the case for pessimism
Contrary to what your therapist or life coach may say, it is entirely rational to be pessimistic.
If you’re young, the environment is ruined, your economic prospects are grim, and the world is steadily trundling toward a dystopian hellscape, if not outright war.
If you’re middle-aged, inflation, geopolitics and market uncertainty is undermining your hard-won economic security, and your children's future is bleak.
And if you’re old, well, you’re basically staring into an open grave.
Bon Appetit!
As you may have inferred, I'm a pessimist. Worse, I'm also a nihilist! So, while I’m not especially thrilled at the dramatic decline in human potential over the past decade, I’m certainly not surprised.
However, given that I’m an uncle with an obligation to nurture and mentor the next generation, my worldview needs an urgent upgrade if I wish to be useful to future generations.
What to do?
Well, like any scientist confronted with a difficult problem, I did some serious research.
I completed online positive psychology courses. I extensively read from the positive psychology literature. I even wrote a bunch of positive psychology-inspired blogs.
My conclusion? Optimism is bullsh*t.
why live?
‘Since all life is futility, then the decision to exist must be the most irrational of all.’ — Emil Cioran
Now, don’t get me wrong. I have great respect and admiration for the methodology and research approaches used by positive psychologists.
First and foremost, the pioneers in positive psychology focused the power of modern scientific inquiry on the ancient and unanswered question, how can we maximize human flourishing 1 ? Further, the resulting boom in research has produced many profound insights into what makes life worth living. In addition, positive psychologists have developed a range of therapeutic interventions that, by all accounts, have significantly improved human flourishing across a wide range of settings 2.
Thus, it’s clear that positive psychology, as a discipline, is achieving its laudable goal of increasing human flourishing. However, (and this is a big however), while positive psychology robustly provides the how to achieve human flourishing, it utterly fails to provide a compelling why.
Why should you pursue the path of human flourishing in the face of a vast, uncaring universe?
Why should you bust your ass reading a bunch of books, taking a bunch of lectures, and (by the way) forking out a ton of money for psychology degrees, when you could simply live a life of hedonistic pleasure?
Indeed, why should you live at all?
As far as I can tell, the founders of positive psychology simply assume that human flourishing is axiomatically good. Naturally, if you accept their ‘self-evident’ axiom, then of course you should pursue a life of meaning!
Isn’t flourishing the obvious choice?
No, it is not.
nihilism
‘Life is possible only by the deficiencies of our imagination and memory.’ — Emil Cioran
Nihilism is the deep and overwhelming feeling of unease, futility, and loss of meaning that arises from the contemplation of suffering, the inevitability of death, the vastness of the cosmos, and the seeming infinite well of human stupidity, greed, and malice. Thus, in sharp contrast to ‘positive psychology incorporated’, Nihilists conclude that life fundamentally lacks inherent meaning or purpose 3.
‘So one goes on living, amusing oneself with hunting, with work - anything so as not think of death’ — Leo Tolstoy
The core Nihilists claim is that if you stare into the ‘abyss’, you’ll inevitably discover that life really has no meaning 3. Indeed, this likely explains why evolution has selected a raft of psychological biases that keep people happy long enough to breed despite the certainty of pain and suffering, the inevitability of death, and the futility of existence (see for example 4-7).
The grim reality is that you’re destined to experience existential dread if you commit to a fearless, honest, and rational assessment of your place in the universe and your inevitable future trajectory.
So, while following the path of positive psychology endows all sorts of benefits, such as increased health, longevity, and indeed joy, if we’re being totally honest, it all amounts to naught in the face of cosmic insignificance and personal annihilation.
positive psychology
‘To Live signifies to believe and hope - to lie and to lie to oneself.’ — Emil Cioran
So, what’s the point? Why live?
For what it's worth, positive psychology has tacitly proposed two solutions to the problem of existential dread.
Solution One: Religion and Spirituality.
