Humanity's Purpose as Dos' Hopelessness
Well shoot, Dostoyevsky. Part 1 was a doozy if there ever was one! That was an extreme amount of dry sarcasm, depressing philosophies, and incessant ramblings. Cool!
However, I can't say he is wrong. He goes about qualifying the meaning of human existence. What, indeed is their purpose? To say purpose is to only reason gives no good reason (lol) to all that has yet to be reasoned. Now if that isn't clear enough, Dos says; "And what does reason know? It knows only what it has had time to learn.." "..But reason is reason and it only satisfies man's rational requirements." Therefore, reason is not enough for human purpose.
So what about pleasure? What does pleasure do for human purpose? According to Dos, all pleasure only results in ultimate boredom, so where's the purpose in that?
Overall, we have a few statements that guide Dos' thought on human purpose. "...for what is a man without will, wishes, and desires, if not an organ stop?" and "man is a creative animal, doomed to strive consciously toward a goal... perhaps the purpose of man's life on earth consists in this uninterrupted striving after this goal." This is seemingly hopeless, a never ending striving towards something that we don't know. My question for you, then, is what is Dos' point? I am well aware we still have part 2 to read, but I much rather FEEL these questions deeply, wrestling with them, even if we are only part way through the discourse.
I commented on Faith and Will's.
However, I can't say he is wrong. He goes about qualifying the meaning of human existence. What, indeed is their purpose? To say purpose is to only reason gives no good reason (lol) to all that has yet to be reasoned. Now if that isn't clear enough, Dos says; "And what does reason know? It knows only what it has had time to learn.." "..But reason is reason and it only satisfies man's rational requirements." Therefore, reason is not enough for human purpose.
So what about pleasure? What does pleasure do for human purpose? According to Dos, all pleasure only results in ultimate boredom, so where's the purpose in that?
Overall, we have a few statements that guide Dos' thought on human purpose. "...for what is a man without will, wishes, and desires, if not an organ stop?" and "man is a creative animal, doomed to strive consciously toward a goal... perhaps the purpose of man's life on earth consists in this uninterrupted striving after this goal." This is seemingly hopeless, a never ending striving towards something that we don't know. My question for you, then, is what is Dos' point? I am well aware we still have part 2 to read, but I much rather FEEL these questions deeply, wrestling with them, even if we are only part way through the discourse.
I commented on Faith and Will's.
I don't think that there is hopelessness in striving after something that we don't know... Without goals what would be our purpose? Reason is not solely who we are just as striving after something unknown is not aimless. Our purpose is that of continual striving toward something good whatever it may be.
ReplyDeleteDefinitely consider existentialism as we go through Dostoyevsky. It has heavy tie-ins, at least from what I'm reading. Also, I cannot remember where Dostoyevsky goes with this, but the myth of Sisyphus is coming to mind.
ReplyDelete