Term Paper: Self-Examination
Throughout the duration of this course, I have been given the opportunity to reflect and evaluate my life from a series of areas humanities has presented to me. Given that every angle one can approach the world from has its own value and significance when looking at our lives and the world we in, one subject has appealed most to me: the meaning of life. Life has a different meaning for everyone. Reading various works on what life means have engaged me to introspect and progress toward answering this question for myself, which I believed has enriched my scope on life. I have deemed the pursuit of happiness to be the purpose of why I live. Nothing seems as fulfilling …show more content…
To illustrate my point, I shall turn my focus to celebrities. Celebrities are plastered all over the media, supposedly seeming to be living life large and better off than common people. They have all the means to pursue all things pleasurable and luxurious without financial barriers in their way. If happiness were to be derived from pleasurable things, you would not have celebrities that are so distraught as to take their own lives away or to turn to drugs and watch their lives deteriorate. Having pleasure as the only source of happiness is fleeting and transient. For those that have it all and can obtain the “finer” things in life, we would not have countless celebrities committing suicide like they have. Another fallacy with pleasure is prevalent today, where individuals seem to think promiscuity alone as the basis of relationship will be a fulfilling and successful outcome. Physical intimacy can be pleasurable, however if pleasure is the only value that matters regarding your relationship with another, this does not make for a happy and healthy relationship by itself. With my time in this class, I have come to know a philosopher, Seneca, who would likely affirm my stance on happiness. Seneca believes that happiness is not found through pleasurable things, but instead through virtue. Seneca firmly believes that without having morals established first and foremost, pleasure will lead a …show more content…
Our virtues may change accordingly throughout our lives, but nonetheless it remains a strong constitution for a happy life. The pursuit of happiness is central to my daily living. With each year that I live, I learn to take another step toward fulfilling that desire. Expendable things in life may let us live comfortably with the pleasures they give, but despite this we cannot hope to make a joyful life out of pleasure alone. I seek a life where I will not be dependent on materialistic desires or let my happiness rely on a single person. The meaning of life takes on different forms for everybody. The embodiment of a successful life in my eyes is measured upon the happiness it brings you. The environment you are in, the people you surround yourself with, and the choices we make of our own volition all directly impact our satisfaction. Above all, happiness starts with yourself. We must look inward to the core of who we are, if we are to one day find ourselves living a life worth
Throughout the duration of this course, I have been given the opportunity to reflect and evaluate my life from a series of areas humanities has presented to me. Given that every angle one can approach the world from has its own value and significance when looking at our lives and the world we in, one subject has appealed most to me: the meaning of life. Life has a different meaning for everyone. Reading various works on what life means have engaged me to introspect and progress toward answering this question for myself, which I believed has enriched my scope on life. I have deemed the pursuit of happiness to be the purpose of why I live. Nothing seems as fulfilling …show more content…
To illustrate my point, I shall turn my focus to celebrities. Celebrities are plastered all over the media, supposedly seeming to be living life large and better off than common people. They have all the means to pursue all things pleasurable and luxurious without financial barriers in their way. If happiness were to be derived from pleasurable things, you would not have celebrities that are so distraught as to take their own lives away or to turn to drugs and watch their lives deteriorate. Having pleasure as the only source of happiness is fleeting and transient. For those that have it all and can obtain the “finer” things in life, we would not have countless celebrities committing suicide like they have. Another fallacy with pleasure is prevalent today, where individuals seem to think promiscuity alone as the basis of relationship will be a fulfilling and successful outcome. Physical intimacy can be pleasurable, however if pleasure is the only value that matters regarding your relationship with another, this does not make for a happy and healthy relationship by itself. With my time in this class, I have come to know a philosopher, Seneca, who would likely affirm my stance on happiness. Seneca believes that happiness is not found through pleasurable things, but instead through virtue. Seneca firmly believes that without having morals established first and foremost, pleasure will lead a …show more content…
Our virtues may change accordingly throughout our lives, but nonetheless it remains a strong constitution for a happy life. The pursuit of happiness is central to my daily living. With each year that I live, I learn to take another step toward fulfilling that desire. Expendable things in life may let us live comfortably with the pleasures they give, but despite this we cannot hope to make a joyful life out of pleasure alone. I seek a life where I will not be dependent on materialistic desires or let my happiness rely on a single person. The meaning of life takes on different forms for everybody. The embodiment of a successful life in my eyes is measured upon the happiness it brings you. The environment you are in, the people you surround yourself with, and the choices we make of our own volition all directly impact our satisfaction. Above all, happiness starts with yourself. We must look inward to the core of who we are, if we are to one day find ourselves living a life worth