115 So, If So, So What?

So . . . as promised last blog, today we’re going to peruse some basics on “what” meaning is. I mean it is not an external object I can pass around the room. It’s an internal adventure in wrapping one’s mind around an idea. To explain, this adventure requires that one designate the ground rules necessary for a successful adventure. To do that, I present 3 Principles of Meaning.

The lead principle is “meaning” requires definition.

We did that in blog #113— Meaning: “conveying a significance that is not directly expressed . . . Encarta.” Here it is important to notice 2 points: one, that the not-expressed-significance part of the definition is, of course, problematic from the start. It makes “meaning” a word which people cannot readily grapple with. So acquiring and keeping a definition in mind is a great anchor to developing skill in “meaning-seeking;” two, by definition, the search for meaning implies exploration into the unknown and the challenging, as opposed to routine which involves the familiar and the automatic. For me, I’ll have a little bit of both, please—routine and exploration.

The second principle is “meaning” consists of type and process.

Type in meaning is of the positive or negative kind. Thankfully, Gentle Reader, positive meaning is humankind’s most actively sought for type of meaning (the world would be in a state of total anarchy by now, if it weren’t), and it is my pleasure to recommend positive meaning as an absolute qualification for a superior belief system.

A very important point: Profound faith in the Judeo-Christian God is considered the pinnacle human achievement in the search for positive meaning (according to God in Scripture, Matthew 10:27-33, NKJV). Negative meaning can best be described as adversarial to positive meaning and, as it concerns faith, adversarial to God (Genesis 3:1-5, NKJV).

Process, as it applies to meaning, is the activity of mentally assembling and constructing thought.

Understanding and employing sound methods of inquiry in this area is essential to encountering the unknown and meeting the challenges involved in the search for meaning.

The third principle is “meaning” involves methodic use of multiple intellectual operations, combined with emotion and desire.

There is a natural method to meaning-seeking. Intellectual Operations can spontaneously amass meaning for the inquirer. Such thinking is called intuitive thinking. But critical to being skilled in meaning-seeking for the regular chap like me is that one develops an understanding of and appreciation for the operations involved in the process, in order to better realize them—make them ready, reliable and able agents of inquiry.

So, if so, how so? you may say. Read the next blog, I say.

To be continued . . .

114 So, If So, Why So?

Meaning: “conveying a significance that is not directly expressed . . .”

I was tempted to do a purely extemporaneous approach to blogging on meaning, but, alas, even the most glib of subjects requires some background and method, otherwise it’s a spacey freefloat! And even the most mundane of subjects benefit from some grounding in background and method. To explore meaning, therefore, I am including some “what,” “how” and “why” before we space walk.

I’ll start by reminding you that last blog concluded that meaning can truly be a big deal in life.

So, if so, why so? means we are going to cover some essential background and method involved in the search for meaning.

By way of background, Gentle Reader, my sort-out has led me to abundant, useful understandings about the “what, how and why” of meaning (among other things) and because of that, I have them at the ready to share.

Most generally, the quandary of why to search for meaning in anything at all is best addressed by simply saying that meaning is a huge component of the life experience, it affects us all deeply. It affects both what we think and what we do. Meaning affects our emotions and desires. It affects our judgment, our choices, our understandings, our very beliefs and our commitments. It affects our level of pleasure, satisfaction and interest in life. Most (fortunate) people want meaning in life—real relevant, gratification-producing meaning.

That understanding led me to another understanding: “Meaning” is a “value” word. It is a word which promises value. There is unique value to be had by searching for meaning. Have no doubt, Dear Reader, I want something valuable out of life. I want significance out of life whether I find it expressed directly or indirectly. It is valuable to me. I want meaning in life. And, my assumption is, you do too.

This understanding explains the popularity of books like The Purpose-Driven Life by Rick Warren. From its public reception, it’s easy to see that many (fortunate, again) people, not just you in addition to me, would like to gain more useful insight into the life experience and, further, aspire to living life with purpose (meaning). They would even like to become adept at identifying, processing and assessing meaning.

To promote such skill, I have assembled 3 Principles of Meaning to explore the “what” of the search for meaning to present to you next blog

To be continued . . .

