Existence Of Man :: essays research papers

Existence of Man     For centuries serviceman has grappled with the riddle of what it means to be asomebody. But the questions Who is man? and What is the heart and soul of life? arestill unanswered. Yet, while man is still a long way from arriving at anyacceptable definitions, there is sibylline within everyone the hint of an idea ofwhat it means to be a unit of measurement person, that is happy, functioning and fulfilled.So, throughout history man has made a unremitting attempt to find out what makeshim whole. Every person is different so the special situation in which oneperson finds fulfillment cant massage for everyone. But in the lives of those who shake up found fulfillment there is a universal pattern. The universal pattern isthat those who have found fulfillment have had a willingness to accept changeand take risks. Conversely, those who have non found wholeness are characterizedby an unconquerable desire to be safe, to be out of danger and to avoid risk.     The first step in the search for identity is to answer the question, Howdo you ascertain yourself? In the play No Exit by Jean Paul Sartre Estelle losessight of her identity. She says "When I cant see myself, I begin to wonder ifI really and truly exist." What a man sees himself as in the mirror largelydetermines his actions during the day. Estelle had to look into the "mirror" ofmen to confirm her identity. A man is the number one determine factor indiscovering who he is. Each individual must show that he is responsiblefor his own pain, misery, unhappiness, or for his own joy. Man is not a productof what people have done or are now doing to us. Man has the power to becomewhatever he wants to be to feel as much love or anger or joy as we want to feel.Another subsequent factor in determining our identity is the image, name, orlabel given to us by society. In other words, what we believe other peoplethink of us. about people parti cipate in many groups friends, school, family,jobs, clubs, churches and more each modify to our identity. We have toaccept the death of the superman who is alone needing no one, national directed andindifferent to his surroundings. We see in Dostoevskys novel Crime and penalty that when Raskolnkov separates himself from humanity by committingmurder that he could not survive. A person needs to understand that they areresponsible for their own choices but they cannot force out the fact that there