It is objectively true that both religion and spirituality can endow your life with a profound sense of meaning, purpose, and significance 8,9. So, if you’re religious or spiritual, the science says stick with it!
Unfortunately, this solution doesn’t work for atheists or agnostics, for obvious reasons (for example, see 5).
Solution Two: Don’t talk about Nihilism. Don’t read about Nihilism. Don’t think about Nihilism. And, whatever you do, don’t write about Nihilism. Just stay within the Positivity bubble and shut up about Nihilism.
Alas, for genuine seekers of truth, simply sweeping existential dread under the carpet is intellectually dishonest and therefore doomed to fail.
an antidote to nihilism?
‘Hope in reality is the worst of all evils because it prolongs the torments of man.’ — Friedrich Nietzsche
For many (myself included), the fundamental question of meaning and purpose remains unresolved. ‘What is the point of life?’ we ask ourselvess in the wee hours of the morning as we lie awake, awash with existential dread.
The answer? ... crickets.
As hinted above, the result of failing to address Nihilism is a lurking, gnawing existential dread that psychologist label ‘mortality salience’. If you look for it, you’ll soon find that existential dread is a genuine and atavistic emotional trigger for many people. Now, I’m not recommending that you deliberately trigger mortality awareness in others (that would be both cruel and socially damaging), but if the subject of death or ruin does accidentally come up in conversation, take note of the initial jarring impact and subsequent intellectual obfuscation as people instinctively recoil from the abyss.
Indeed, getting people to think deeply about their own mortality is a non-trivial challenge, which is one reason why the positivity crowd avoid the topic like the plague. Yet, as pointed out so eloquently by Nietzsche, hoping for the best is the worst of all evils. Therefore, I choose to shun the evil of false hope and wilfully stare into the abyss, mortality salience be dammned!
And now we approach the central question of this article: Is there a robust, rational defence against nihilism?
To my mind, any approach to refute Nihilism, counter existential dread, and find meaning in life must fulfill the following criteria. First, it must be able to create a life of meaning, purpose, and significance. Second, it must tackle nihilism head-on. Third, the specific challenges posed by nihilism must be explicitly stated and then systematically addressed within a coherent philosophical and psychological framework. Fourth, for it to be legitimate, the search for meaning must be entirely consistent with objective reality, which means that you aren’t allowed to violate the laws of physics, biology, or indeed reason itself. Appeals to religion, woo-woo, or metaphysics are therefore strictly forbidden. In short, no magical thinking. Finally, there must be strong, indeed overwhelming, evidence for the efficacy of any proposed anti-Nihilist solution in the real world.
Good news, dear reader. I believe that I’ve found a promising antidote to Nihilism that ticks all five boxes.
Heroism!
the hero’s journey
"The hero's journey always begins with the call. One way or another, a guide must come to say, 'Look, you're in Sleepy Land. Wake up. There's a whole world out there.'" — Joseph Campbell
My search for an antidote to Nihilism has led me to seriously consider the Hero’s Journey.
The Hero’s Journey is the epic story of heroic adventure that has been conserved across cultures since prehistory 10. Indeed, the basic structure of the Hero’s Journey is now considered the ‘archetypal narrative’ 11 that is used by screenwriters all over the world to create compelling stories that resonate with audiences.
Fortunately, while the initial analysis of the Hero’s Journey was undertaken from a masculine perspective 10, it was subsequently updated to incorporate the feminine 12. Thus heroism offers a universal solution to the problem of Nihilism.
At the end of the article, I present a brief overview of the Hero’s Journey for anyone unfamiliar with its fundamental structure (Table One). Note that my version of the Hero’s Journey is slightly modified from the original 10 to emphasize the following key points:
- The Hero's Journey is open to anyone, irrespective of background, identity, or circumstance.
- There are countless variations of the Hero's Journey. Indeed, the journey should be uniquely tailored to your specific life circumstances and goals.
