The existentialists view the world in this way: "finding ourselves in a non-purposive universe, living non-purposive lives, we are completely free to choose and act. This makes us totally responsible for our lives. . . " (Barry, 55). What do you make of that? Do you agree or not? Does that view help you make sense of the world, terrify or just bewilder you?
Are you living authentically? Explain. Give an example of behavior (yours or another's) which is inauthentic. Do you think that is a good way to live? Why or why not? (reference Barry, p. 58)
I think that we all have a purpose in life. Whether or not we find that purpose is a different story. We are not just bodies that are going about our day to day lives. I do believe that we are free to act and live as we please because we are given choices to do different things. However, the paths that we come across do lead us to discover things that will allow us to find a purpose in life. I believe that I am living authentically. My morals and values reflect in my everyday life. My parents have taught me the morals of treating others the way I would want to be treated, therefore in the decisions that I make in my everyday life, I do just that. I think that this is a good way of living. Our morals and values help us to create the person that we are.
ReplyDeleteWhat I believe Barry is trying to say here is that everybody on earth is here for a reason, not by accident. People are here to have an impact on the world not to just sit there and not be involved. I myself believe that I am living authentically. An example of my behavior is trying to better myself by chasing a higher education. I'm trying to better myself as a human being.
ReplyDeleteI believe that death is hard to come to term with it. Death is something that we do not know when, or how it will happen. I agree with Barry in the sense that we are accountable for our choices. No body can make you do anything that you do not want to do. I would like to say that I'm not living authentically because I try to take credit for my choices. My parents told me what was right and wrong and made sure I knew how bad the consequences were going to be if I broke the rules.
ReplyDeleteI believe that as humans, we have the ability to choose how we want to live our lives, but we are also effected by others around us and their decisions. We are all on this Earth for a reason and every decision we make effects someone else everyday. This is a reality, and reality is usually terrifying. I feel like I am living authentically. I work in a setting where I am constantly surrounded by people from all walks of life. I use my experiences to reevaluate my situations and proceed from there. As I said at the beginning, everything you do effects someone else and vice versa.
ReplyDeleteI disagree with sarte's claims of atheistic existentialism, which says that the universe has no intrinsic meaning/purpose. It also goes against the general idea that we, as humans, have certain natural instincts and desire. Existentialism goes against many the Traditional views as Barry mentions in the text. This section immediately made me think of the mission statement and how many professors give us assignments that are designed to help us fund our meaning in life and our purpose in the world. I think that each of has a purpose to live for and has something meaningful that we should share with those around us and the world in general.
ReplyDeleteKierkegaard looks at the choices we make as being authentic or inauthentic. I think in I do live authentically or at least I try to. i try to follow what my morals say and do things to help myself gain a better self-awareness. An example of this would be going on the border studies trip and using that experience working with others to better know myself. People are living in-authentically when they do things that lead them away from their ultimate relationships. An example being a child deliberately disobeying their parent when they clearly know that it is wrong. I feel that we all make our choices and are responsible for what we do and how that affects others.
I think Barry is trying to say that we all have a purpose in this world whether we really think about it or not. We do have the free will of doing what we want to and saying what we want to, but only to an extent. By that I mean we can't just go around killing people without any consequences. However, the choices that we make now determine our paths in the future. Therefore, if someone does go around killing people, I don't think that they will ever find their true purpose in life. The reality of it is that death occurs every day. It's terrifying to think that we could be gone the next day. So the decisions that we make today, might affect someone else's decisions tomorrow.
ReplyDeleteI think I live authentically because when I make decisions, they feel like they are the right decisions. For example, I value my education and I always have since the day I started to attend school. I chose to attend college because I knew that it would be in my best interest. These people are more successful than people who do not attend college. Values and morals are an important thing to have in order to live an authentic life because if we don't have them then why are we living? I try to be self-aware of what goes on around me other than in my own life because knowing what occurs to others may be something that I want or it may not be. It helps me understand my life a little better than before.
I agree I think we are free to act. You can control what you do or don't do. I think I am living authentically because my parents raised me with the simple rule treat people how I want to be treated. I don't know how some people cant live by that simple rule the world would be a better place if they did
ReplyDeleteFrom this I think it means we are free to act or live the way we want to live which is all fine and good. What I agree most with this is the fact that we can choose whatever road we want, and by me choosing whatever path I want to take gives me more sense of the world each day. We all live in a crazy world that can take us on a multitude of journeys and that what makes it most interesting. An example of how I live authentically is that I try to live with the core values that my parents bestowed upon me like treating others the way you want to be treated, holding the door for someone, or simply saying thank you like it is a reaction.
