May 4, 2011
Meaningless
God, this blog is awful! Haha.
But on the bright side, I have other stuff to post because I’m taking journalism. Woohoo. (These will all be different posts, but I’m just going to post them all at the same time.)
Meaningless.
An endless parade of ants. Their goal is simple: transport the varying amounts of crumbs and foodstuffs back to the colony. Feed the queen. After this task is accomplished, the ants die. Their life span is so miniscule compared to that of a human’s that one may believe that it is meaningless. A human may trample two or three of the ants, forever ending their journey, and not spare a thought in memory of the poor departed souls. But there is something special about this interaction that the human must eventually recognize: the purpose of a human’s life is no grander than that of an ant’s. Are human lives not insignificant compared to the age of the universe? Are human goals not equally trivial in comparison? Yes, life is certainly meaningless.
In Existential Psychotherapy, Irvin Yalom quotes a thought provoking suicide note. It involved a group of morons who work tirelessly to move a pile of bricks from one edge of a field to another. Their work never ends, but one day, a moron stops and asks himself what point there is in moving the bricks back and forth continuously. What is there to gain? And from that day on, he was never quite satisfied with his task in the way that he used to be.
While many may not realize it, this is the condition of human life. All actions are tedious and ultimately unnecessary. The workings of everyday life rarely produce true happiness. Humans are trained to work their nine-to-five jobs for a worthless reward, much like a dog trained to obey by receiving praises from a clicker. Objects such as money or fame, which humans all too often seek and devote themselves too, are worthless.
After all, what is gained when all is lost in the end? Regardless of the prestige one gains and accomplishments one makes, everything is erased with death. Billions of people have lived and died without causing impact, their lives meaningless. The memories held by the deceased’s loved ones will eventually fade, their ideas will dissipate, and no part of them will remain. Any perceived meaning in one’s life no longer exists after consciousness deteriorates.
But the definition of purpose varies from person to person. What one perceives as meaningful might be pointless to another. However, regardless of the goals and ambitions held by an individual, all of their endeavors remain meaningless and will eventually prove to be in vain. Life is a struggle, it’s not particularly pleasant, and everything is lost in the end. Even the religious believe that life is merely a step in order to reach something greater. For instance, Christians believe that life on earth is only a precursor in order to achieve eternal peace. But what purpose would that existence serve? There is no meaning to eternity, because all intention is lost in the turning of the time. Nothing is truly accomplished, whether life lasts forever or for simply a fleeting hour.
Even Macbeth believes that life is meaningless. Although one probably shouldn’t accept Macbeth as their role model, his words demonstrate a universal truth. After confronted with the news of his wife’s death, he states that it does not affect him because it would have happened at some point inevitably. In fact, Macbeth says that “life’s but a walking shadow, a poor player / that struts and frets his hour upon the stage / and then is heard no more. It is a tale / Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, / signifying nothing.” Life may seem like a complex and important matter while living, but in the end, it is devoid of meaning.
Materials, beliefs, endeavors, emotions. All are temporary. They fade in time. They are meaningless. The only possible meaning found in human life is that of happiness. However, he who realizes that life is lived in vain also must recognize that his own enjoyment is meaningless as well.
This one was fun to write. My journalism teacher always quotes Macbeth at me now. Hah.
Megan
