The Search for Meaning: A Short History [Hardcover]

Dennis Ford (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0520253000 | ISBN-13: 978-0520253001 | Publication Date: September 10, 2007 | Edition: 1

In The Search for Meaning: A Short History, Dennis Ford explores eight approaches human beings have pursued over time to invest life with meaning and to infuse order into a seemingly chaotic universe. These include myth, philosophy, science, postmodernism, pragmatism, archetypal psychology, metaphysics, and naturalism. In engaging, companionable prose, Ford boils down these systems to their bare essentials, showing the difference between viewing the world from a religious point of view and that of a naturalist, and comparing a scientific worldview to a philosophical one. Ford investigates the contributions of the Greeks, Kant, and William James, and brings the discussion up to date with contemporary thinkers. He proffers the refreshing idea that in today's world, the answers provided by traditional religions to increasingly difficult questions have lost their currency for many and that the reductive or rationalist answers provided by science and postmodernism are themselves rife with unexamined assumptions.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Ford's ambitious, underperforming history of mankind's search for purpose is predicated on the belief that comparative typology is a "technique for liberation from a myopic vision that says that meaning can be found in only one way." Sadly, most of Ford's book reads like an over-simplified how-to guide to finding your guiding philosophy rather than an original comparative treatise on the subject; as such, it falls into a familiar trap, sacrificing depth to cover a huge range of topics. Though perhaps useful for those entirely unfamiliar with the field (a reader interested in finding meaning but lacking any knowledge of the differences among postmodernism, pragmatism and mythology), most readers will find statements like "Philosophy is black-and-white photography in contrast to the sensual Technicolor of Myth" and "most of us, most of the time, live comfortably and unselfconsciously" less than intriguing: over-generalized at best, insulting at worst.
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Review

"Ford is to be commended for condensing an enormous amount of information and making it understandable to non-experts."--National Catholic Reporter

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 313 pages
• Publisher: University of California Press; 1 edition (September 10, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0520253000
• ISBN-13: 978-0520253001
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.8 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,352,609 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Illuminating and Revealing, October 12, 2007

By 

M. Taylor "M. Taylor" (Maine, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Search for Meaning: A Short History (Hardcover)

The Biblical archetype of Eden and the fall from Paradise tells the story of meaning in our lives. We once lived unselfconsciously in a way in which the question of meaning never arose. In the course of our lives the world has tightened its grasp around our necks, and we have fallen from the garden; the world is no longer as we had naievely envisioned it to be, and we are self-conscious and alienated - separated from the world we once took such enjoyment in. We are now searching to get back into the garden, to reclaim our original seat in Paradise.

The Search For Meaning magnificently fleshes out the many ways that man has sought to infuse his life with meaning and purpose and regain his original state of harmony. In all, eight traditional ways of seeking (and creating) a meaningful life are explored and explained: myth, philosophy (Plato), science (Aristotle and the resulting modernist movement), postmodernism, pragmatism (William James), archetypal psychology, metaphysics, and naturalism. Ford explicates each view on its own ground, so to speak, and concludes each chapter by asking (and investigating) four basic questions: What do we know? How do we know? What does ______ emphasize and what does it neglect? What does ______ have to say about meaning?

Huston Smith, a renowned scholar whom Ford references, said about The Search For Meaning, "This book weaves a tapestry so encompassing, so intriguingly beautiful, I am stunned by its accomplishment." So one would advise not to be falsely persuaded by negative opinions.

To take a harsh and negative attitude towards anything obviously blinds one to the usefulness and benefit of what one is speaking of. One of our most fundamental oversights is that we are so quick to label things as good or bad, without looking into them very deeply. To speak in terms of good and bad fails see the relevancy of the subject's purpose. As stated in the title, it is a short history - so obviously it will lack the depth of a book examining any one topic or idea. For example, Ford touches on Aristotle's contributions to science and the modern worldview, but fails to investigate Aristotle's own conception of the purpose of human existence (eudaimonia, literally "the good life"). Yet, an investigation into the significance of Aristotle's theory would be of a length and content unsuitable to a `short history' - Ford must over-generalize and omit certain details. Such an intention should not be seen as a fault, as the synthesis of these topics as they relate to the most basic of all human questions can be very personally (and culturally) revealing as well as intellectually stimulating.

If one is well versed in the literature Ford considers, much of this book may be a review. However, if one is just beginning to investigate into the meaning of life and how it has been dealt with throughout history, the value of this book will be immense. Even if one is well read, the simplicity of the author's outlook will help to uncover basic themes and points that could quite easily go overlooked. For instance, one might read many Greek myths but fail to see how they influence the people who identified with them, and further fail to notice the presence of myth in one's own life and culture. To see the uses, applications, and limitations of outlooks that are so culturally innate (i.e. myth, science, postmodernism, etc.) is so illuminating that one cannot possibly articulate the proper thanks to Ford for writing this book.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars NOT JUST FOR BEGINNERS, November 12, 2007

By 

Jon Fobes "jonfobes | www.fobes.net" (Lorain, Ohio USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Search for Meaning: A Short History (Hardcover)

To be honest, I have not quite finished this book, but as a person who has been reading about meaning and belief for the past 15 years, I would like to say that this is not just for beginners.

Yes, it provides a wonderful framework for those just starting to explore the field of meaning and belief and all the religious, psychological and philosophical underpinnings those viewpoints depend on. But it's also wonderful review for the longtime student. The field is so wide and deep that sometimes ideas fall out of awareness or get lost in the shuffle, and this book brings them back to mind.

Perhaps if I were a brilliant person with a iron-trap memory, this book would be superfluous; since I am just an ordinary person -- with an extraordinary interest in the philosophy and psychology of belief -- I find it quite enjoyable. (Some of my efforts to understand belief have been documented on my Web site called "Rumors of Order" at fobes.net)

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Cutting Through Complexity, March 3, 2008

By 

E. Debold "E. Debold" (Lenox, MA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Search for Meaning: A Short History (Hardcover)

In these postmodern times so punctuated with irony, a book entitled The Search for Meaning: A Short History is as likely as not to be a lampoon of the very idea of finding meaning in our crazy world. But this modest and remarkably lucid book by Dennis Ford is decidedly not a joke. As Ford realizes, human beings need an overarching context or system of meaning-making to make sense of the fragility and uncertainty of life.

In his "short history," he elegantly articulates the fundamentals of eight paradigms by which we have grasped reality and our place in it. Ford's goal is not to answer the question, "What is the meaning of life?" but is instead to focus on how human beings have made meaning. Cutting through the bewildering complexity of the myriad ways humanity has taken up this task, he divides the field into "classical" and contemporary sources of meaning, and sees the latter as blending aspects of the classical approaches in light of postmodernity's nihilism. Presenting each with balance and appreciation for its relative strengths and weaknesses, Ford's distinctions are often surprising, but they arise from his intent to create an admittedly simplified taxonomy of the ways that human beings relate to, and discover, purpose. While understanding how we make meaning is still quite mysterious, Ford succeeds admirably in delineating the ways that have thus far been made available.