely inconspicuous, and one person has no use for it at all. But for another person, this same thing can mean a lot, it is filled with a special meaning. He may associate her with certain events, a person, she may be dear to him not in a material sense, but in a spiritual sense. A common example of this is the exchange of gifts. A person puts his soul into a gift, regardless of its price. The main thing is that he wants the memory of him to remain. In this case, the most ordinary object can acquire an unprecedented meaning; it is filled with love, wishes, and charged with the energy of the giver.

Just like the value of objects, there is also the value of an individual’s actions. Every action of a person is charged with meaning when he makes a certain decision that is important to him. This meaning means that certain actions carry value, depending on the decision made and its value for the person and those around him. It also lies in the feelings, states, emotions and realizations that arise in an individual.

The meaning of human life, as a philosophical problem, is also studied in religion.

The meaning of human life in religion- means contemplation and personification of the divine principle in the soul, its direction towards the superhuman shrine and accession to the highest good and spiritual truth. But the spiritual essence is interested not only in the truth that describes an object, its real meaning, but the very meaning of this object for a person and the satisfaction of needs.

In this sense, a person also gives meaning and assessment to facts, incidents and episodes from his life that were significant to him and through the prism of this he realizes his value attitude towards the world around him. The peculiarity of the individual’s relationship with the world occurs due to the value attitude.

The meaning and value of human life, are correlated like this - a person defines value as everything that has significance for him, carries meaning, is native, dear and sacred.

The meaning of human life - philosophy briefly, as a problem. In the twentieth century, philosophers were especially interested in the problems of the value of human life and put forward various theories and concepts. Theories of value were also theories of the meaning of life. That is, the meaning and value of human life, as concepts, were identified, since the meaning of one passed into the other.

Value is defined almost equally in all philosophical movements, and the lack of value is also explained by the fact that a person is indifferent and is not interested in any differences in life between the categories of good and evil, truth and falsehood. When a person cannot determine values, or does not know which of them to guide him in his own life, it means that he has lost himself, his essence, the meaning of life.

The most important among the personal forms of the individual’s psyche are the values of will, determination, etc. The most important value guidelines of a person are faith, as a person’s positive aspirations. It is thanks to faith that a person feels alive, he believes in a better future, he believes that he will achieve his life goal and that his life has meaning, without faith, a person is an empty vessel.

The problem of the meaning of human life began to develop especially in the nineteenth century. A philosophical direction was also formed - existentialism. Existential questions are the problems of a person living everyday life and experiencing depressive emotions and states. Such a person experiences a state of boredom and a desire to free himself.

The famous psychologist and philosopher Viktor Frankl created his own theory and school in which his followers studied. The object of his teachings was man in search of the meaning of life. Frankl said that when a person finds his destiny, he becomes mentally healthier. In his most famous book, which is called “Man’s Search for the Meaning of Life,” the psychologist describes three ways to comprehend life. The first path involves performing labor actions, the second - experiences and feelings associated with a certain person or object, the third path describes life situations that actually cause a person all his suffering and unpleasant experiences. It turns out that in order to find meaning, a person must fill his life with work, or some main activity, caring for a loved one, and learn to cope with problematic situations, drawing experience from them.

The problem of the meaning of a person’s life, the study of his life path, trials, severity and problems is the subject of a direction in existentialism - logotherapy. At its center stands man, as a creature who does not know his destiny and seeks peace of mind. It is precisely the fact that a person poses the question of the meaning of life and existence that determines his essence. At the center of logotherapy is the process of searching for meaning in life, during which a person will either purposefully search for the meaning of his existence, think about this question and try what to do, or he will be disappointed in the search and stop taking any further steps to determine his existence.

The purpose and meaning of human life

A person must think carefully about what his purpose is, what he wants to achieve at the moment. Because throughout life, his goals may change, depending on external circumstances and internal metamorphoses of the individual, her desires and intentions. Changing life goals can be traced using a simple life example. Let's say a girl finishing school dreams of passing her exams with flying colors, entering a prestigious university, she is delirious about her career and is postponing her wedding with her boyfriend until an indefinite time. Time passes, she acquires capital for her business, develops it and becomes a successful businesswoman. As a result, the initial goal was achieved. Now she is ready to have a wedding, she wants children and sees in them her future meaning in life. In this example, two very strong goals were set, and regardless of their order, they were both achieved. When a person knows exactly what he wants, nothing can stop him, the main thing is that these goals and the algorithm of actions to achieve them are correctly formulated.

