Is Life Worth Living?
E661612
"Is Life Worth Living?" is an essay by philosopher and psychologist William James that explores the practical and emotional grounds for affirming life’s value despite doubt and suffering.
All labels observed (1)
| Label | Occurrences |
|---|---|
| Is Life Worth Living? canonical | 1 |
Statements (42)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf |
philosophical essay
ⓘ
work by William James ⓘ |
| addressesAudience | general educated readers ⓘ |
| addressesQuestion | Is life worth living? ⓘ |
| argues |
Practical and emotional grounds can justify affirming life
ⓘ
The decision to live involves an act of faith ⓘ |
| asks | how one can rationally and emotionally affirm life ⓘ |
| author | William James NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| centralClaim | Life’s worth cannot be proven theoretically but can be validated in practice ⓘ |
| concerns |
human response to suffering
ⓘ
motivation to continue living ⓘ |
| countryOfOrigin |
United States of America
ⓘ
surface form:
United States
|
| discipline |
philosophy of life
ⓘ
psychology ⓘ |
| emphasizes |
the importance of lived experience
ⓘ
the possibility of hope amid suffering ⓘ the role of personal commitment ⓘ |
| explores |
emotional grounds for affirming life
ⓘ
practical consequences of choosing to live ⓘ tension between skepticism and faith ⓘ |
| focusesOn |
individual experience
ⓘ
personal struggle with despair ⓘ |
| genre |
philosophy
ⓘ
pragmatism ⓘ |
| influenced | later discussions of the meaning of life in American philosophy ⓘ |
| influencedBy | pragmatic theory of truth ⓘ |
| language | English ⓘ |
| mainTheme |
doubt and suffering
ⓘ
faith and hope ⓘ meaning of life ⓘ practical justification for living ⓘ value of life ⓘ |
| philosophicalApproach | pragmatic evaluation of beliefs by their consequences ⓘ |
| philosophicalIssue |
existential doubt
ⓘ
optimism ⓘ pessimism ⓘ |
| philosophicalTradition | American pragmatism NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| proposesView | Life can be affirmed as worth living despite doubt and suffering ⓘ |
| relatedWork |
The Will to Believe
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
Varieties of Religious Experience NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| tone |
existentially serious
ⓘ
practical ⓘ |
Referenced by (1)
Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.