Question 1

Nagel says, "I would argue that absurdity is one of the most human things about us: a manifestation of our most advanced and interesting characteristics. Like skepticism in epistemology, it is possible only because we possess a certain kind of insight-the capacity to transcend ourselves in thought."

Accepted Answer

Nagel is arguing that absurdity is a uniquely human trait that indicates our capacity for transcendent thought.

Question 2

Nagel says, "If sub specie aeternitatis there is no reason to believe that anything matters, then that doesn't matter either, and we can approach our absurd lives with irony instead of heroism or despair."

Accepted Answer

Nagel is stating that even if under the perspective of eternity there is no inherent meaning or purpose to life, this realization does not necessarily lead to despair or heroism. Instead, we can adopt an ironic perspective towards the absurdity of life.

Question 3

Explain Nagel's point when he says, "It is often remarked that nothing we do now will matter in a million years. But if that is true, then by the same token, nothing that will be the case in a million years matters now. In particular, it does not matter now that in a million years nothing we do now will matter."

Accepted Answer

The answer of Explain Nagel's point when he says, "It...

Question 4

Nagel says, "Another inadequate argument is that because we are going to die, all chains of justification must leave off in mid-air: one studies and works to earn money to pay for clothing, housing, entertainment, food, to sustain oneself from year to year, perhaps to support a family and pursue a career-but to what final end? All of it is an elaborate journey leading nowhere." Why does Nagel think that the argument is inadequate?

Accepted Answer

The answer of Nagel says, "Another inadequate argument is that...

Question 5

Nagel says, "Skepticism begins when we include ourselves in the world about which we claim knowledge. We notice that certain types of evidence convince us, that we are content to allow justifications of belief to come to an end at certain points, that we feel we know many things even without knowing or having grounds for believing the denial of others which, if true, would make what we claim to know false." Do you agree with Nagel? Explain your answer.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Nagel says, "Skepticism begins when we include...

Question 6

What is Nagel's point when he says, "What we say to convey the absurdity of our lives often has to do with space or time: we are tiny specks in the infinite vastness of the universe; our lives are mere instants even on a geological time scale, let alone a cosmic one; we will all be dead any minute"?

Accepted Answer

The answer of What is Nagel's point when he says,...

Question 7

Explain what Nagel means when he says, "No further justification is needed to make it reasonable to take aspirin for a headache, attend an exhibit of the work of a painter one admires, or stop a child from putting his hand on a hot stove. No larger context or further purpose is needed to prevent these acts from being pointless." Do you agree with Nagel? Explain your answer.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Explain what Nagel means when he says,...

Question 8

Nagel says, "In ordinary life a situation is absurd when it includes a conspicuous discrepancy between pretension or aspiration and reality: someone gives a complicated speech in support of a motion that has already been passed; a notorious criminal is made president of a major philanthropic foundation; you declare your love over the telephone to a recorded announcement; as you are being knighted, your pants fall down." Do you agree with Nagel's discussion of when something is absurd?

Accepted Answer

The answer of Nagel says, "In ordinary life a situation...

Question 9

Explain what Nagel means when he says that life is absurd "because we ignore the doubts that we know cannot be settled, continuing to live with nearly undiminished seriousness in spite of them. This analysis requires defense in two respects: first as regards the unavoidability of seriousness; second as regards the inescapability of doubt."

Accepted Answer

The answer of Explain what Nagel means when he says...

Question 10

Explain what Nagel means when he says, "There does not appear to be any conceivable world (containing us) about which unsettlable doubts could not arise. Consequently the absurdity of our situation derives not from a collision between our expectations and the world, but from a collision within ourselves."

Accepted Answer

The answer of Explain what Nagel means when he says,...

Question 11

Nagel says, "Why is the life of a mouse not absurd? The orbit of the moon is not absurd either, but that involves no strivings or aims at all. A mouse, however, has to work to stay alive. Yet he is not absurd, because he lacks the capacities for self-consciousness and self-transcendence that would enable him to see that he is only a mouse." Do you agree with Nagel?

Accepted Answer

The answer of Nagel says, "Why is the life of...

Question 12

Explain what Nagel means when he says, "I would argue that absurdity is one of the most human things about us: a manifestation of our most advanced and interesting characteristics. Like skepticism in epistemology, it is possible only because we possess a certain kind of insight-the capacity to transcend ourselves in thought."