On the way to achieving the main goal in life, a person goes through certain stages, between which there are also so-called intermediate goals. For example, first a person studies to acquire knowledge. But it is not the knowledge itself that is important, but its practical application. Then, obtaining a diploma with honors can help you get a prestigious job, and the correct performance of your duties will help you improve your career ladder. Here you can feel the transition of important goals and the introduction of intermediate ones, without which the overall result cannot be achieved.

The purpose and meaning of human life. It happens that two people with the same resources live their life paths completely differently. One can achieve one goal and come to terms with the fact that he does not feel the need to go further, while another, more purposeful, constantly sets himself new goals, achieving which he feels happy.

Almost all people are united by one life goal - creating a family, procreation, raising children. Thus, children are the meaning of life for many people. Because, with the birth of a child, all the general attention of the parents is focused on him. Parents want to provide the child with everything necessary and work for this, trying as best as possible. Then they work to provide education. But, most importantly, every parent dreams of raising their child in the right way, so that he grows up to be a kind, fair and reasonable person. Then the children, having received all the necessary resources from their parents in their old age, can thank them and make it their goal to take care of them.

The meaning of human existence is the desire to leave a mark on the earth. But not everyone is limited to the desire to procreate; some have more requests. They express themselves by trying to stand out from the gray mass in various areas of life: sports, music, art, science and other fields of activity, it depends on the talents of each person. Achieving some result can be a person’s goal, like a bar he has jumped over. But when a person’s goal is realized by an achievement and he understands that he has brought benefit to people, he feels much more satisfied with what he has done. But achieving and fully realizing such a great goal may take years. Many outstanding people were never recognized for their lives, but the meaning of their value was understood when they were no longer alive. Many die at a young age, when they have achieved a certain goal, and no longer see the meaning in life, having finished it. Among such people there are mainly creative individuals (poets, musicians, actors), and the loss of the meaning of life for them is a creative crisis.

Such a problem gives rise to thoughts about extending human life, and it may be a scientific goal, but one must clearly understand why this is needed. If you look from the perspective of humanism, then life has the highest value. Therefore, its extension would be a progressive step in relation to society, and also to individuals specifically. If this problem is considered from a biological point of view, then it can be argued that there are already some successes in this area, for example, organ transplants and the treatment of diseases that were once considered incurable. A lot is said about the elixir of youth, as a source for maintaining an eternally young body, but this is still at the level of science fiction. Even if you delay old age by adhering to a healthy and correct lifestyle, it will inevitably come, along with all its manifestations, psychological and biological. This means that the goal of medicine should also be some way so that older people do not feel physical discomfort and do not complain about reason, memory, attention, thinking, so that they retain mental and physical performance. But not only science should be concerned with life extension, society itself should also create the necessary conditions for the development of human talents and ensure inclusion in public life.

The life of a modern person is very fast, and he has to expend a lot of energy and effort to meet the standards of society and keep up with progress. When a person is in such a rhythm, he has no time left to stop, stop doing everyday activities and memorized, practiced movements to the point of automatism and think about why all this is being done and how expensive it really is, deeply comprehend life and develop the spiritual sphere life.

The meaning of life for modern man- this is the pursuit of mirages, imaginary success and happiness, templates implanted in the heads, the false consumer culture of our time. The life of such a person has no value in spiritual terms; it is expressed in constant consumption, squeezing all the juices out of oneself. The result of this lifestyle is nervousness and fatigue. People want to grab a big piece for themselves, to take a place in the sun, regardless of the needs of others. If you look from this perspective, it seems that life is going downhill, and soon people will become like robots, inhuman, heartless. Fortunately, the likelihood of such a course of events is very low. This idea is very extreme, and, in fact, only applies to those who have truly shouldered the burden of a career and all the difficulties associated with it. But modern man can be viewed in a different context.

The meaning of life for a modern person is to give birth and raise children to be proud of, and to improve the world. Every modern person is the creator of the future world, and every human labor activity is an investment in the development of society. Realizing his worth, a person understands that his life has meaning, and he wants to give of himself even more, invest in the future generation, and do good deeds for the good of society. Involvement in the achievements of humanity gives people an understanding of their own importance, they feel like bearers of a progressive future, because they were lucky enough to live in such a time.

