questions

hard

• what does it mean for something to be hard to do?
• is doing hard things valuable? if so, why?

intention

• what does it mean to do something with intention?
• what does it look like to live life with intention?
• is it possible? is it important?

self-knowledge

• can i ever fully know my true reasons for doing something?
• can anyone else ever really know me?

loneliness

• is being alive fundamentally lonely?
• if so, is this loneliness escapable?

selfishness

• what does it mean to be selfish?
• are human beings fundamentally selfish?
• do human beings only ever act out of self-interest?
• is this related to the loneliness issue?

ends

• what does it mean to treat someone as an end vs means to an end?
• is it immoral to treat someone as a means to an end?
• is everyone’s own happiness/ satisfaction/ utility their only real end?

the natural

• is what is natural good?
• what does it mean for something to be unnatural?
• does man live in a less natural world today than 5000 years ago?

love

• what does it mean to love something? someone?
• is love a feeling or a practice?
• is love a choice?

romantic relationships

• why does it feel good to do something for someone else?
• what is the basis for a strong relationship?
• how do you know if you should start a relationship with a certain person?
• is the institution of marriage solely a product of modern society?
• does marriage actually make sense?
• what does it take for marriage to work over a long time?
• is love a feeling or a practice?
• do we want partners because we are lonely?
• is the ultimate goal of romantic love to fuse and become one with the other person (re loneliness) ?

pleasure

• what is pleasure?
• is there a way to reconcile pleasure with morality in a world where there is so much suffering?
• is it immoral to indulge?
• does everyone have different access to pleasure?

discipline

• what is self-control really?

morality

• what is moral?
• can respect/ profound appreciation for what one has be a basis for a moral system?
• what is evil? is it real?

pragmatism

• is it necessary to be practical sometimes even if that means going against or disregarding the abstract/ philosophical truth?

utilitarianism

• is it possible to actually be utilitarian without losing your mind?
• how does utilitarianism apply to pleasure?

responsibility

• can we ever blame someone for their actions?
• is it ever ok to condemn someone?
• should we only ever condemn their actions? is this not actually practical in reality?

progress

• what is social progress?
• technological?