Life Worth Living

What is a life well lived? What do we mean when we consider ourselves “happy” or “successful” or “fulfilled” or “good people”, and how do these exist in relationship to one another? What role does suffering play in all this, and what role does spirituality play, or a relationship to God or a quest for Transcendence? How can we utilize the wisdom of those who have dedicated their lives to the pursuit of the answers to these questions as we determine our own answers? This course draws on philosophical and religious voices, texts, and traditions to provide a variety of answers to the questions of what it means to live a flourishing life in terms of happiness, success, purpose, pleasure, justice, ethics, love, and/or transcendence as we debate and discuss the meaning of these terms and their worth in a life that inevitably ends in death. The traditions we will examine to help clarify our individual answers will include Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, Confucianism, and Greek Philosophy in addition to works from African American, Feminist, and Indigenous traditions.