The meaning of life for a modern person is self-improvement, advanced training, obtaining a diploma, new knowledge, thanks to which one can generate new ideas and create new objects. Such a person is naturally valued as a good specialist, especially when he likes what he does and considers it his meaning in life.

When parents are smart, then their children should be smart too. Therefore, parents strive to develop and educate their children so that they become worthy members of society.

The meaning of life and human purpose

To answer the question: “what is the meaning of human life?”, you must first explain all the constituent terms. “Life” is understood as the category of a person’s location in space and time. “Meaning” does not have such a specific designation, since the concept is found in scientific works and also in everyday communication. If you analyze the word itself, it turns out “with thought,” that is, understanding an object or acting with it, with certain thoughts.

Meaning is manifested in three categories – ontological, phenomenological and personal. From an ontological view, all objects, phenomena and events of life have meaning, depending on their influence on his life. The phenomenological approach states that in the mind there is an image of the world, which includes personal meaning, which gives an assessment of objects for a person personally, and indicates the value of a given phenomenon or event. The third category is human semantic constructs that provide self-regulation. All three structures provide a person with an understanding of his life and the discovery of the true meaning of life.

The problem of the meaning of a person’s life is closely intertwined with his purpose in this world. For example, if a person is sure that his meaning in life is to bring goodness and God’s grace into this world, his destiny is to be a priest.

Destination is a person’s way of being; it determines his meaning of existence from birth. When a person clearly sees his goal, knows what to do, he completely devotes himself to it with all his body and soul. This is the purpose, if a person does not fulfill it, he loses the meaning of life.

When a person thinks about his purpose in life, he comes closer to the thought of the immortality of the human spirit, his actions, their meaning now and in the future, what will remain after them. Man is mortal by nature, but since he has been given life, he must understand that everything that is connected with him in this short period of his life is limited only by the date of his birth and death. If a person wants to fulfill his destiny, he will do things that are socially important. If a person does not believe in the immortality of the soul, his existence will be unthinkable and irresponsible.

The meaning of life and the purpose of a person is a vital decision. Each person chooses for himself how to perceive himself, as a person, body and soul, and then think about where to go and what to do. When a person has found his true purpose, he becomes more confident in the value of his life, can clearly build his life goals and treat the world with kindness and gratitude for the gift of life. Destination is like a river along which a person floats, and if he himself does not know which pier to swim to, not a single wind will be favorable to him. Religion sees its purpose in serving God, psychologists – in serving people, some in the family, some in preserving nature. And you can’t judge someone for the path they have chosen; everyone acts as they want, as they feel.

Municipal educational institution "Gymnasium No. 2 of Cheboksary"

ABSTRACT

SUBJECT:

“The meaning of life as understood by the philosophers of antiquity and the early Middle Ages”

Prepared by:

Student of class 10 "A"

Kostina Yulia

Checked:

Martynenko D. Yu.

Cheboksary 2010

Introduction.

Main part.

Conclusion.

References.

Introduction.

The meaning of life is an eternal topic and as important as life itself. The premonition of the hidden mystery of worlds, creatures, events and phenomena in Nature and the Universe, this mysterious “something” that provides justification for our motives and actions, permeates our entire life.

The desire for meaning is common to all people - it is an innate and natural quality inherent in each of us. Often it remains deeply hidden in our subconscious, and it can be difficult for us to explain and clearly formulate what we are actually striving for and what we want to understand.

The purpose of writing an essay is to consider the problem of the meaning of human life, based on the views of thinkers of different eras and directions.

Main part.

The first philosophical views on the problem of the meaning of human existence can be considered the conclusions that emerged in ancient Eastern philosophy. However, we should not forget that in Ancient Egypt the philosophical worldview had not yet separated from everyday knowledge, in Ancient India philosophy merged with the religious worldview, and in Ancient China it was inseparable from the moral form of public consciousness.

Confucius does not discuss the ideological basis of the doctrine of the meaning of human existence. Kong Tzu offers his recommendations based on traditional Chinese views on the structure of the world. From the context of his statements, it becomes clear that he views a person as a special object of nature, subject to it, but also able to resist it.

Philosophical vision of the problem.

Subjecting to a theoretical analysis of the ideas of mass consciousness about the meaning of life, many philosophers proceeded from the recognition of a certain unchangeable “human nature”, constructing on this basis a certain ideal of man, in the achievement of which the meaning of life, the main purpose of human activity, was seen.

Great philosophers - such as Socrates, Plato, Descartes, Spinoza, Diogenes and many others - had clear ideas about what kind of life is “best” (and therefore most meaningful) and, as a rule, associated the meaning of life with the concept of good.

