UNIVERSITY OF CEBU – LAPU-LAPU AND MANDAUE CAMPUS

A.C. Cortes Avenue, Looc, Mandaue City 6014, Cebu, Philippines

Senior High School Department
1st Semester A.Y. 2023-24

LESSON 10: THE MEANING OF LIFE

Existentialism – is a philosophy that seeks to understand human existence and the significance of human experience. It focuses
specifically on the ability of the individual to make choices and commit to such choices to make something out of his or her life.

What is the meaning of life?

Various philosophical discussions and reflections on the meaning of life have focused on how human life attains meaning or how human
achieve a meaningful life.

The importance of understanding life’s meaning is reflected in questions such as;

1. Is a human life worth saving?

2. Should people continue to reproduce and bring more life into this world?

Three (3) major viewpoints on philosophical discussions on the meaning of life

1. Supernaturalist Views – believe that life gains meaning from a relationship with the divine. The most prominent view is that God
defines life’s meaning by assigning a purpose to the person, thus we are created for a reason.

Philosophers who subscribe to this view that human life has meaning by virtue of it being created by or rooted in God.

2. Naturalist Views – believe that one can achieve meaning in life even without the spiritual realm and reject the influence of supernatural
forces in life.

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 UNIVERSITY OF CEBU – LAPU-LAPU AND MANDAUE CAMPUS
A.C. Cortes Avenue, Looc, Mandaue City 6014, Cebu, Philippines
Senior High School Department
1st Semester A.Y. 2023-24

Two (2) categories under Naturalist Views

Subjectivism – views the individual as the one who defines his or her own life’s meaning based on his/her desires, goals and choices.

Objectivism – believes that there are no subjective bases for life’s meaning. Rather, people must seek to attain certain standards and
goals which define meaning in their lives.

3. Nihilistic Views – consider it futile and irrelevant to ponder on the question of life’s meaning. Those who subscribe to this view consider
existence as unknowable, chaotic and irrational and that understanding and even attaining meaning in one’s life is impossible.

Five (5) Philosophers on the Meaning of Life

1. St. Augustine – believes that human person is made incomplete and finite by God and thus, he/she continually seeks happiness and
satisfaction.

Love – considered to be the source of happiness for the person and it comes in various forms such as;

love for the self, love for other persons and even love for objects and possessions. These forms of love however are considered as
“disoriented love” as they do not fully satisfy the person.

For St Augustine, apart from gaining happiness from physical needs, the person also seeks spiritual satisfaction which can only be
fulfilled by the love of God.

2. Soren Kierkegaard – is a Danish philosopher, that defines existence as the person’s journey toward self-actualization.

Telephone Number: 345-6666 local 6227

Mobile Number: 0968-725-9797
E-mail Address: uclm.cte@gmail.com
Official FB Page: The CTE SOFEA
Bulletin of Information: https://bit.ly/uclmcte
 UNIVERSITY OF CEBU – LAPU-LAPU AND MANDAUE CAMPUS
A.C. Cortes Avenue, Looc, Mandaue City 6014, Cebu, Philippines
Senior High School Department
1st Semester A.Y. 2023-24

According to Kierkegaard, the individual undergoes three (3) stages in his/her personal progression to self-actualization.

1. Aesthetic Stage – where the actions of the person are governed by his/her senses, impulses and emotions.

2. Ethical Stage – where the person develops an awareness of moral universal standards that guide his/her actions and choices.

3. Religious Stage – where the person is able to devote himself or herself to a higher standard purpose in life. In particular, the individual
now recognizes his or her capacity for spirituality and establishes a relationship with God.

Kierkegaard states that a person’s purpose in life is to move from the aesthetic stage to the religious stage. He considers the
movement from the moral stage to the religious stage as a “leap of faith” where the person recognizes and accepts the need for a
relationship with God.

3. Victor Frankl – believes that man has a willing to meaning, which is the person’s innate character that drives him or her to find
meaning in life.

Three (3) values according to Frankl that views the discovery of meaning in life

1. Creative Values – refer to the creation or achievement of something worthwhile in life such as making a work of art or doing meaningful
tasks.

2. Experiential Values – refers to the interaction with the world and other people and experiences of positive aspects of life such as
goodness, truth and beauty. These include appreciating the beauty of nature and establishing meaningful relationships with others.

3. Attitudinal Values – refer to the adoption of a positive attitude and outlook towards negative experiences such as pain, suffering and
injustice and making meaningful choices in facing these adversities. These include transforming personal defeat into triumph and finding
joy amidst a hopeless condition.

Telephone Number: 345-6666 local 6227

Mobile Number: 0968-725-9797
E-mail Address: uclm.cte@gmail.com
Official FB Page: The CTE SOFEA
Bulletin of Information: https://bit.ly/uclmcte
 UNIVERSITY OF CEBU – LAPU-LAPU AND MANDAUE CAMPUS
A.C. Cortes Avenue, Looc, Mandaue City 6014, Cebu, Philippines
Senior High School Department
1st Semester A.Y. 2023-24

Frankl believes that those who have lost meaning in life due to difficult circumstances can be guided to rediscover their purpose through
logotheraphy.

Logotheraphy – is a psychotheraphy method that help people who have undergone great difficulties and restore their will to live.
Logotheraphy is a more active and meaning centered psychotheraphy which motivates the person to find or rediscover meaning of his/her
life, focus on a vision of a future he/she wishes to fulfill and work to attain it.

4. Albert Camus – believes that man cannot fully understand his/her existence and therefore should embrace the absurdity of existence
and find their own personal meaning and happiness.

Albert Camus’s discussion on absurdism offers a unique perspective on how a person can find meaning and purpose in an otherwise
meaningless and absurd experience.

Absurdism – is the view that as a person tries to make sense of his/her life and find meaning in it, he/she eventually realizes that such
meaning cannot be found.

5. Gabriel Marcel – believes that the person naturally faces moments of despair with hope, which is the feeling that sustains and
maintains the integrity of the person during difficult situations.

In his essay, “A Metaphysics of Hope” believes that in times of trial and despair people naturally hope for release or salvation from
adversity.

According to Marcel;

Hope – is a natural and inevitable response to trials and despair, and that human beings are naturally predisposed. It does not give a
definite solution to a problem but rather the desire to continue living despite difficulties.

Telephone Number: 345-6666 local 6227

Mobile Number: 0968-725-9797
E-mail Address: uclm.cte@gmail.com
Official FB Page: The CTE SOFEA
Bulletin of Information: https://bit.ly/uclmcte