Shooting From The Hip - 48 - Human Condition, Terror management, Hierarchy of needs, Existentialism

HUMAN CONDITION: -attempting to explain what it means to human; on this Earth & in this Time & Place & Reality -definition is complicated -has been defined as; key events of human life: birth, learning, emotion, aspiration, reason, morality, conflict, death
-a broad topic which has always & continues to be pondered & analyzed: incorporating many perspectives, including: art, biology, literature, philosophy, psychology, religion -a literary term & device, "human condition" is typically used in the context of ambiguous subjects, such as the meaning of life or moral concerns -encompassing all the positive & negative aspects of being human -the origin of the word is unknown, it dates back to texts found in ancient times

RENE DESCARTESR: March 1596–February 1650 ; French philosopher, scientist, & mathematician, widely considered critically important in emergence of modern philosophy, science - Latin cogito, ergo sum, usually translated into English as "I think, therefore I am" -"first principle": philosophically, scientifically, 1st principle is basic proposition or assumption that cannot be deduced from any other proposition or assumption -proposition: defined as a statement or assertion that expresses a judgment or opinion -assumption: defined as a thing that is accepted as true or as certain to happen, without proof

EXISTENTIALISM: philosophical inquiry exploring the existence of individual humans & concludes that; despite the absurdity or incomprehensibility of the universe, individuals must still embrace responsibility for their actions & strive to lead authentic lives; earliest figures associated with existentialism: Soren Kierkegaard, Friedrich Nietzsche & novelist Fyodor Dostoevsky -examining meaning, purpose & value, existentialist thought often includes concepts such as -EXISTENTIAL CRISIS (inner conflicts characterized by idea/sense that life lacks meaning & confusion about one's personal identity)
-ANGST; a feeling of anxiety, apprehension, insecurity -COURAGE (also called bravery, valour or valor -is the choice & willingness to confront agony, pain, danger, uncertainty, or intimidation -FREEDOM; the power or right to speak, act & change as one wants without hindrance or restraint Freedom often associated with liberty & autonomy

BUDDHISM: teaches existence is a perpetual cycle of suffering, death & rebirth from which humans can be liberated via the Noble Eightfold Path

MASLOW"S HIERARCHY OF NEEDS: 1 PHYSIOLOGICAL: Air, Water, Food, Heat, Clothes, Reproduction, Shelter, Sleep 2 SAFETY: Health, Personal security, Emotional security, Financial security 3 SOCIAL BELONGING: Family, Friendship, Intimacy, Trust, Acceptance, Receiving, giving love & affection 4 ESTEEM: higher-level esteem needs: need for self-esteem, strength, competence, mastery, self-confidence, independence, freedom 5 SELF-ACTUALIZATION: refers to realization of person's potential, self-fulfillment, seeking personal growth, peak experiences -to do what you feel you are "meant" to do & be who you are "meant" to be

TERROR MANAGEMENT THEORY (TMT) -is both a social & evolutionary psychology theory originally proposed by Jeff Greenberg, Sheldon Solomon, Tom Pyszczynski who wrote the book The Worm at the Core: On the Role of Death in Life (2015) -which proposes a psychological conflict results from having a self-preservation instinct while realizing that death is inevitable & largely unpredictable -conflict between 2 aspects: survival instinct & death; produces fear/terror -managed by societal constructs a combination of escapism, cultural beliefs that counter act biological reality with assigned significant, enduring forms of: meaning & value -countering personal insignificance represented by death with the significance through symbolic culture -also argue that other cultural values –provide symbolic immortality: values of national identity, posterity(all future generations of people, descendants of a person), cultural perspectives on sex, human superiority over animals have calming effect on death fears
-values, societal, cultural imposed ideas are thought to offer symbolic immortality: by either 1)providing the sense you are part of something greater that will ultimately outlive the individual (country, lineage, species) 2)making one's symbolic identity superior to biological nature (individual is a personality, identity; more than a community of cells)

LOGOTHERAPY-form existential therapy developed by Viktor Emil Frankl (March 1905–September 1997) Austrian neurologist, psychologist, philosopher, Holocaust survivor, who founded logotherapy, a school that describes search for life's meaning as the central human motivational force -to discover & affirm a sense of meaning -Greek word logos ("meaning") primary motivational force of an individual to find meaning in life Basic Principles: Life always has meaning, even in the worst experiences -exercise the freedom to find, create meaning in all that we do