Susan Wolf, Philosopher and Author of Meaning in Life and Why

question 8

True/False

Susan Wolf, philosopher and author of Meaning in Life and Why It Matters, argues that meaning in life must consist of both subjective and objective elements. As she says, "meaningful lives are lives of active engagement in projects of worth." Active engagement is involvement in something that grips or excites a person, something that arouses passion. But this subjective response alone is not enough to add significant meaning to someone's life. Mere passion about an activity is, in itself, insufficient to contribute meaningfulness to a life. The passion must be directed at projects that are in themselves worthwhile. "What is clear to me," she says, "is that there can be no sense to the idea of meaningfulness without a distinction between more and less worthwhile ways to spend one's time, where the test of worth is at least partly independent of a subject's ungrounded preferences or enjoyment."
This view belies the often expressed notion that what someone does doesn't matter as long as the person enjoys it or prefers it or gets satisfaction out of it. But people do wonder sometimes if an activity they enjoy is in fact worthwhile. Some people with satisfying lives do feel that their existence is meaningless.
-Wolf asserts that people do not get meaning from recycling or from writing checks to Oxfam.

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Definitions:

Pollution

The introduction of harmful substances or products into the environment, causing adverse effects on living organisms and ecosystems.

Public Good

A product or service that is provided without profit to all members of a society, either freely or by the government, and which is non-excludable and non-rivalrous.

Marginal Benefit

The additional satisfaction or utility a consumer receives from consuming an additional unit of a good or service.

Marginal Cost

The financial outlay for making one more unit of a product or service.