Ancient Greece and Rome.

The ancient Greek philosopher and encyclopedist Aristotle, for example, believed that the goal of all human actions is happiness (eudaimonia), which consists in the realization of the essence of man. For a person whose essence is the soul, happiness lies in thinking and knowing. Spiritual work thus takes precedence over physical work. Scientific activity and artistic pursuits are the so-called dianoetic virtues, which are achieved through the subordination of passions to reason.

Epicurus and his followers proclaimed the goal of human life to be pleasure (hedonism), understood not only as sensual pleasure, but also as deliverance from physical pain, mental anxiety, suffering, and fear of death. The ideal is life in a “secluded place”, in a close circle of friends, non-participation in public life, distant contemplation. The Gods themselves, according to Epicurus, are blessed beings who do not interfere in the affairs of the earthly world.

Epicureans (followers of Epicurus) proclaimed hedonistic understanding of the meaning of life.

Hedonism (from Greek pleasure) - the doctrine according to which good is defined as that which brings pleasure and relieves suffering; and evil - as something that entails suffering. Epicurus believed that the meaning of life, the highest good for man, is the achievement of bliss and pleasure.

BUT:

Really long-lasting and durable from the point of view of Epicurus can only be spiritual pleasures and benefits: friendship, knowledge - “Blessed is he who withdraws from the world without hatred.” The highest form of bliss is a state of complete peace of mind, equanimity, detachment from all the problems of this world - ataraxia(i.e., the ideal of the sage in Epicureanism is akin to the Buddhist ideal). Subsequently, the hedonistic understanding of life was often interpreted naturalistically– as receiving pleasure from material goods, sensual pleasures, etc.

Thus, the hedonistic understanding of the meaning of life largely depends on What exactly gives a person pleasure: spiritual or material benefits. Unfortunately, the modern understanding of hedonism and epicureanism is more often associated with refined material consumption.

Cynics (Antisthenes, Diogenes of Sinope) - representatives of one of the Socratic schools of Greek philosophy - considered virtue (happiness) to be the ultimate goal of human aspirations. According to their teaching, virtue consists of the ability to be content with little and avoid evil. This skill makes a person independent. A person must become independent from the external world, which is fickle and beyond his control, and strive for inner peace. At the same time, the independence of man, which the Cynics called for, meant extreme individualism, denial of culture, art, family, state, property, science and social institutions.

According to the teaching Stoics

Stoicism (Ancient Rome – Seneca (c. 5 BC - 65 AD)); Marcus Aurelius (121-180).

Stoicism comes from the idea of the predetermination of everything that exists. All events occurring in nature and society are subject to the strictest laws, that is, the worldview of the Stoics is characterized by deep fatalism: a person cannot change anything in the order of things. Therefore, a person must courageously endure the blows of fate. You need to live in accordance with nature, act wisely - this is the main principle of the ethics of Stoicism. A sage is a person who has comprehended the inevitable, consciously submitted to it, and renounced sensual pleasures in order to enjoy virtue to which he joins through knowledge of the essence of things and thanks to the victory of reason over passions. It is not the things themselves or external events that are important, attitude- say the Stoics. Therefore, it is necessary to abandon negative mental experiences. For the sake of freedom, a person must suppress passions in himself: fear, sadness, lust, pleasure.

According to the teaching Stoics, the goal of human aspirations should be morality, which is impossible without true knowledge. The human soul is immortal, and virtue consists in human life, in harmony with nature and the world mind (logos). The life ideal of the Stoics is equanimity and calmness in relation to external and internal irritating factors.

Irrationalism.

The 19th century German philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer defined human life as a manifestation of a certain world will: it seems to people that they are acting of their own free will, but in fact they are driven by someone else’s will. Being unconscious, the world will is absolutely indifferent to its creations - people who are abandoned by it to the mercy of random circumstances. According to Schopenhauer, life is a hell in which a fool pursues pleasures and comes to disappointment, and a wise man, on the contrary, tries to avoid troubles through self-restraint - a wisely living person realizes the inevitability of disasters, and therefore curbs his passions and sets a limit to his desires. Human life, according to Schopenhauer, is a constant struggle with death, constant suffering, and all efforts to free oneself from suffering only lead to the fact that one suffering is replaced by another, while the satisfaction of basic life needs only results in satiety and boredom.

