Editing Meaning of life (section)

===Ancient Greek philosophy===
[[File:Sanzio 01 Plato Aristotle.jpg|thumb|upright=0.7|Plato and Aristotle in ''[[The School of Athens]]'' fresco by [[Raphael]]. Plato is pointing heavenwards, and Aristotle is gesturing to the world.]]

====Platonism====
{{Main|Platonism}}
[[Plato]], a pupil of [[Socrates]], was one of the earliest, most influential philosophers. His reputation comes from his [[philosophical idealism|idealism]] of believing in the existence of [[universals (metaphysics)|universals]]. His [[theory of forms]] proposes that universals do not physically exist, like objects, but as heavenly forms. In the [[dialogue]] of the ''[[Republic (Plato)|Republic]]'', the character of [[Socrates]] describes the [[Form of the Good]]. His theory on justice in the soul relates to the idea of happiness relevant to the question of the meaning of life.

In [[Platonism]], the meaning of life is in attaining the highest form of knowledge, which is the [[Platonic idealism|Idea]] ([[Platonic realism|Form]]) of the Good, from which all good and just things derive utility and value.

====Aristotelianism====
{{Main|Aristotelian ethics}}
[[Aristotle]], an apprentice of [[Plato]], was another early and influential philosopher, who argued that ethical knowledge is not ''certain'' knowledge (such as [[metaphysics]] and [[epistemology]]), but is ''general'' knowledge. Because it is not a [[theoretical]] discipline, a person had to study and practice in order to become "good"; thus if the person were to become [[virtuous]], he could not simply study what virtue ''is'', he had to ''be'' virtuous, via virtuous activities. To do this, Aristotle established what is virtuous:
{{blockquote|Every skill and every inquiry, and similarly, every action and choice of action, is thought to have some good as its object. This is why the good has rightly been defined as the object of all endeavor [...]<br />Everything is done with a goal, and that goal is "good".|''[[Nicomachean Ethics]]'' 1.1}}

Yet, if action A is done towards achieving goal B, then goal B also would have a goal, goal C, and goal C also would have a goal, and so would continue this pattern, until something stopped its [[infinite regression]]. Aristotle's solution is the ''[[Summum bonum|Highest Good]]'', which is desirable for its own sake. It is its own goal. The Highest Good is not desirable for the sake of achieving some other good, and all other "goods" desirable for its sake. This involves achieving ''[[eudaemonia]]'', usually translated as "happiness", "well-being", "flourishing", and "excellence".
{{blockquote|What is the highest good in all matters of action? To the name, there is an almost complete agreement; for uneducated and educated alike call it happiness, and make happiness identical with the good life and successful living. They disagree, however, about the meaning of happiness.|''[[Nicomachean Ethics]]'' 1.4}}

====Cynicism====
{{Main|Cynicism (philosophy)}}

[[Antisthenes]], a pupil of [[Socrates]], first outlined the themes of Cynicism, stating that the purpose of life is living a life of [[Virtue]] which agrees with [[Nature]]. Happiness depends upon being self-sufficient and master of one's mental attitude; suffering is the consequence of false judgments of value, which cause negative [[emotions]] and a concomitant vicious character.

The Cynical life rejects conventional desires for [[wealth]], [[power (sociology)|power]], [[health]], and [[celebrity|fame]], by being free of the possessions acquired in pursuing the conventional.<ref>Kidd, I., "''Cynicism''," in ''The Concise Encyclopedia of Western Philosophy,'' (eds. [[J.O. Urmson]] and [[Jonathan Rée]]), Routledge, (2005).</ref><ref>Long, A.A., "''The Socratic Tradition: Diogenes, Crates, and Hellenistic Ethics,''" in ''The Cynics: The Cynic Movement in Antiquity and Its Legacy.'' (eds. Branham and Goulet-Cazé), University of California Press, (1996).</ref> As reasoning creatures, people could achieve happiness via rigorous training, by living in a way natural to [[human]] beings. The [[world]] equally belongs to everyone, so [[suffering]] is caused by false judgments of what is valuable and what is worthless per the [[tradition|customs]] and [[convention (norm)|conventions]] of [[society]].

