The Really Hard Problem: Meaning in a Material WorldA noted philosopher proposes a naturalistic (rather than supernaturalistic) way to solve the "really hard problem": how to live in a meaningful way—how to live a life that really matters—even as a finite material being living in a material world. If consciousness is "the hard problem" in mind science—explaining how the amazing private world of consciousness emerges from neuronal activity—then "the really hard problem," writes Owen Flanagan in this provocative book, is explaining how meaning is possible in the material world. How can we make sense of the magic and mystery of life naturalistically, without an appeal to the supernatural? How do we say truthful and enchanting things about being human if we accept the fact that we are finite material beings living in a material world, or, in Flanagan's description, short-lived pieces of organized cells and tissue? Flanagan's answer is both naturalistic and enchanting. We all wish to live in a meaningful way, to live a life that really matters, to flourish, to achieve eudaimonia—to be a "happy spirit." Flanagan calls his "empirical-normative" inquiry into the nature, causes, and conditions of human flourishing eudaimonics. Eudaimonics, systematic philosophical investigation that is continuous with science, is the naturalist's response to those who say that science has robbed the world of the meaning that fantastical, wishful stories once provided. Flanagan draws on philosophy, neuroscience, evolutionary biology, and psychology, as well as on transformative mindfulness and self-cultivation practices that come from such nontheistic spiritual traditions as Buddhism, Confucianism, Aristotelianism, and Stoicism, in his quest. He gathers from these disciplines knowledge that will help us understand the nature, causes, and constituents of well-being and advance human flourishing. Eudaimonics can help us find out how to make a difference, how to contribute to the accumulation of good effects—how to live a meaningful life. |
From inside the book
Results 1-5 of 51
... possible sense, hang together (if they do) in the broadest possible sense. Specifically, I was asked—or so I interpreted the invitation—to focus on the implications of mind science for our conception of ourselves. The original title of ...
... possible in this material world . Nearly everyone accepts that consciousness exists . Many wonder whether meaning does , even could , exist . Consciousness is . It happens , it is there . It flows like a stream while I live , and how it ...
... possible for creatures like us , and what methods are available to achieve it . I call this empirical - normative inquiry into the nature , causes , and conditions of human flourishing eudaimonistic scientia . ' Eudaimonia ' is a Greek ...
... possible for mind and body to caus- ally interact. Naturalistic conceptions of persons lead to progressive theoriz- ing; non-naturalistic ones do not.3 A broad philosophical naturalism can accommodate our unusual nature as social ...
... the activity of systematically gathering what is known about these three components of well-being and attempting to engender as much flourishing as is possible. The Philosopher's Vocation In 1960 , Wilfrid Sellars began a 4 Chapter 1.
Contents
1 | |
The Comparative Consensus | 37 |
Buddhism and Science | 63 |
4 Normative Mind Science? Psychology Neuroscience and the Good Life | 107 |
5 Neuroscience Happiness and Positive Illusions | 149 |
6 Spirituality Naturalized? A Strong Cat without Claws | 183 |
Notes | 221 |
Bibliography | 265 |
Index | 285 |