Freud on the meaning of human life

In the twentieth century, the development of philosophical and philosophical-sociological problems of man acquired new intensity and developed in many directions: existentialism, Freudianism, neo-Freudianism, philosophical anthropology.

Having discovered the important role of the unconscious in the life of both an individual and the whole society, Freudianism made it possible to present a comprehensive picture of human social life on many levels.

Freud wrote: “The question of the meaning of human life has been raised countless times; this question has never been answered satisfactorily, and it is possible that such a question has never been commanded. Some of the questioners added: if it turned out that life had no meaning, then it would lose all value for them, but these threats do not change anything. Rather, we can assume that we have the right to avoid answering the question. The prerequisite for its production is human arrogance, with many other manifestations of which we have already encountered. They don’t talk about the meaning of life for animals, except in connection with their purpose to serve people.

But this interpretation is not valid, since man does not know what to do with many animals, except for the fact that he describes, classifies and studies them, and even then many species of animals have escaped such use, since they lived and became extinct before man saw them. And again, only religion undertakes to answer the question about the purpose of life. We would hardly be mistaken if we come to the conclusion that the idea of a purpose in life exists insofar as a religious worldview exists.

Conclusion.

When we talk about the meaning of life, we must realize that meaning is not just “holding a certain value in the mind” or even “understanding the meaning” of some factors. Meaning is always an experience, an emotional state, and a positive state.

The presence of meaning is associated with the presence of goals that are understood and experienced as one’s own, desired, and significant. Meaning is expressed in internal goals and realized through external goals.

Even with the wisest way of life, we are not given the real limitlessness of advancement in our individual existence - precisely through the inexorable end of the latter. No matter how we communicate with the world around us, how deeply we reach in its secrets, all this sooner or later comes to an end, and before each of us, in his last loneliness, the same question appears: why do I need all this? Why does a person live at all?

So we seem to have come full circle. We are back to the question with which we started. The movement in this circle was not in vain, since the fundamental conditions under which only we can see our life as conscious have been clarified. And yet, there is no desired answer yet - the entire structure of a person’s relationship with the world is too deeply influenced; we have not yet properly analyzed the ultimate of its existence; life and death, the meaning of life and the meaning of death are too tightly intertwined. To close your eyes to this means to rejoice in illusions. One can, of course, hope that the eternal meaning of existence overcomes the end of individual human existence, but such hopes are worth little until we look into the eyes of this end itself - only in this way, ultimately, can we understand what kind of eternity that it not a stranger and to which she strives.

What is the meaning of life is a question to which sooner or later every person begins to look for an answer.

Depending on age, character and even gender, the answers to it can vary significantly.

We have selected the best options for you, and who knows, maybe you will recognize yourself in one of them?

What is the meaning of life - the opinion of philosophers

Before embarking on discussions about the personal meaning of life, it would be useful to get acquainted with the opinions of people for whom reflection was a professional activity - that is, with the works of famous philosophers.

Mohism

An ancient Chinese school, whose participants believed that the main meaning of life is to create and maintain equality in relation to all people.

This meant, among other things, a rejection of luxury, wealth, and indeed excess in any area of life.

The founder of the school, Mo Di, identified 10 principles that every person should follow in their daily life. Perhaps the most important of them was impartiality.

Moism - ancient Chinese philosophical school

Cynics

According to cynics, the main value that a person should strive for is self-sufficiency.

Social traditions and ethics often interfere with the natural flow of life, which means that every person has the right to go against them.

At the same time, they did not advocate a complete rejection of social norms. Each person could formulate his own concept of good and evil and adhere to it.

Epicureans

According to this teaching, the meaning of life lies in pleasure.

Moreover, it is understood not as pleasure, but as the absence of suffering. That is, in this case - quiet and calm, spent with friends in a secluded place away from public worries.

Receiving pleasure is the main point, and none of the pleasures, be it sensual or spiritual, is something bad.

Epicureans prioritized pleasure

Darwinism

As you know, Charles Darwin himself initially held Christian beliefs regarding the meaning of life.

Subsequently, his beliefs changed noticeably. The scientist's followers understand the meaning of life differently.

Some actually deify evolution, believing that it inevitably had to lead to the emergence of man and this is precisely its highest meaning.

Others consider evolutionary development to be a chain of accidents without a hidden or higher purpose.

In any case, everyone agrees on one thing: survival and passing on their genes to future generations.

