History Main / TheMeaningOfLife

[[folder:ComicBooks]]

[[folder:Film]]

* Bethany asks the question when she meets God at the end of ''Film/{{Dogma}}''. God responds by tweaking her nose. This can be interpreted as either a polite snub or an answer to the effect that the point of life is to be silly and enjoy yourself. God's voice would cause any mortal's head to explode, so there's a limited range of responses in this case.
* In "Film/NemesisGame'', legend says that anyone who solves the correct riddles will have revealed to them 'The Pattern': the secret that makes sense of all of the seemingly meaningless and unexplainable things. This attracts people seeking meaning into the game; such as Sara, who wants to know why she survived a car crash and her mother didn't.

[[folder:{{Literature}}]]

[[folder:LiveActionTelevision]]

* In the ''Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration'' episode "[[Recap/StarTrekTheNextGenerationS3E16TheOffspring The Offspring]]", the android Data constructs a "daughter" named Lal who asks him what her purpose or function is. He replies that it is to "contribute in a positive way to the world in which they live". This just raises further questions.
* A "Pigs in Space" skit on ''Series/TheMuppetShow'' features the Swinetrek approaching the edge of the Universe, beyond which lies The Meaning of Life. Unfortunately, it's interrupted by a Muppet News Flash to announce that they're close to discovering The Meaning of Life. When we return to the sketch it's over, and the crew missed it as well (It was lunchtime, and apparently swill stroganoff is more important than the Meaning of Life). The narrator then reveals that he saw it, but when pressed further he chants "I know something you don't know!"

[[folder: Philosophy]]

[[folder:VideoGames]]

* One of the main themes of ''VideoGame/NierAutomata'' revolves around the philosophical concept of existentialism, and explores the overwhelming despair that accompanies self-consciousness in the face of an absurd and seemingly meaningless world. It's also about accepting that meaninglessness, choosing to emphasize the importance of constructing one's own meaning, rather than succumbing to despair and living in Bad Faith.
* Virtually everything that happens up to the end of the 6.0 storyline in ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXIV'' is caused by this very trope: [[spoiler:Hermes, a member of the Ancients that lived on the Unsundered World, created a bunch of creatures known as Meteion and sent them out to explore the galaxy, find worlds and ask them what brings them happiness. However, he DidntThinkThisThrough and virtually all the worlds the Meteion visited were dead or dying. All of this drove both the main Meteion and Hermes across the DespairEventHorizon and Meteion, who uses the more EmotionalPowers of "dynamis", attempts to drive other worlds across the horizon as well]].

* Webcomic/{{Qxlkbh}} has a character ask this question of {{God}} in [[https://qxlkbh.github.io/8 8: beat panels]]. The title of the comic is the answer God gives.

[[folder:WesternAnimation]]

* The ColdOpen of one episode on ''WesternAnimation/{{Doug}}'' has an ImagineSpot by the eponymous character in which he plays a game show and is mocked for being an idiot when he can't answer the question, 'What is the meaning of life?'
* In one episode of ''WesternAnimation/{{Duckman}}'', Duckman dies and meets God, who before sending him back to Earth gives him an Etch-A-Sketch. Duckman is angry about getting such a lame gift, until God tells him that it has the Meaning of Life written on it. By then, however, Duckman's angry gesticulating had erased it completely.

* In the ''Animation/KikoRiki'' episode "[[Recap/KikoRikiEp100TheMeaningOfLife The Meaning of Life]]", Wally loses the meaning and wants to find it. His friend Carlin suggests to visit Kuzinatra, a certain something that has all the meaning you could ask for, and agrees to bring him there. They ultimately return home before being able to reach their destination, but Wally says he already found what he needed without Kuzinatra. The episode ultimately claims that the meaning of life is in epicureanism -- an everyday trifles such as a warm broth and a cozy bed, which you start dreaming about as soon as you lose them.

* In the titular episode of ''Animation/KikoRiki'', Wally wonders if there's any meaning to life. His friend Carlin then suggests to visit Kuzinatra, a certain something that has all the meaning you could ask for, and agrees to bring him there. They ultimately return home before being able to reach their destination, but Wally claims he already found the meaning he needed without Kuzinatra.

-->'''First:''' I managed to stop the machine before it activated and eventually used it to suit our purpose.
-->'''Jonas:''' Which is?
-->'''First:''' To increase our number. That has never changed.

* In the ''Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration'' episode "The Offspring," the android Data constructs a "daughter" named Lal who asks him what her purpose or function is. He replies that it is to "contribute in a positive way to the world in which they live." This just raises further questions.

* Discussed in ''Literature/BookOfEcclesiastes''. The author of the book (believed to be King Solomon) laments about the meaning of life, but he [[StrawNihilist finds them vanity]]. However, he eventually [[AntiNihilist comes to this conclusion]]:

* UsefulNotes/{{Existentialism}}, rather than trying to explain the reason for existence, emphasizes the importance of a person's existence, freedom and choice. It's the view that everyone finds their own meaning for life and tries to make decisions despite existing in a universe that is chaotic, random, and irrational. So according to this view, life has no inherent meaning, [[TheAntiNihilist but we can find one for ourselves regardless.]]