The Problem: A Classical Representation through the Myth of Sisyphus
In 1942, the young and handsome philosopher named Albert Camus published an essay called "The Myth of Sisyphus." In this classic essay, Camus presents to us the case of Sisyphus who was punished by the Greek Gods for having tricked them on multiple accounts. His punishment was simple yet eerily familiar to us. Sisyphus was to exist for all eternity doing only one task – pushing a massive boulder up a hill with the rock rolling back down just before it reaches the top.
Picking up from this ancient tale, Camus presents to us the problem of the human condition – that we are bound to do meaningless tasks in a life where all that awaits us is death. Just like Sisyphus, we are forced to earn a living, find meaning in temporary happiness, or even joy in superfluous experiences with people around us. Camus pointed this out, hinting that the human condition seems to be challenged on this one – what is there to live for?
Such absurdity validly presents the viability of suicide as a meaningful option. For a person who cannot find meaning in his/her life anymore, ending it perhaps would be the best course of action to do it. When people lose that will, the temptation of such can overpower the will to live.
But of course, the majority of us doesn't look at life that way.
However, the same problem of human condition – Man’s search for meaning, is something that continually bothers us.
A Weak Response: The Retreat
Regardless of how we try to spin the angle, the same problem exists unless we solve them. Like dishes that are left from last night’s dinner, these things won't automatically clean themselves. Even we have to prepare them before placing such inside a dishwasher. Despite having this knowledge, why do people end up leaving it out?
In answering this seemingly complex paradox, we have to take a look at how people decide for things. Using classical ethical theory, individuals choose based on a social notion of what's right or wrong versus their conception of the good life. Inherently, there is a tension, a push and pull between these two concepts, to a point that it can lead the individual confused and conflicted.
For instance, in trying to understand why some people do wrong things in life even if they know it is wrong, this theoretical framework gives us a good insight. Also when people know that their actions are immoral, they can continue pursuing it simply because they are keen and firm in following their concept of the good life. Thus, people sell drugs even when doing so can indefinitely harm the chances of others to pursue life as they want to.
Using this framework, let us analyze the human condition – why are we sad and unhappy? Why are some people successful, whereas we are left in our own rubbles? Looking at our condition using this framework will make us realize – do we have a clear conception of the good life? Or do we simply live by the opinions of others about our lives?
When we are unable to define what we want in our lives, we either end up conforming to others or left as being indecisive and thus, a failure at least in one way or another. And when we’re unable to handle this fact, we can resort to all sorts of things, from fake friends and superfluous things.
As a response, we retreat into the notion that the experience of sadness and negativity is nothing more than a passé. That instead of treating it as a real existential problem which defines the human condition, we brush it off as irrelevant and normal.
While it doesn't seem to hurt at first, this continual rejection of the human condition can pile up such negativity from within. When we turn a blind eye on the negative effects of our struggles on our bodies, we allow ourselves to be silently consumed by it. Similar to drugs, this feeling can become addictive to a point that we are psychologically and physically reliant on the fact that we must keep things shut.
A Strong Response: The Reckoning
Living your life with your own set of principles can literally go a long way in helping you approach such paradox. By being able to cut through the muck of senseless opinions and empty perspectives that people flaunt in the social space, you will be able to take control of your life. Instead of being easily swayed by what the media intentionally presents, we are able to decide for ourselves for we know what we want.
Going back to the story of the myth of Sisyphus, the endless toil eventually led to a reckoning. As Sisyphus pushed the boulder over and over again, he realized that the boulder was always above him. But repeatedly doing this task opened a realization – that at one point, he is above the boulder as it rolls down the hill.
To a certain extent, this gave Sisyphus a sense of meaning in life. Comparing the boulder to our struggles, Albert Camus used this imagery to show that we can indeed possibly find meaning. When we realize that we are above our own problems and struggles (as we have the power to push them forward and be above it), we begin the process of authentically taking control of our own lives. However, should we fail to realize this, we will see life differently – than the boulder is the one controlling it.
As such, this point proves that life, more often than not, is a matter of perspective and mindset. If we have the wrong mindset, even if we had tons of cash in our vaults, we would be unable to grow it. Like lotto winners who spend their fortunes on senseless things, it is our perspective that defines our actions, which in turn creates our own destiny.
Perhaps, at this point, the legitimate question then is – how do we change the way we think?
Transcending Failure – A Battle from Within
In an attempt to make sense of our paradoxically dysfunctional situation of finding meaning, the best way to go is to harness the power of positivity. Notice that when people start to become negative and feed themselves with such, they further bury themselves in the avalanche of their own inadequacies. But the question is – isn't this a common experience among all of us? Making a comparison, you would easily realize that even the greatest athletes and thinkers struggle from their own challenges. In their own ways, they also experienced failure countless times.
For instance, did you know Ed Sheeran's backstory? As he transferred to the US trying to make music, Jamie Foxx saw him perform. And no, this isn't on the big stage, but in some small bar. Such coincidence led Jamie to help Ed, allowing him to sleep on his couch for six weeks. After which, Jamie helped Ed to a gig in Apollo NY theater (which was mostly of black people). Despite being an uncommon sight, Ed Sheeran got a standing ovation from this crowd.
While we may all perceive Ed Sheeran simply as a success story, looking at this gives us a thought – what makes him different than us? Most who are unable to recognize their own powers would say that it is his talent. And while it is true that indeed Ed Sheeran may be far more talented than us, in one way or another, we also have our own skillsets and proficiencies.
With that, what truly separates Ed Sheeran is the ability to transcend failure through positivity. By being hopeful and never giving up despite the uncertainty of transferring to another country and playing in some small bar, this guy presents to us what a positive mind can hope to bring.