Nihilism

Thinkers holding nihilistic views believed that there was no meaning to life as such.

Nihilists deny the meaning of concepts such as meaning or value, arguing that they are artificial formations that do not actually exist in nature.

Nothing is valuable in itself, and nothing has meaning.

Buddhism

According to the followers of Siddhartha Gautama, the meaning of life lies in liberation from suffering.

And you can get rid of them only by taming your desires. Complete indifference and tranquility is the ideal for Buddhists.

The first step for this is to understand the world and this will give you the knowledge you need to get rid of suffering.

Buddhists see the meaning in getting rid of suffering

Judaism

In Judaism, as in Christianity, the meaning of life is to daily follow the Commandments of God, his Laws, and also to be righteous.

Any task, even the most banal and ordinary, should be performed with the thought that you are acting to please your Creator.

Seems too easy? In fact, by fulfilling the laws of his religion, a person becomes happy and confident in the future.

Aztec philosophy

The highest meaning of life, according to the beliefs of the Aztecs, lies in harmony with nature.

Such a life allows us to preserve and also gives us the strength to give life to new generations.

This energy was called "teotl" and was considered not a deity, but something like a hybrid of the "tao" and the power of the Jedi, which fills the entire world even beyond our knowledge.

The most important thing, the Aztecs believed, was to maintain balance and not rush to extremes - this was the only way to be sure that children would inherit the same world in which their parents lived.

The highest meaning of life, according to the beliefs of the Aztecs, is in harmony with nature

Humanists

Humanistic philosophy claims that it is impossible to find a single meaning in life for everyone.

Each of us must discover it in ourselves; only the internal, and not the external, source of life meaning can be the only true one.

What is the meaning of life - the secret of number 42

In the book The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams, the story is told that the world's most powerful supercomputer, specially created for this purpose, was asked "The Ultimate Question of Life, the Universe and Everything."

The answer to it was supposed to solve all the existing problems of the Universe, and all intelligent races were eagerly awaiting it.

The machine worked for seven and a half million years and as a result gave an answer that was verified several times.

There was no mistake, but this answer may upset many. It was the number 42.

After the book was published, there was a lot of discussion about whether the writer was joking or did he really have a secret meaning in this number?

Some believe that 42 is just a joke and should be understood in a figurative sense - as an answer that gives nothing, a meaningless answer to a meaningless question.

Others began searching for confirmation of the special significance of the number 42. And in fact, there were many surprising coincidences associated with this particular number.

Original answers about the meaning of life

Sometimes each of us wants to be more witty, resourceful, educated.

For example, a visitor comes to your profile on Ask or MailRu and leaves a tricky question: what is the meaning of life?

And I really want to answer it in a non-trivial, interesting way, without revealing all the depths of my own beliefs and experiences.

Every person finds the meaning of life in something different

This is where short and original answers, borrowed from the books of famous philosophers, come in handy:

The meaning of life is only in one thing - struggle. Anton Pavlovich Chekhov
What is a sense of life? Serve others and do good. Aristotle
No one lived in the past, no one will have to live in the future; the present is the form of life. Arthur Schopenhauer
The meaning of life is not in the accumulation of material wealth, but in the purification and development of one’s soul. Socrates
There are two meanings in life - internal and external, / The external has family, business, success; / And the inner - unclear and alien - / In the responsibility of everyone for everyone. Igor Mironovich Guberman
I am sure that the meaning of life for each of us is simply to grow in love. Lev Nikolaevich Tolstoy
A day is never too long for a busy person! Let's extend our lives! After all, both its meaning and its main sign are activity. Lucius Annaeus Seneca (the Younger)
The meaning of life is in the beauty and strength of striving for goals, and it is necessary that every moment of existence has its own high goal. Maksim Gorky
The meaning of life is self-expression. To manifest our essence in its entirety is what we live for. Oscar Wilde
If you don't study life, it has no meaning. Plato
There is no other meaning in life except what a person himself gives to it, revealing his strength, living fruitfully... Erich Fromm
Every person is born for some kind of work. Everyone who walks the earth has responsibilities in life. Ernest Hemingway

The realization that a person lives only once and death is inevitable raises with all its severity the question of the meaning of life. The problem of the meaning of life is important for every person.

Of course, many modern philosophers are right when they claim that the choice of the meaning of life depends on many factors - objective and subjective. Objective factors include the socio-economic conditions that have developed in society, the political and legal system functioning in it, the prevailing worldview in it, the prevailing political regime, the state of war and peace, etc. Subjective qualities of a person - will, character, prudence, practicality, etc. - also play a significant role in choosing the meaning of life.

