“Meaning is slippery” -Andy Snyder
One of the few things in this world that can go un-argued is that a definition of meaning is non-existent. It is impossible to determine a definition for meaning that covers a large group of people, simply because every person has there own perception of meaning and two are rarely the same. This makes it impossible to generalize these definitions into one that covers a large spectrum.
Patterns in meaning and things related to it can be determined though, through interviews. For this reason, I conducted a series of interviews with people of various backgrounds, ethnically, religiously, and economically. My questions ranged from what wisdom is to how meaningful a person’s life is. The results of the questioning showed exactly what I thought, no two people have the exact same opinion. I was able to find answers that were similar to one another though, and because of that I was able to draw conclusions that led to patterns.
The first pattern I found was that all people interviewed seemed to determine their own meaning based on the way others perceived them. When asked what the most meaningful parts of their lives were, all people interviewed said that their friends and family were two of the most important part of their lives. People said things such as “they shape who you become”, “they raised you during your developing years and shaped you”, and “you spend most of your time with them”. This leads to the conclusion that family and friends are just as responsible for your meaning as you are.
This is how one person defines their own meaning
Another pattern I found was that things unseen, such as the supernatural or God, also have an important role in people’s lives. 50% of participants said that God or supernatural parties (A.K.A. Beliefs) were very important to their lives. This is important because it helps you to guide your life. For Chris R., religion is important to him because it provides the guidelines for good living in his eyes.
The other 50% said that helping others was meaningful, and helping others is a common aspect of various religions, so these can be related in that sense. The reason people said that helping others was important was because it is making the world a better place. Specifically, it is meaningful to set a good example for those younger than you. Marco G. said that teachers those younger is meaningful and that “They are our future”.
Of those interviewed, 80% of people under age 18 said that their lives were only moderately meaningful. On a scale of 1 through 10, people said that they were between a 4 and 7. The reasons tended to focus on this point put well by Elvis M.: “I’ve grown a lot but I still have a lot to do and grow into.” An interesting note on this question however, is that those who said their lives were an 8 or higher on this scale, were people who do not regularly examine meaning or have a “strong” understanding of it (For example, taking the “Your Life Doesn’t Have to Be Meaningless” course at School of the Future”). This could be because they have a different understanding of meaning or do not know how to appropriately answer the question.
Things forced onto people, such as the media and school, were also found meaningless by 75% of people interviewed. The reason is that it is not always something that they want to take in, rather it is something that is unavoidable. In the case of school, people have to go to school until they graduate high school and therefore, even if what they are learning is irrelevant, they must stay in school. Many people who are in school do not like school specifically because they have to be there. With the media example, the media is all around and unavoidable, no matter how hard one tries to keep it out. The media’s whole job is to advertise and inform people, and because of this it is everywhere. Everything is in one shape or another, an example of the media.
Wisdom often goes hand in hand with meaning, and many think that having wisdom will help them to make their lives more meaningful. For this reason, people were also asked about wisdom, and what they thought it was and how it was gained. Wisdom, according to interviews, is: “The ability to analyze things and find solutions, A.K.A. common sense” (Marco G). People interviewed also said that just because somebody is wise, that does not necessarily mean that they have knowledge. Knowledge and wisdom are different things. The way that this was gained was through life experiences. 75% of people thought that wisdom was gained through past experiences and that these experiences would help them in the future.
As is clearly shown here, meaning varies highly from person to person. There is no definition for meaning, and every person will have there own interpretation of what it is and how to try to live meaningfully. That is specifically why Andy Snyder’s statement, “Meaning is slippery”, is so relevant and true.
