• Question: What, in your opinion is the meaning of life?

    Asked by thisnameiscool to Alan, Caspar, Diana, Murray, Sarah on 23 Mar 2011 in Categories: . This question was also asked by kingworm96.
    • Photo: Alan Winfield

      Alan Winfield answered on 17 Mar 2011:

      Ah, that’s a very deep question.

      Well personally I think that we make our own meaning. I don’t think meaning is something that comes from outside – I think it’s something that comes from our human culture, family, friendship, values, laws and lots of other things. But because we make our own meaning of life – that doesn’t mean it’s somehow not a proper ‘meaning of life’.

      From a scientific point of view I think that the reasons that we’re here now, living on this planet, and having this conversation, is an amazing, wonderful, awesome result of a very long and complex set of essentially chance events. Some of those events are in the realm of physics – the Big Bang – the birth of stars and planets, etc. Some are about bio-chemistry and the question of how organic molecules arose. And alot of the story is of course biology, and especially evolutionary biology. So, from a scientific point of view, all of that adds up to trying to understand the meaning of life. Of course you might say, well all of that just tries to explain ‘how’ we’re here. Not ‘why’ we’re here. But I would say that science does try to answer the why question, as well as the how question. I think the answer to the why question is actually very simple. We, and the life on the planet, are here because we can be. If you then asked me what the mathematical likelihood of us being on the planet is I would say it’s incredibly small. But that, I would say, just goes to show that astonishingly improbable things really do happen in this amazing Universe.

    • Photo: Caspar Addyman

      Caspar Addyman answered on 17 Mar 2011:

      A very good question. I once asked it to every philosopher in the country. I wrote to 643 of them but only 20 wrote back.. Most of them didn’t have answer or rather they said something like. “Life itself doesn’t have any meaning but you can give your own life meaning. The best way to do this is try to be honest with yourself and with others.” Which makes sense to me. As one of the philosophers said to me, the motto from Bill and Ted’s Excellent adventure is a pretty good guideline “Be excellent to each other”

      Dear Prof X/Dr Y,

      As a professional philosopher, I am sure you are continually plagued by cranks and lunatics. I am no exception.

      I have got it into my head that you are well placed to know about life, the universe and everything. Therefore, I am writing to ask if you could tell me the meaning of it all. (Do not be too flattered, I am writing to every philosopher in the country!)

      If God were required to explain himself I am sure he could do it in a few elegant paragraphs on one crisply typeset foolscap sheet (though as an atheist I have not tried asking him.) You are welcome to go further than this but I would prefer something more like Meditations than either Either/Or or Being & Nothingness.

      For the sake of brevity and convenience, please feel free to merely refer* me to a paper you have written elsewhere or something classic by a dead Greek or German.

      One final very mundane point, I am not some highbrow Henry Root and in any case the laws of copyright are on your side. But, who knows, if philosophers turn out to be a particularly witty bunch or if you and your peers disagree strongly then I may collect the responses I receive and attempt to publish them.

      With Regards,
      Caspar

      You can read the replies here.. http://onemonkey.org/tag/meaning-of-life

    • Photo: Sarah Thomas

      Sarah Thomas answered on 23 Mar 2011:

      I think the meaning of life is to be happy, be selfless, make lots of friends, look after your family and do something worthwhile with your time, don’t waste it.

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