flare’s Reviews > Philosophy in a Meaningless Life: A System of Nihilism, Consciousness and Reality > Status Update

“not everything about life is a construction; to the extent that Sartre was right that ‘we make ourselves what we are’, we can do so only with the existence that we find ourselves given over to, and about which there are numerous objective truths.”

James challenges nihilism by introducing his transcendent hypothesis of meaning, albeit proving nihilism to be false as well. He explains transcendence within the context of dreams, how when one wakes up from a dream they realize it’s wider context upon awakening. Similarly, transcendence happens upon our death which provides our life with a deeper meaning. As a religious person I find it quite fascinating.

“nihilism will not stand in the way; life will continue to take on the character of a game even after we are fully aware that it lacks meaning. Nihilism has the potential to transform our theoretical understanding of our goals, but provides no obstacle to our engagement with them.”