====Cyrenaicism====
{{Main|Cyrenaics}}
[[Aristippus of Cyrene]], a pupil of [[Socrates]], founded an early Socratic school that emphasized only one side of Socrates's teachings—that happiness is one of the ends of moral action and that pleasure is the supreme good; thus a [[hedonistic]] world view, wherein bodily gratification is more intense than mental pleasure. Cyrenaics prefer immediate gratification to the long-term gain of delayed gratification; denial is unpleasant unhappiness.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.iep.utm.edu/|title=Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy|work=utm.edu}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.hedonism.org|title=The Future of Hardcore Hedonism|work=hedonism.org|access-date=30 July 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200522152806/https://www.hedonism.org/|archive-date=22 May 2020|url-status=dead}}</ref>

====Epicureanism====
{{Main|Epicureanism}}

[[File:Agostino Scilla. The philosopher Epicurus.jpg|thumb|upright|[[Epicurus]] by Agostino Scilla, circa 1670–1680. The philosopher holds a text that reads "whatever you do, do wisely and think of consequences"]]
[[Epicurus]], a pupil of the Platonist Pamphilus of Samos, taught that the greatest good is in seeking modest pleasures, to attain tranquility and freedom from fear ([[ataraxia]]) via knowledge, friendship, and virtuous, temperate living; bodily pain ([[aponia]]) is absent through one's knowledge of the workings of the world and of the limits of one's desires. Combined, freedom from pain and freedom from fear are happiness in its highest form. Epicurus' lauded enjoyment of simple pleasures is quasi-ascetic "abstention" from sex and the appetites:
<blockquote>"When we say ... that pleasure is the end and aim, we do not mean the pleasures of the prodigal or the pleasures of sensuality, as we are understood to do, by some, through ignorance, prejudice or willful misrepresentation. By pleasure, we mean the absence of pain in the body and of trouble in the soul. It is not by an unbroken succession of drinking bouts and of revelry, not by sexual lust, nor the enjoyment of fish, and other delicacies of a luxurious table, which produce a pleasant life; it is sober reasoning, searching out the grounds of every choice and avoidance, and banishing those beliefs through which the greatest tumults take possession of the soul."<ref>[[Epicurus]], "Letter to Menoeceus", contained in Diogenes Laertius, ''Lives of Eminent Philosophers'', Book X.</ref></blockquote>

The Epicurean meaning of life rejects immortality and mysticism; there is a soul, but it is as mortal as the body. There is no [[afterlife]], yet, one need not fear death, because "Death is nothing to us; for that which is dissolved, is without sensation, and that which lacks sensation is nothing to us."<ref name="Russel">[[Bertrand Russell]] (1946). ''[[History of Western Philosophy (Russell)|A History of Western Philosophy]]'', New York: Simon and Schuster; London: George Allen and Unwin.</ref>

====Stoicism====
{{Main|Stoicism}}

[[Zeno of Citium]], a pupil of [[Crates of Thebes]], established the school which teaches that living according to reason and virtue is to be in harmony with the universe's divine order, entailed by one's recognition of the universal ''[[logos]]'', or reason, an essential value of all people. The meaning of life is "freedom from [[suffering]]" through ''[[apatheia]]'' (Gr: απαθεια), that is, being [[objectivity (philosophy)|objective]] and having "clear judgement", ''not'' indifference.

Stoicism's prime directives are [[virtue]], [[reason]], and [[natural law]], abided to develop personal self-control and mental fortitude as means of overcoming destructive [[emotion]]s. The Stoic does not seek to extinguish emotions, only to avoid emotional troubles, by developing clear judgment and inner calm through diligently practiced logic, reflection, and concentration.

The Stoic ethical foundation is that "good lies in the state of the soul", itself, exemplified in [[wisdom]] and self-control, thus improving one's spiritual well-being: "''Virtue'' consists in a ''will'' which is in agreement with Nature."<ref name="Russel"/> The principle applies to one's personal relations thus: "to be free from anger, envy, and jealousy".<ref name="Russel"/>