Existence Of Man :: essays research papers

Existence of Man     For centuries man has grappled with the riddle of what it means to be aperson. scarcely the questions Who is man? and What is the meaning of life? bestill unanswered. Yet, while man is still a long way from arriving at any accordable definitions, at that place is deep within everyone the hint of an idea ofwhat it means to be a whole person, that is happy, functioning and fulfilled.So, throughout history man has made a persisting search to find out what makeshim whole. Every person is different so the special situation in which oneperson finds fulfillment cant work for everyone. besides in the lives of those whohave found fulfillment there is a universal pattern. The universal pattern isthat those who have found fulfillment have had a willingness to accept changeand take risks. Conversely, those who have not found wholeness are characterizedby an unconquerable desire to be safe, to be out of danger and to ward off risk.   &nb sp The first step in the search for identity is to answer the question, Howdo you see yourself? In the play No Exit by Jean capital of Minnesota Sartre Estelle losessight of her identity. She says "When I cant see myself, I begin to wonder ifI really and truly exist." What a man sees himself as in the mirror more often than notdetermines his actions during the day. Estelle had to look into the "mirror" ofmen to confirm her identity. A man is the number one determining factor indiscovering who he is. Each individual must(prenominal) understand that he is responsiblefor his own pain, misery, unhappiness, or for his own rejoicing. Man is not a productof what people have done or are now doing to us. Man has the power to becomewhatever he wants to be to feel as much love or anger or joy as we want to feel.An early(a) subsequent factor in determining our identity is the image, name, orlabel given to us by society. In other words, what we believe other peoplethink of us. Most people participate in many groups friends, school, family,jobs, clubs, churches and more each contributing to our identity. We have toaccept the end of the superman who is alone needing no one, inner directed andindifferent to his surroundings. We see in Dostoevskys novel Crime andPunishment that when Raskolnkov separates himself from humanity by committingmurder that he could not survive. A person needs to understand that they areresponsible for their own choices but they cannot discount the fact that there