Description: You can stock your life with important work, relationships, activities, and art, and yet, you can still ask: what's the point of it all? The Meaning of It All explains that this is because there are different kinds of meaning, and some are impossible to achieve. It then shows us how to orient our lives in light of these bittersweet truths. This witty, poignant work sheds light on the roles that value, religion, the cosmos, death, and time play in the meaning in our lives and how best to live a meaningful, mortal life in time: a meaningful life is lived in the fullness of time, accepting suffering, acknowledging our tragic losses and limitations, and making the most of Everyday Meaning.
Review Quotes: "Accessible to the philosophy beginner and engaging for the scholar." -- James Wetherbee, Library Journal
"Rivka Weinberg unflinchingly faces the big questions about life's meaning and point, death, and our place in the grand scheme of things. Her boldly argued answers will not always cheer you up, but they will make you think. They will often surprise you, and, sometimes, they will also make you laugh." -- Guy Kahane, Professor of Moral Philosophy, University of Oxford"This is a brilliant book-both analytically subtle and highly engaging. Rivka Weinberg distinguishes between various kinds of meaning-ultimate, everyday, and cosmic-and shows how separating these ideas can help us to sort through very complex issues and gain important insights. The book is written in a highly engaging way that will appeal to both scholars and a broader audience. The topics are 'heavy', but the reading is fun! We all struggle with these great existential issues, and this book is an invaluable tool. Highly recommended." -- John Martin Fischer, Professor of Philosophy, University of California, Riverside"An original, witty, and astute voice is to be heard when reading Rivka Weinberg's The Meaning of It All. There are many fascinating ideas in this book for professional philosophers, for instance that time and not death is what threatens meaning. However, the book is so clearly written that it will also be widely understood and appreciated by generally educated readers." -- Thaddeus Metz, Research Professor of Philosophy, University of Pretoria