In ancient philosophy there are various solutions to this issue. Socrates Socrates (Socrates) (470/469 BC, Athens, -399, ibid.), ancient Greek philosopher. he saw the meaning of life in happiness, the achievement of which is associated with a virtuous life, a reverent attitude towards the laws adopted by the state, and knowledge of moral concepts; Plato - in caring for the soul; Aristotle - in the desire to become a virtuous person and a responsible citizen; Epicurus Epikuros (342-341 BC, Samos, - 271-270 BC, Athens), ancient Greek materialist philosopher. - in achieving personal happiness, peace and bliss; Diogenes of Sinope Diogenes of Sinopeus (c. 404-323 BC), ancient Greek philosopher, student of the founder of the Cynic school Antisthenes, who developed his teaching in the direction of naive materialism. - in inner freedom, contempt for wealth; The Stoics are in submission to fate.

Aristotle's most important achievement in the philosophical understanding of man is associated with the justification of his social characteristics. Man is a living being who is destined to live in a state. He is able to direct his mind to both good and evil, he lives in society and is governed by laws.

Christianity was the next and to date the main religious teaching that formed a new meaning of human existence.

Christianity proclaimed the equality of all people as sinners. It rejected the existing slave-owning social order and thereby gave rise to hope for deliverance from oppression and enslavement of desperate people. It called for the reconstruction of the world, thereby expressing the real interests of the disenfranchised and enslaved. It finally gave the slave consolation, the hope of gaining freedom in a simple and understandable way - through the knowledge of the divine truth that Christ brought to earth to forever atone for all human sins and vices. Through this, people found the meaning of life, if not during life, then after death.

The main ethical value in Christianity is God himself. God is love, love for all peoples who recognize and honor him. According to Christian teaching, the purpose of human life is salvation. This is achieved by every person subject to continuous spiritual improvement, which requires ascetic feat. The fight against passions and victory over them is a necessary duty, task and goal of a person’s earthly life.

The philosophy of modern times is formed under the influence of the development of capitalist relations and the flourishing of sciences, primarily mechanics, physics, and mathematics, which opened the way to a rational interpretation of human essence.

Z. Freud Freud (Freud) Sigmund (6.5.1856, Freiberg, Austria-Hungary, now Příbor, Czechoslovakia, - 23.9.1939, Hampstead, near London), Austrian neuropathologist, psychiatrist and psychologist; founder of psychoanalysis. said that people strive for happiness, they want to become and remain happy. This desire has two sides, positive and negative goals: the absence of pain and displeasure, on the one hand, the experience of strong feelings of pleasure, on the other. In the narrow sense of the word, “happiness” means only the latter. In accordance with this dual goal, human activity proceeds in two directions, depending on which of the goals - primarily or even exclusively - it seeks to realize.

Existential philosophers, primarily Heidegger Heidegger Martin (September 26, 1889, Meskirch, Baden, - May 26, 1976, ibid.), a German existentialist philosopher, tried to more accurately define being in the world. The relationship between man and the world, in his opinion, represented only interdependence, naked polarity - like the theoretical subject-object relationship - but is distinguished by a very definite tension. Perceiving the world around him as hostile, Camus understood that the meaning of human life is not destruction, but maintaining peace: “Every generation is sure that it is they who are called upon to remake the world. Mine, however, already knows that he cannot change this world. But his task may actually be even greater. It's about stopping the world from dying."

Viktor Frankl tried to solve the problem of the existential vacuum from the point of view of classical psychology: “Meaning must be found, but cannot be created. You can create either subjective meaning, a simple feeling of meaning, or nonsense.” Thus, it is also clear that a person who is no longer able to find meaning in his life, as well as invent it, running away from the feeling of loss of meaning, creates either nonsense or subjective meaning.

Meaning not only must, but can also be found, and in the search for meaning a person is guided by his conscience. In a word, conscience is an organ of meaning. It can be defined as the ability to discover the unique and unique meaning that lies in any situation.

Conscience is one of the specifically human manifestations, and even more than specifically human, for it is an integral part of the conditions of human existence, and its work is subordinated to the main distinctive characteristic of human existence - its finitude. Conscience, however, can also disorient a person. Moreover, until the last moment, until the last breath, a person does not know whether he has really realized the meaning of his life or only believes that this meaning has been realized. By realizing meaning, a person realizes himself. By realizing the meaning contained in suffering, we realize the most human in a person. We gain maturity, we grow, we outgrow ourselves. It is where we are helpless and hopeless, unable to change the situation, that is where we are called, we feel the need to change ourselves.