The Problem: A Classical Representation through the Myth of Sisyphus
In 1942, the young and handsome philosopher named Albert Camus published an essay called "The Myth of Sisyphus." In this classic essay, Camus presents to us the case of Sisyphus who was punished by the Greek Gods for having tricked them on multiple accounts. His punishment was simple yet eerily familiar to us. Sisyphus was to exist for all eternity doing only one task – pushing a massive boulder up a hill with the rock rolling back down just before it reaches the top.
Picking up from this ancient tale, Camus presents to us the problem of the human condition – that we are bound to do meaningless tasks in a life where all that awaits us is death. Just like Sisyphus, we are forced to earn a living, find meaning in temporary happiness, or even joy in superfluous experiences with people around us. Camus pointed this out, hinting that the human condition seems to be challenged on this one – what is there to live for?
Such absurdity validly presents the viability of suicide as a meaningful option. For a person who cannot find meaning in his/her life anymore, ending it perhaps would be the best course of action to do it. When people lose that will, the temptation of such can overpower the will to live.
But of course, the majority of us doesn't look at life that way.
However, the same problem of human condition – Man’s search for meaning, is something that continually bothers us.
A Weak Response: The Retreat
Regardless of how we try to spin the angle, the same problem exists unless we solve them. Like dishes that are left from last night’s dinner, these things won't automatically clean themselves. Even we have to prepare them before placing such inside a dishwasher. Despite having this knowledge, why do people end up leaving it out?
In answering this seemingly complex paradox, we have to take a look at how people decide for things. Using classical ethical theory, individuals choose based on a social notion of what's right or wrong versus their conception of the good life. Inherently, there is a tension, a push and pull between these two concepts, to a point that it can lead the individual confused and conflicted.
For instance, in trying to understand why some people do wrong things in life even if they know it is wrong, this theoretical framework gives us a good insight. Also when people know that their actions are immoral, they can continue pursuing it simply because they are keen and firm in following their concept of the good life. Thus, people sell drugs even when doing so can indefinitely harm the chances of others to pursue life as they want to.
Using this framework, let us analyze the human condition – why are we sad and unhappy? Why are some people successful, whereas we are left in our own rubbles? Looking at our condition using this framework will make us realize – do we have a clear conception of the good life? Or do we simply live by the opinions of others about our lives?
When we are unable to define what we want in our lives, we either end up conforming to others or left as being indecisive and thus, a failure at least in one way or another. And when we’re unable to handle this fact, we can resort to all sorts of things, from fake friends and superfluous things.
As a response, we retreat into the notion that the experience of sadness and negativity is nothing more than a passé. That instead of treating it as a real existential problem which defines the human condition, we brush it off as irrelevant and normal.
While it doesn't seem to hurt at first, this continual rejection of the human condition can pile up such negativity from within. When we turn a blind eye on the negative effects of our struggles on our bodies, we allow ourselves to be silently consumed by it. Similar to drugs, this feeling can become addictive to a point that we are psychologically and physically reliant on the fact that we must keep things shut.
A Strong Response: The Reckoning
Living your life with your own set of principles can literally go a long way in helping you approach such paradox. By being able to cut through the muck of senseless opinions and empty perspectives that people flaunt in the social space, you will be able to take control of your life. Instead of being easily swayed by what the media intentionally presents, we are able to decide for ourselves for we know what we want.
Going back to the story of the myth of Sisyphus, the endless toil eventually led to a reckoning. As Sisyphus pushed the boulder over and over again, he realized that the boulder was always above him. But repeatedly doing this task opened a realization – that at one point, he is above the boulder as it rolls down the hill.
To a certain extent, this gave Sisyphus a sense of meaning in life. Comparing the boulder to our struggles, Albert Camus used this imagery to show that we can indeed possibly find meaning. When we realize that we are above our own problems and struggles (as we have the power to push them forward and be above it), we begin the process of authentically taking control of our own lives. However, should we fail to realize this, we will see life differently – than the boulder is the one controlling it.
As such, this point proves that life, more often than not, is a matter of perspective and mindset. If we have the wrong mindset, even if we had tons of cash in our vaults, we would be unable to grow it. Like lotto winners who spend their fortunes on senseless things, it is our perspective that defines our actions, which in turn creates our own destiny.
Perhaps, at this point, the legitimate question then is – how do we change the way we think?
Transcending Failure – A Battle from Within
In an attempt to make sense of our paradoxically dysfunctional situation of finding meaning, the best way to go is to harness the power of positivity. Notice that when people start to become negative and feed themselves with such, they further bury themselves in the avalanche of their own inadequacies. But the question is – isn't this a common experience among all of us? Making a comparison, you would easily realize that even the greatest athletes and thinkers struggle from their own challenges. In their own ways, they also experienced failure countless times.
For instance, did you know Ed Sheeran's backstory? As he transferred to the US trying to make music, Jamie Foxx saw him perform. And no, this isn't on the big stage, but in some small bar. Such coincidence led Jamie to help Ed, allowing him to sleep on his couch for six weeks. After which, Jamie helped Ed to a gig in Apollo NY theater (which was mostly of black people). Despite being an uncommon sight, Ed Sheeran got a standing ovation from this crowd.
While we may all perceive Ed Sheeran simply as a success story, looking at this gives us a thought – what makes him different than us? Most who are unable to recognize their own powers would say that it is his talent. And while it is true that indeed Ed Sheeran may be far more talented than us, in one way or another, we also have our own skillsets and proficiencies.
With that, what truly separates Ed Sheeran is the ability to transcend failure through positivity. By being hopeful and never giving up despite the uncertainty of transferring to another country and playing in some small bar, this guy presents to us what a positive mind can hope to bring.
