Does Life Need Meaning?

“Reject Modernity, Embrace Tradition”

To reject ideas instilled by modern-day society is to reject tradition. Biologically, humans were always naturally sentient toward one another. Philosopher Immanuel Kant, in contrast, emphasized reason over emotion. While not entirely dismissing sympathy, Kant believes that:

Moral duties should be guided by universalizable principles rather than by affective responses such as sympathy.

Depending on feelings can be unreliable and overly focused on individual cases, while reason offers fairer, more unbiased guidance.

So, having been presented with this evidence, does this mean that those who are asympathetic are aberrations of nature?

It’s strange to think that the world feels both more indifferent and more involved than ever. Often, it seems like people care just because they’re told to. Maybe we care for the wrong reasons, or even about the wrong things. People who are indifferent, as I sometimes am, will probably stay that way even if they have to act as though they care or feel sorry.

It’s very hard to reject the norms of a society, such as proper reactions to situations. Society scrutinizes individuals who react abnormally to conflict & pressures them to comply with the expectations of those around them by reacting in “ordinary” ways. When there is no compliance, there is questioning. I don’t believe that questioning in itself is unfair; it only makes sense that one should wonder why a man doesn’t cry when his mother dies — as in The Outsider, or why a man remains calm in the face of the murder he has just committed. What I mean to say is that one should not be afraid to question even the most basic norms and maintain confidence even when resistance piles up. Curiosity killed the cat; however, its benefits are immense.

However, rejecting ideas can be scary. Letting yourself be known can be scary; being vulnerable can be consequential. You never know how people will react to your attitude, and even if you don’t fear judgement, you can still worry about how your intellect & morality will be perceived. Even authors fear what people will think of their books because it is as though they are opening a part of themselves to the world. Although Albert Camus likely acknowledged that The Stranger would unsettle readers, he did not appear to let fear of criticism prevent him from presenting his ideas & represent his true opinions in his writing. Instead, he used Meursault’s uncomfortable perspective to challenge social conventions and encourage readers to question their assumptions about morality, emotion, and meaning, while simultaneously conveying emotion through a character who actively embodies Camus’s sense of absurdity.

Regardless, one grows when they step outside of their comfort zone.

With that being said, I challenge you to do something you wouldn’t do otherwise. Whatever others think is irrelevant.