One of the characteristic features of Russian philosophy of the second half of the 19th - early 20th centuries is also attention to man and anthropocentrism. Two directions are clearly distinguished here: materialistic and idealistic, secular and religious. The materialist direction is represented by revolutionary democrats and, above all, V.G. Belinsky Belinsky Vissarion Grigorievich, Russian literary critic, publicist. and N.G. Chernyshevsky Chernyshevsky Nikolai Gavrilovich, Russian revolutionary and thinker, writer, economist, philosopher, idealistic is associated with the names of V. Solovyov Solovyov Vladimir Sergeevich, Russian religious. philosopher, poet, publicist and critic., N.A. Berdyaev Nikolai Aleksandrovich Berdyaev (March 6, 1874, Kyiv, March 24, 1948, Clamart, France), Russian religious philosopher-mystic, close to existentialism. and a number of other thinkers.

Russian philosopher S.L. Frank Frank (Franck) Sebastian (20.1.1499, Donauwörth, - 1542 or 1543, Basel), German humanist, philosopher and historian, figure in the radical burgher movement of the Reformation. continued fundamental research into ideological problems in already established Russian philosophy. Frank was a philosopher who tried to explain the nature of the human soul and human knowledge.

Frank's philosophical teaching was highly religious. He was one of those philosophers of the 20th century who, in the process of searching for a worldview of the highest spirituality, came to the conclusion that this is Christianity, expressing universal spiritual values and the true essence of spirituality.

Frank's philosophy is a realistic philosophy of spirituality that highly raises the problem of man and aims at achieving the spiritual unity of all mankind.

Frank, first of all, tried to think about what it means to find the meaning of life, what meaning do people put into this concept and under what conditions would they consider it realized?

By “meaning” the philosopher means approximately the same thing as “reasonableness”. “Reasonable” means everything that is expedient, everything that correctly leads to a goal or helps to achieve it. Reasonable behavior is that which is consistent with the goal set and leads to its implementation; reasonable or meaningful use of the means that helps us achieve the goal.

A means is reasonable when it leads to an end. But the goal must be genuine. But what does this mean and how is it possible? The goal or life as a whole no longer has any purpose outside of itself - life is given for the sake of life, or it must be admitted that the very statement about the meaning of life is illegal, that this question is one of those that cannot find a solution simply because of its own internal absurdity . The question of the “meaning” of something always has a relative meaning; it presupposes “meaning” for something, expediency in achieving a certain goal.

To be meaningful, our life - contrary to the assurances of fans of “life for the sake of life” and in accordance with the clear demand of our soul - must be a service to the highest and absolute good. And at the same time, a person must also continuously and rationally be aware of all this relationship to the highest good. According to Frank, the sought-after “meaning of life” lies in this unity of life and Truth.

Life becomes meaningful because it freely and consciously serves the absolute and highest good, which is eternal life, life-giving of human life, as its eternal basis and true completion, and at the same time is the absolute truth, the light of reason, permeating and illuminating human life. Our life is meaningful because it is a reasonable path to a goal, or a path to a reasonable, higher goal, otherwise it is a meaningless wandering. But such a true path for our life can only be that which at the same time is both life and Truth.

In order for life to have meaning, two conditions are necessary: the existence of God and our own participation in Him, the achievability for us of life in God, or divine life. It is necessary, first of all, that, despite all the meaninglessness of world life, there should be a general condition for its meaningfulness, so that its final, highest and absolute basis should not be a blind chance, not muddy, throwing everything out for a moment and absorbing everything again in the chaotic flow of time, not the darkness of ignorance, and God is like an eternal stronghold, eternal life, absolute good and all-encompassing light of reason. And it is necessary, secondly, that we ourselves, despite all our powerlessness, despite the blindness and destructiveness of our passions, the randomness and short-term nature of our lives, should be not only “creations” of God, not only earthenware that a potter sculpts according to his will , and not even only “slaves” of God, fulfilling His will involuntarily and only for Him, but also free participants and participants in the divine life itself, so that while serving Him, we do not fade away in this service and do not exhaust our own life, but, on the contrary, it was affirmed, enriched and enlightened.