ReplyDeleteI think that every individual lives a purposeful life, and since we all live in the universe it has purpose as well. As individuals we are free to live and act independently, but this is not what gives our lives purpose. What gives us purpose and meaning is that how we live can have a direct effect on other lives around us. I attempt to live my life authentically, and always do what feels proper for my character, however there is only a certain extent that one can achieve. All of our personalities are molded by those around us at some point. Any behavior of mine that I would consider inauthentic would be something that I picked up from another person who I have been around. These behaviors are not necessary bad characteristics, but they eventually become a part of our authentic character if left unchecked.
ReplyDeleteI believe that we all have some purpose, or reason for living, and we wouldn't be here if there wasn't a reason for being. but I disagree with his idea. even if the universe was without a purpose, we are not free to choose nor act as we wish. freedom to choose or act, is limited, based on what is possible, probable, and acceptable. you don't see people doing unnecessary things, because certain things go against our social norms. or morals, our norms, are input into us by society, and our community. behaviors picked up from said community, such as say, a bad habit of smoking, or cursing, I view as in authentic. they aren't always authentically picked up, but were rather, sometimes, picked up by choice. it is this way, that I try to live authentically, by choosing not to fall into/ imitate the behaviors of those around me.
ReplyDeleteI believe that we do have a purpose in life and the role of the experiences we have throughout our lives help us to find and carry out that purpose. I do agree that we are free to act because if we were all destined to follow the same path we'd all have the same purpose and we'd already know what that is. I also believe that I am living authentically. Although I may not be the best person I do take steps everyday to make myself better. I may make rash decisions but I always follow through with that decision because I was always taught to see things through
ReplyDeleteI believe that we do have a purpose in life and the role of the experiences we have throughout our lives help us to find and carry out that purpose. I do agree that we are free to act because if we were all destined to follow the same path we'd all have the same purpose and we'd already know what that is. I also believe that I am living authentically. Although I may not be the best person I do take steps everyday to make myself better. I may make rash decisions but I always follow through with that decision because I was always taught to see things through
ReplyDeleteI believe that we all have a purpose in life. We weren't created to just take up space. Throughout ones life, we will go through hardships and experiences that will shape us into who we are and to who we become. For some people though, finding that purpose can be difficult. I believe that I am living authentically. I live each day to try and be better than I was yesterday. I may not have found my purpose yet, but I am taking the steps to finding that by following the rules and making good decisions.
ReplyDeleteI believe that we all have a different purpose in life, though we may not know what those purposes are. I feel like each person figures out their purpose in life at different times throughout their life. I feel like i am living authentically because i am trying to better myself from day to day and taking steps to figure out what my purpose is.
ReplyDeleteI think that this view is a great way to put things. I think that we do have a choice in what we do with our lives, there is no one pulling us on a string from somewhere else forcing us to do things we don't want to do. There is no one else making our decisions, so I think that this is very well said. This quote makes sense of the world because even though I do believe in God, I don't believe that he has a set plan for every single person, he gave us free will for a reason, so that we don't have to be like puppets. I try and treat others the way that I would like to be treated, but sometimes my day just doesn't go how I intended and I wind up snapping on someone close to me over stupid things. This is inauthentic, I have the choice to stop doing that, but sometimes I just can't help it.
ReplyDeleteI agree with this statement to a degree. We are free to choose and act as we will, but I believe that life doesn't have a purpose until you give it one. To me this statement kind of bewilders me because most philosophers speak about how there is a meaning for anything and everything in life. This statement strikes me as something a scientist with no ties to religion would say. I do think I am living authentically. I go about everyday trying to behave in a manner that others find acceptable. I try to view things from other peoples point of view and do my best to be stubborn and one-sided about things.
ReplyDeleteI do believe that we are free to make our own choices and because of that we are responsible for how our lives turn out. While we certainly cannot control everything in our lives, there are things that happen which we cannot control, it is how we handle and deal with those things along with the decisions we make throughout our lives that make up how our lives turned out. I don't think that anyone has a set purpose in life, we just need to live the best life possible as we see fit.
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