1. The Meaning of Life?

2. The Classic Western World View
God created the universe and everything in it.
God Governs the Universe with a divine plan
We are created by God with a specific purpose
We need only find that purpose to discover our deepest joy

3. The death of Transcendent Meaning

4. The Existential Vacuum
Camus “The Myth of Sisyphus.”
Beckett “Waiting for Godot.”
Sartre “No Exit.”
Themes:
No higher meaning
Life ends in the oblivion of death
Boredom
Apathy

5. How do we fix this problem?

6. Viktor Frankl on Meaning
Man’s Search for Meaning
Meaninglessness is the central problem of the modern world
We can’t find meaning in our lives and so we respond with depression, aggression, and addiction
Meaning can never be found in self-focus and self- centeredness
Meaning can only be found in Self-Trascendence

7. The Problem with Hedonsim
The Theories that Frankl Criticizes all depict human nature as self- focused and self-fixated.

8. Frankl thinks that human nature can only be fulfilled by Self-Transcendence
1. Creating a work or doing a deed
2. Loving someone or serving a cause
3. Having the right attitude toward inevitable suffering