Title
Student Major/Year in School
Secondary Education, 4th Year
Faculty Mentor Information
Dr. Laurie Johnson, Political Science
Abstract
Feed, The Society of the Spectacle, and The Myth of Sisyphus help answer the question: how do you live authentically in an inauthentic world? As modernity and trends occupy us in different ways, we must decide how to use our time fruitfully. Keeping up with latest trends, news, and social media not only is exhausting but disjointing from meaningful experience. Total rejection of technology and norms can lead to isolation from those who do keep up with them. In other words, alienating your self from others leads to a lack of socialization, something that makes us happy members of society. Being totally engrossed in technology and social media can have the very same effect, being so connected that you are without authenticity. Feeling as though the things you participate in along with most members of society can be compared to Albert Camus’ ideas on the absurd. Seeing that there is no meaning in the things you do can be a terrifying experience. It can be said that being a reasonable and happy member of society requires neither total rejection nor total acceptance of its norms but a middle ground that balances the two. Following people on social media and liking pictures may not have any inherent value but it keeps you involved enough that you can make meaningful connections with others. Posting pictures of yourself allows people to see what you are doing and stay involved in your life. By making small concessions, you lead a more fulfilling life that keeps you meaningfully connected in a disconnected world.
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 4.0 License
Recommended Citation
Dotterweich, John (2019). "Argument For The Absurd," Kansas State University Undergraduate Research Conference. https://newprairiepress.org/ksuugradresearch/2019/panels2/6
Included in
Philosophy of Mind Commons, Social Psychology Commons, Social Psychology and Interaction Commons, Theory and Philosophy Commons
Argument For The Absurd
Feed, The Society of the Spectacle, and The Myth of Sisyphus help answer the question: how do you live authentically in an inauthentic world? As modernity and trends occupy us in different ways, we must decide how to use our time fruitfully. Keeping up with latest trends, news, and social media not only is exhausting but disjointing from meaningful experience. Total rejection of technology and norms can lead to isolation from those who do keep up with them. In other words, alienating your self from others leads to a lack of socialization, something that makes us happy members of society. Being totally engrossed in technology and social media can have the very same effect, being so connected that you are without authenticity. Feeling as though the things you participate in along with most members of society can be compared to Albert Camus’ ideas on the absurd. Seeing that there is no meaning in the things you do can be a terrifying experience. It can be said that being a reasonable and happy member of society requires neither total rejection nor total acceptance of its norms but a middle ground that balances the two. Following people on social media and liking pictures may not have any inherent value but it keeps you involved enough that you can make meaningful connections with others. Posting pictures of yourself allows people to see what you are doing and stay involved in your life. By making small concessions, you lead a more fulfilling life that keeps you meaningfully connected in a disconnected world.
