Non-Teleology Essay, Research Paper

Non-teleology is the idea that the world is what it is because of chance, accident, or blind mechanism. This means that the there is no purpose in the world now or in history. I think this is comparable to what went on in the film Hamlet, which we watched in class. I think that Hamlet felt that there was no purpose in the world for him. Another example of non-teleology from our class work is the Romans. They were hedonists and believed in just having a good time while they were on earth. Non-teleology was also evident in our class work from the Baroque Era. The people of the Baroque believed in the Latin expression “Carpe Diem,” or seize the day. The philosopher Democritus was also someone that we learned about this year who believed in non-teleology. He thought that when a person died there soul died just like their brain. It is because of all these examples and my own thinking that I believe in non-teleology.

I do not believe that there is any purpose in my life, other than to do just like everyone else does. I don’t believe that I am preparing myself for any kind of future beyond this life and so I feel like I should just have a good time and make the most of this life. I don’t concern myself to much with going to church or praying because I don’t think that at the end of my life I will be anywhere but six feet under ground. I believe that the Romans felt the same way. They were hedonistic and believed that pleasure was the highest good. Also like me, they believed that their was no purpose in the world and that the only life worth thinking about was the one they were in. That is why I agree in non-teleology just like the Romans.

I think that the movie Hamlet was a good example of non-teleology. It was obvious to me that Hamlet was not concerned with any life but the one he was living in. I think this because of the way that he acted after his fathered was killed. Hamlet did not believe in any kind of after life or that he would ever see his father in any other life. He wanted to avenge his fathers death by killing his uncle and he didn’t care who got in his way. Palonius was one of the unfortunate people that did get in Hamlet’s way, and because Hamlet didn’t care any life other than the one he was living in, he killed Palonius. Hamlet and the people in this story were also hedonists just like the Romans. This is obvious because of what Hamlet’s uncle did to his father. He wasn’t worried about being punished in any after life by committing this horrible act. All he was worried with was being the king. I think that all of these examples show how Hamlet is an example of non-teleology.

The Baroque Era symbolized what non-teleology was all about. The people of the Baroque believed that the life they were living now was it, and that they shouldn’t worry about preparing for another life. An expression that was widely used in the Baroque Era was “memento mori,” which is Latin for, “Remember that you must die.” This shows that the people of the Baroque knew that there was nothing for them after their current life. Another example that the people of the Baroque believed in non-teleology was there art work. In many painting from that era you will find a depiction of a luxurious lifestyle, with a skull painted in the corner. This reminded to live for today because eventually they would die.

Another example from class work of non-teleology is Democritus. He was one of the last great natural philosophers and lived from 460 to 370B.C. Democritus is best known for his atom theory, but I have found some of the things that he said to support non-teleology. Most other philosophers of Democritus’s time believed that everyone’s soul was spiritual. Democritus, on the other hand, thought that a person’s soul was inseparably bound to the human brain. He also said that when you die, your brain dies along with you. From this thinking I am able to draw the conclusion that a persons soul is inseparably connected to their brain, and that when they die their brain also dies, than their soul dies along with their brain. This connects with non-teleology because it shows that there is no purpose beyond our current life. This is obvious to me because if your soul dies when you die, than it can’t go to any other place or life.

Because of the things that I have learned in class, and from my own thinking, I believe in the philosophical idea of non-teleology. Non-teleology is the idea that there is no purpose in our lives and that we don’t go onto another life when we die. The Romans and the people of the Baroque Era believed in this philosophy. They thought that they should make the most of the life that they were in because it was the only life they would have. The movie Hamlet was also like this, and just like the Romans and the people of the Baroque, the people in Hamlet often over indulged in their lives. The great natural philosopher Democritus was also a believer in non-teleology, because he thought that your soul dies when you died.