The Purpose of Life: A Theistic Perspective

ISBN-13: 9781441180827 / Angielski / Miękka / 2012 / 192 str.

Stewart Goetz

Opis

What does philosophy have to say on the question of the meaning of life? This is one of the founding questions of philosophy and has remained a central problem for philosophers from antiquity through to the Middle Ages and modern period.
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It may surprise some readers that there has, in fact, been a good deal of agreement on the answer to this question: the meaning of life is happiness.The Purpose of Life is a serious but engaging exploration and defense of this answer. The central idea that shapes The Purpose of Life is Augustine's assertion that "It is the decided opinion of all who use their brains that all men desire to be happy." In working through the ramifications of this answer, Stewart Goetz provides a survey of the debates surrounding life's meaning, from both theists and atheists alike.

Spis treści

Preface Chapter 1: Clarifying the Question What is the Meaning of Life? Clarifying Questions and Answers to Them Perfect Happiness A Plausible Understanding of "What is the meaning of life?" A Plausible Understanding of "What makes life meaningful?" Euthyphro's Objection A Plausible Understanding of "Is life meaningful?" This World, the Afterlife, and the Soul Conclusion Addendum Chapter 2: Perfect Happiness and Its Atheist Critics Perfect Happiness Is Not the Meaning of Life Perfect Happiness: Setting the Bar too High "Why Should I Be Moral?" A Section Not Strictly Necessary "Why Should I Be Moral?" again Chapter 3: Perfect Happiness and Its Theist Critics The Problem of Pleasure Pleasure Cannot Be Intrinsically Good: Religious Concerns Pleasure Cannot Be Intrinsically Good: Philosophical Concerns Is Pleasure Present in Everything We Enjoy? Conclusion Chapter 4: Purposeful Explanation and Naturalism A Brief Overview Looking Backward versus Looking Forward The Nature of Purposeful Explanation Naturalism The Causal Closure Principle Science Is Not the Problem Survival or Pleasure: What Explains What? Evolution versus Creation Addendum Chapter 5: The Problem of Evil Skeptical Theism, the Purpose of Life, and the Problem of Evil Choice and Life Plans Life Plans and Perfect Happiness A Theodicy The Plausibility of My Theodicy Not So Fast! A Skeptical Theist Turned Theodicist Justice as an Organic Unity Tying Together Some Loose Ends The Experience of Evil by Beasts Addendum Chapter 6: Conclusion Bibliography Index