生活中的意義

我們大多都在意自己的生活是否有意義。關於意義的問題，會在日常的反思中浮現。而當生活的型態發生重大改變時，這些問題往往變得格外鮮明：當一項重大的人生計畫完成或放棄時、當重要的關係發生變化時、當我們步入人生的新階段時、當我們承受苦難時，或當我們原本認為值得做的事情被打斷時。「生活中的意義」到底是什麼？意義是我們發現的，還是我們創造的？它取決於客觀的價值、取決於我們的態度，還是取決於兩者的某種組合？儘管這些問題在哲學史上一直被探討，但直到晚近才在當代分析哲學中受到檢視。本課程從分析哲學的視角切入生活意義的議題，並將圍繞下列問題來進行，包括： • 將生活有意義或無意義，在感受上是什麼樣的差異？ • 生活中的意義（如果有的話）與把自己的人生視為一則故事有何關聯？敘事能否增加意義、減少意義，抑或與意義無關？ • 什麼是神祕經驗？對意義而言，它為何可能很重要？ • 什麼是「反意義」（anti-meaning）——當某件事不只是缺乏意義，反而似乎讓人生變得沒有意義？ • 為什麼寬恕可能是有意義的人類生命中不可或缺的特徵？自我寬恕在有意義的人生中應扮演什麼角色？ • 愛以哪些方式為人生增添意義？感恩對意義而言是必要的嗎？ • 受苦以哪些方式損害意義？苦難有時是否能提升意義？ • 我們能否在虛擬實境中找到意義？ Many of us care about whether our lives are meaningful. Questions about meaning in life surface in everyday reflection. They also tend to become especially salient when the shape of life changes: when a major life project is completed or dropped, when important relationships change, when we move into a new stage of life, when we suffer, or when what we felt worth doing is disrupted. What does it mean to ask about “meaning in life”? Is meaning something we discover or something we create? Does it depend on objective value, on our concerns/attitudes, or on some combination of both? Although these questions have been explored throughout the history of philosophy, they have only recently been explored in contemporary analytic philosophy. This course approaches meaning in life from that analytic perspective, and it will be organized around a set of questions, including: - What does it feel like to experience life as meaningful or meaningless? - What (if anything) does meaning in life have to do with seeing one’s life as a story? Can narrativity increase meaning, decrease it, or independent of it? - What is mystical experience, and why might it matter for meaning? - What is anti-meaning—when something doesn’t just lack meaning, but seems to make a life less meaningful? - Why might forgiveness be an essential feature of meaningful human lives? What role should self-forgiveness play in a meaningful life? - In what ways does love add meaning to life? Is gratitude necessary for meaning? - In what ways does suffering undermine meaning? Can suffering sometimes enhance meaning? - Can we find meaning in virtual reality?

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無備註

Google classroom

Homework and Assignments, Exams and Quizzes, Evaluation and Grading Policy: Before Class: Read the assigned materials. Submit a comment on the assigned materials (minimum 500 words) by uploading it to Google Classroom. Each comment should have two parts: Part 1 (50%): Identify (1) the main thesis the paper argues for, (2) the premises and steps the author(s) use to support the thesis. Part 2 (50%): Your critical engagement with the thesis of the paper: Your thesis statement (1-2 sentences). The thesis statement can either support or oppose the argument in the reading material. It can also address an issue closely related to the core content of the target article. Your arguments, reasons, and relevant studies supporting your thesis statement. The deadline for submission is the day before class at 23:59. Late submissions will affect your grade: a one-point reduction if submitted within a week. No submission after a week. In Class: Participate in the discussion, present your comments, and comment on others’ comments. Students must attend in person. If you need to take a leave, please apply for it through the school system. Please arrive on time. If you are late by up to 20 minutes, a small deduction will be made to your participation score. If you arrive more than 20 minutes late, your attendance will not be recorded. Term Paper: Choose a topic discussed in this course and write a short essay on it. The paper should be 4,000 - 5,000 words (excluding references; upload the Word document to Google Classroom). Submission after the deadline will result in a penalty reduction of one letter grade. The late submission deadline is one week after the deadline. Submissions will not be accepted after the late submission deadline, and the student will receive no grade for their term paper.

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Landau, I. (Ed.). (2022). The Oxford Handbook of Meaning in Life (1st ed.). Oxford University Press.

地點

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時間

By appointment

聯絡方式

linyingtung@nycu.edu.tw