The Meaning and Value of Life #232463

Has human life any meaning and value? In asking this question we are under no illusion. We know that we cannot pose to-day as the possessors of a truth which we have but to unfold. The question confronts us as a problem that is still unsolved, whilst we may not renounce the attempt to solve it. That our modern era lacks all assurance in regard to its solution is a point we shall have to establish more in detail. But no subtlety of argument is needed to Show that such assurance is to us indispensable. We are subject to manifold impressions, beset by endless problems, and it is hard to discern amid the maze any unity of meaning or purpose. Life, moreover, is no mere idle game; it requires toil and labour, renunciation and sacrifice. Is it worth the. Toil, worth the labour? Can the good of the whole compensate for all partial risks and losses? Can it justify us in affirming that life is worth the living The question has more than a speculative interest; for unless faith in some lofty ideal infuse zest and gladness into every department.