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Drexel Noecker

Honors 101

Professor Phame Camarena

22 August, 2018

The Meaning of Life

As an eighteen year old, not many humans have yet determined the meaning of life,

especially pertaining to themselves. Many believe they know or have found the meaning of life,

it quite often can be temporary. As Viktor Frankl states in the book “Man’s Search for

Meaning”, the meaning of one’s life can be commonly recognized during a tragic period of

suffering (). It is not to say that suffering is the only passage providing meaning for one’s life,

just acknowledging a frequent cause. This being stated, many individuals do not figure out the

true meaning of life at a young age. Frankl’s book provides a miraculous example of how

suffering can alter one’s perspective on life’s purpose. As a survivor of the cruelest

concentration camps and a well-respected psychiatrist, Frankl had a chance to reflect on his

experiences, analyzing man’s will to survive under such wretched circumstances. To conclude

Frankl’s discovery in his own words, “Those who have a ‘why’ to live, can bear almost any

‘how’”.

In my opinion, there is no single meaning of life for any one individual. I believe the

purpose of one’s life can and does continuously change. As Frankl says, “It did not really matter

what we expected from life, but rather what life expected from us. We needed to stop asking

about the meaning of life, and instead to think of ourselves as those who were being questioned

by life—daily and hourly”(). I can attest to Frankl’s opinion regarding life’s meaning, more
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often than not, our purpose of being placed in a situation is not conclusive. Meaning can be

altered or persuaded by society, events, and specific humans surrounding an individual. While

individual meaning can be altered, Frankl makes the point that each man is still in control of his

own destiny, “Man does not simply exist but always decides what his existence will be, what he

will become the next moment. By the same token, every human being has the freedom to change

at any instant” ().

While I was reading Frankl’s book Man’s Search for Meaning, his insight on finding

purpose through suffering specifically grabbed my attention. It was interesting to read about

Frankl’s experience as a doctor in the concentration camps, and how he witnessed people with a

reason to live, over come unbelievable conditions. He also watched people dwell on the negative

aspects of the situation presented, those are the ones who did not survive. I have a less serious,

yet very similar situation regarding how an individual handles suffering, which I have had the

chance to observe and analyze most of my life. Around ten years ago, my father was diagnosed

with a nerve disease called RSD (reflex sympathetic dystrophy), which he was diagnosed with

after a work place injury. The disease has not only physically, but also mentally taken a toll on

my dad, changing his personality and behavior drastically. Since the disease is not yet curable,

my father has tried almost every alternative option, but with out optimism. After reading

Frankl’s book, I now have a better understanding of my fathers way of handling almost constant

pain. Instead of searching for meaning resulting from his situation, he dwells on the fact that his

life has changed and will never be the same. I agree with Frankl as he stated, “man is ultimately

self-determining. What he becomes - within the limits of endowment and environment- he has

made out of himself”, therefore it is impossible to find meaning for another human due to the

fact of not actually experiencing their situation.

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Throughout the period of time since my father was diagnosed with this disease, I have

suffered as I watched my father’s personality and attitude change. He has never been the same.

I have no way of feeling his pain or truly understanding his everyday struggles, yet at the same

time it is hard not to be frustrated when my father attends only one or two of my sports games

each year. His pain level varies from day to day, but I notice he feels better when he is going to

or participating in something that interests him. On the days when the pain level is higher, he

concedes to the pain; conquered for the day, my father does not interact or involve himself with

the family. This is hard to comprehend when other days he is fishing or working on his Jeep. As

I have experienced this situation, I have struggled to find meaning as I have observed my father

change. Frankl relied heavily on religion through his experience at concentration camps, and I

believe as the Bible quotes, “But God is faithful; He will not suffer you to be tempted beyond

that which ye are able to bear, but with the temptation will also make a way to escape, that ye

may be able to bear it” (1 Cor. 10.13). Applying this to my situation, I have learned to make the

best of what I am given, enjoying the days my father feels less pain and cherishing every

moment I get to share with him. I have not yet determined the true reason for the position I am

in, so I continue to look for ways this experience can strengthen and motive myself to

accomplish and withstand more throughout my life.

Regarding my father’s purpose for suffering through this horrendous disease, I can not

judge or explain. Although Frankl makes a good point which I think my father needs to execute,

“It is not freedom from conditions, but it is freedom to take a stand toward the conditions” ().

My father has to accept what he has been given to work with at this point in his life and search

for meaning through his suffering. It is beyond myself to predict opportunities to help, teach, or
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support others. Yet when those situations present themselves, I believe my father needs to view

them as a chance to not only aid others, but to also help his own psyche.

During the previous years of my education, I felt a meaningless drive from adults and

teachers in my life who continuously preached about getting good grades. Year after year of

receiving good grades with out an reward may have seemed not to have a purpose at the time.

Once middle school began, honors classes were available, yet it felt like at the time the only

reason I was in those classes, was because the other ones were too easy. Even in high school,

honors students received little gratification other than verbal support which lead me to feel like

being in an honors class was more of an expectation in order to fit the mold. In my experience, I

noticed many honors students being driven by each other to receive the better grade, rather than

an internal meaning.

After reading A Man’s Search for Meaning and reviewing the criteria for an honors

student at CMU, I have a better understanding of the purpose of being an honors student. Not

only does the honors program at CMU focus immensely on helping students find their true

meaning in life, but the program also revolves around positively impacting society. I envision

the CMU Honors Program promoting and displaying a message similar to this quote of Frankl’s,

“The meaning of my life is to help others find meaning in theirs” (). As I am now a part of this

fantastic program, I plan on seeking opportunities to help others as well as finding a career path

that motivates myself to preform well in school and throughout the rest of my life. I believe the

ultimate meaning of being a part of the CMU Honors Program is to better society, by leaving a

constructive impact on society.

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Work Cited