In This Selection Nagel Reflects on the Sense of Absurdity

question 10

True/False

In this selection Nagel reflects on the sense of absurdity that most of us feel from time to time. The sense of absurdity arises, he says, from the "collision between the seriousness with which we take our lives and the perpetual possibility of regarding everything about which we are serious as arbitrary, or open to doubt." Nagel thinks that Camus's response to the absurd (defiance or scorn) is inappropriate; it's "romantic and slightly self-pitying." He prefers instead to approach the absurd with acceptance, with irony instead of heroism or despair.
-Nagel agrees with Camus's attitude toward the absurd.

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Definitions:

Treynor Measures

Financial metrics used to assess the returns earned on a portfolio in excess of that which could have been earned on a risk-free investment, per each unit of market risk.

Sharpe Measure

A ratio developed by William F. Sharpe to measure risk-adjusted performance of an investment, calculating how much excess return you are receiving for the extra volatility that you endure for holding a riskier asset.

Dollar Weighted

A method of measuring investment returns which accounts for the size and timing of cash flows into and out of the portfolio.

Time Weighted

A method of calculating investment returns that eliminates the effects of cash inflows and outflows on the performance.