Accepted Answer

The answer of Explain what Nagel means when he says,...

Question 13

Nagel says, "If sub specie aeternitatis there is no reason to believe that anything matters, then that doesn't matter either, and we can approach our absurd lives with irony instead of heroism or despair." Do you agree with Nagel?

Accepted Answer

The answer of Nagel says, "If sub specie aeternitatis there...

Question 14

Taylor uses the myth of Sisyphus story as an illustration of ...

Accepted Answer

Taylor uses the myth of Sisyphus to illustrate the concept of absurdity and the potential for a meaningless existence in the face of an indifferent universe.

Question 15

According to Taylor, "Meaninglessness is essentially endless _____________, and meaningfulness is therefore the opposite."

Accepted Answer

According to Taylor, "Meaninglessness is essentially endless pointlessness," indicating that the opposite of meaninglessness, or meaningfulness, is the presence of purpose or point.

Question 16

According to Taylor, "Activity, and even long, drawn out and repetitive activity, has a meaning if it has some significant ___________, some more or less lasting end that can be considered to have been the direction and purpose of the activity."

Accepted Answer

Culmination refers to a significant and lasting end, which is consistent with the idea that activity should have a purpose or direction. Remuneration refers to payment, which may not necessarily be the intended purpose of the activity. Spirituality and causal nexus are not directly related to the idea of activity having a purpose or direction.

Question 17

Taylor uses the examples of worms, birds, and fish to say "that there is no point to it at all, that it really culminates in nothing, that each of these cycles, so filled with toil, is to be followed only by more of the same. The point of any living thing's life is, evidently, nothing but ..."

Accepted Answer

Taylor suggests that the point of any living thing's life is life itself, emphasizing the cyclical and self-perpetuating nature of existence.

Question 18

Taylor says, "Every small piece of junk fills the mind with what once, not long ago, was utterly real, with children's voices, plans made, and enterprises embarked upon. That is how these stones of Sisyphus were rolled up, and that is how they became incorporated into a beautiful temple, and that temple is what now lies before you. Meanwhile other buildings, institutions, nations, and civilizations spring up all around, only to share the same fate before long. And if the question 'What for?' is now asked, the answer is clear: ..."

Accepted Answer

The excerpt suggests that the purpose of building, creating, and embarking on enterprises is so that the cycle of creation and destruction can continue indefinitely. Option A is unlikely as it implies a nihilistic view of life. Option B brings in a religious perspective which is not mentioned or alluded to in the excerpt. Option D is not a substantial answer to the question. Therefore, option C is the best choice.

Question 19

Taylor says, "The meaning of life is _______________, it is not bestowed from without, and it far exceeds in both its beauty and permanence any heaven of which men have ever dreamed or yearned for."

Accepted Answer

Taylor is saying that the meaning of life comes from within us, and is not something that is given to us by an external force. This meaning is beautiful and everlasting, surpassing any idealized version of heaven that humans may imagine.

Question 20

Taylor uses the myth of Sisyphus story as an illustration of rationality.

Accepted Answer

Taylor uses the myth of Sisyphus story as a critique of rationality, arguing that it can lead to a sense of existential absurdity and meaninglessness.

Quiz 10: Epicurus in Waking or in Dream

Nagel says, "If sub specie aeternitatis there is no reason to believe that anything matters, then that doesn't matter either, and we can approach our absurd lives with irony instead of heroism or despair."

Nagel says, "If sub specie aeternitatis there is no reason to believe that anything matters, then that doesn't matter either, and we can approach our absurd lives with irony instead of heroism or despair." Do you agree with Nagel?

Taylor uses the myth of Sisyphus story as an illustration of ...

According to Taylor, "Meaninglessness is essentially endless _____________, and meaningfulness is therefore the opposite."

According to Taylor, "Activity, and even long, drawn out and repetitive activity, has a meaning if it has some significant ___________, some more or less lasting end that can be considered to have been the direction and purpose of the activity."

Taylor uses the examples of worms, birds, and fish to say "that there is no point to it at all, that it really culminates in nothing, that each of these cycles, so filled with toil, is to be followed only by more of the same. The point of any living thing's life is, evidently, nothing but ..."

Taylor says, "The meaning of life is _______________, it is not bestowed from without, and it far exceeds in both its beauty and permanence any heaven of which men have ever dreamed or yearned for."

Taylor uses the myth of Sisyphus story as an illustration of rationality.