Deck 29: Existentialism and the Meaning of Life and the Fear of Death

Question 1

Camus thinks that the Myth of Sisyphus shows that life is absurd.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

Camus thinks that religion alone can give life true meaning.

Answer 2

False

Question 3

Sisyphus was a Greek hero who saved Greece by rolling a bolder up Mt. Olympus.

Answer 3

False

Question 4

The Myth of Sisyphus shows that even a harsh life can have meaning.

Question 5

Not life, but the quality of life is important.

Question 6

The one special object that Sisyphus needs to find fulfilment is Sisyphia.

Question 7

It is rational to fear death.

Question 8

In Sartre's play, No Exit, he comments on the human situation by saying "heaven is other people."

Question 9

The thought of death can concentrate the mind, enabling us to live more appreciatively.

Question 10

Albert Camus called Søren Kierkegaard the

A) "father of existentialism."
B) " step-child of existentialism."
C) " chief critic of existentialism.
D) "leading twentieth-century existentialist."

Question 11

It is rational to fear an object only if:

A) It is dangerous.
B) You cannot avoid it.
C) It leads to death.
D) the fear is instrumental in causing behavior which will allow you to avoid the object.

Question 12

According to the text (Chapter 31), Death is evil because:

A) we may rot.
B) We may go to hell.
C) It deprives us of conscious experience of the good things of life.
D) All of the above.

Question 13

The chief benefit of the thought of our death is:

A) the greatest happiness for the greatest number.
B) It helps us concentrate the mind.
C) It brings us to religion.
D) It enables us to treat others as we would want to be treated.

Question 14

Which of the following statements is the message of Camus's Myth of Sisyphus?

A) Humans are rational animals.
B) Life itself has no inherent meaning.
C) Religion is the only means to salvation an a meaningful life.
D) Reason is higher than the imagination and feelings.

Question 15

According to the Stoics, the most important thing in life is

A) To transform the mundane into the sublime.
B) To find the true religion.
C) To find pleasure.
D) To succeed in business and get rich.

Question 16

According to Albert Camus, the one truly philosophical problem was

A) How can I find objective truth when there are so many conflicting philosophies?
B) What are the standards of right and wrong?
C) Are we more than simply our material bodies?
D) Why not commit suicide?

Question 17

Explain Kierkegaard's development of Existentialism. What is his idea of Subjectivity as Truth?

Question 18

What is the significance of the story of the man who discovered his shadow?

Question 19

Explain the difference between Camus' Epicurean interpretation of the myth of Sisyphus and the Stoic interpretation. Which view do you think is closer to the truth? Why?

Question 20

Explain why Existentialist like Camus believe that life is absurd.

Question 21

Explain the Stoic argument to the effect that we ought not to fear death.

Question 22

Choose one of the ethical theories you have studied. What would Camus and Sartre say about it? What alternative approach to morality would he suggest?

Question 23

Where do values come from? Explain various points of view, including the religious, the Epicurean and the Stoic.

Question 24

Explain the difference between an aversion towards death and the fear of death.