113 Meaning: Definitions

To answer Sweet Spirit’s first question “How does one define meaning?” I will take from Blog# 100. There I quoted Encarta’s definition of meaning as “what somebody intends to express, either in words or action; what something signifies or indicates; psychological or moral sense, purpose or significance (such as, life is empty without meaning); conveying a significance that is not directly expressed . . .”

In that Blog, we took a look at how the Names of God indirectly describe His being and doing.

In literature, a story line can convey meaning without specifically stating it.

Poetry frequently does that, too.

The Bible routinely does the same, in addition to making explicit statements concerning meaning and truth.

For example, Jesus tells parables and then proceeds to explain their meaning to the apostles.

To answer Sweet Spirit’s next question, “How do I (Big Thinker) define meaning for myself?” I lean primarily to meaning of the type that Encarta describes as conveying a significance that is not directly expressed.

From the day I first stepped into this world (a metaphor, Dear Reader), I have found understanding life to be a multi-layered proposition. If I see a stone lying on the ground, I feel compelled to imagine a storyline for how it got there, or to pick it up and look under it. For me, there is always more to everything than meets the eye. Obviously, I had to learn to be satisfied with superficiality in some things or I would never have been able to get on with anything. Mais non?

At any rate, for me, life is full of significance that is not directly expressed. In other words, it is full of an array of meaning-laden subjects and situations, some towering in importance. Some miniscule.

For instance:

In the case of less tangible areas than stones (such as person-to-person relationships, conversation, etc.), I perceive, and it is a well known truth, that people yearn to mean something to someone. Everyone wants to be special to someone.

Another thing about people, they can routinely say one thing and mean another. Such situations can take a long time to sort out. Oh, yes!

I have also noted that it is a well known truth that people mostly want other people to say what they mean and mean what they say. If I had my druthers, me too.

I have also learned firsthand that the savvy meaning-maker knows that one must always “take the best and let the rest go,” so to speak, be it stones or people. In other words, one may only derive so much meaning at any time from any one thing, and then one needs more material from which to derive meaning.

And so on. All these comments mean, obviously, that “meaning” (as Sweet Spirit observed when she said that “meaning is a hard one”) can be a big deal in life.

To be continued . . .

112 Significant Truth #2: Meaning

Remember my question in Blog # 3—Life: Got Meaning?

Hmmm, I think I’m on the trail of another significant truth here.

Thinking back, I can say that meaning is another one of those stand-out subjects in the box-of-life I discussed in Blog #2. Like the USA Today article says, meaning matters to people. It matters to me. Come to think of it, that’s why it’s surfaced so readily here in my writing. I even think it would be fair to call it my #2 issue. Maybe it’s not #2 for everybody, but I think anyone can agree that if I say so, obviously it is for me, so . . . refusing to ignore the obvious, I am therefore going to call it as I see it---Significant Truth #2: Meaning.

A Sweet Spirit, I know and love, made a few observations and wanted answers to a few questions when talking about meaning. Sweet Spirit observed first that “ finding ‘meaning’-whatever that means to oneself-is a weighty topic,” and then similarly she states that “meaning is a hard one.” She also observed that writing about meaning should be conducted with aplomb and beautiful style. And she is exactly right.

Then she posed various questions:

How does one define meaning? How do I (Big Thinker) define it for myself?

What parts of life mean something? What parts of life don’t?

How does one make that judgment? How do I make that judgment?

If one classifies something as meaningless, is it ever beneficial to attach meaning to it?

Is it beneficial to attempt to find meaning in subjects one considers meaningless?

Is that activity productive?

Obviously, I know some very insightful people with mature critical standards! Therefore, you can expect, Gentle Reader, to find me addressing Sweet Spirit’s well-phrased inquiries in the following blogs.

To be continued . . .

111 Where To Next?

A while back I read this in USA Today A Better Life:

Meaningful Talk Makes People Happier

"Small talk doesn't cut it--what's important to a happy life is meaningful and deep conversations. That's what psychological scientists at the University of Arizona in Tucson and Washington University in St. Louis found when they tried to explore how happy and unhappy people differ in the types of conversations they have. The study, published online in the March issue of Psychological Science, found that the happiest participants had twice as many substantive conversations and one-third as much small talk as the unhappiest."

When I read this I understood how and where to proceed next. Come along, we’re heading for Significant Truth #2.

To be continued . . .