- At its core, the Hero's Journey represents the search for meaning, significance, and purpose, and the corresponding repudiation of Nihilism.
- The journey's goal is not only personal flourishing but, more importantly, it’s about contributing to the flourishing of others. Heroism is a life of service.
why heroism
I’ve come to conclude that for some, heroism may well be a viable solution to counter existential dread and Nihilism, for the following reasons.
First, the fundamental purpose of the Hero’s Journey is to discover meaning, purpose, and significance. Although there are no guarantees, at least you’re orientating yourself towards a life of meaning from the start, so you have a fighting chance of getting there in the end.
Second, the Hero’s Journey demands that you enter the abyss and tackle Nihilism head-on (see Step Five of the Hero’s journey). Because confronting Nihilism is baked into the Hero’s journey, there’s just no avoiding it! Thus heroism, unlike most psychological interventions, explicitly avoids the fallacy of false hope by forcing you to confront existential dread.
Third, the Hero’s Journey does not rely on magical thinking. Thus, the path of heroism is open to the religious, the spiritual, the agnostic, and the atheist alike.
Finally, heroism has been around for a long, long time. This is a clear and unambiguous signal that heroism really does work. If it didn’t, then Darwinian and cultural evolution would have extinguished heroism millennia ago.
take home message
In this article, I criticize positive psychology (and optimism in general), and proposed heroism as the surer path to human flourishing.
Further, I’ve provided a rough sketch of my reasoning, namely that heroism explicitly focuses on overcoming Nihilism, whereas positive thinking merely avoids the topic and hopes for the best.
So why not begin your own Hero’s Journey, resist the siren song of Nihilism, and possibly discover a life full of meaning?
references and further reading
1\tSeligman, M. E. P. Positive Psychology: A Personal History. Annu Rev Clin Psychol 15, 1-23, doi:10.1146/annurev-clinpsy-050718-095653 (2019).
2\tCarr, A. et al. Effectiveness of positive psychology interventions: a systematic review and meta-analysis. The Journal of Positive Psychology 16, 749-769 (2021).
3\tCioran, E. M. The trouble with being born. (Simon and Schuster, 2013).
4\tPyszczynski, T., Greenberg, J. & Solomon, S. A dual-process model of defense against conscious and unconscious death-related thoughts: an extension of terror management theory. Psychol Rev 106, 835-845, doi:10.1037/0033-295x.106.4.835 (1999).
5\tVail, K. E., 3rd et al. A terror management analysis of the psychological functions of religion. Pers Soc Psychol Rev 14, 84-94, doi:10.1177/1088868309351165 (2010).
6\tSharot, T. The optimism bias. Current Biology 21, R941-R945 (2011).
7\tPeters, U. What is the function of confirmation bias? Erkenntnis 87, 1351-1376 (2022).
8\tIvtzan, I., Chan, C. P. L., Gardner, H. E. & Prashar, K. Linking Religion and Spirituality with Psychological Well-being: Examining Self-actualisation, Meaning in Life, and Personal Growth Initiative. J Relig Health 52, 915-929, doi:10.1007/s10943-011-9540-2 (2013).
9\tPark, C. L. Religiousness/spirituality and health: A meaning systems perspective. Journal of Behavioral Medicine 30, 319-328 (2007).
10\tCampbell, J. The hero with a thousand faces. Vol. 17 (New World Library, 2008).
11\tAllison, S. T. & Goethals, G. R. in Conceptions of leadership: Enduring ideas and emerging insights 167-183 (Springer, 2014).
12\tMurdock, M. The heroine’s journey: Women’s quest for wisdom (Boston: Shambala, 1993).
summary of the hero's journey
Step | Description |
|---|---|
1. Call to Adventure | A person becomes aware of the need to explore the unknown and embark on a search for meaning. |
2. Refusal of the Call | The protagonist hesitates to leave their familiar surroundings but ultimately decides to embrace the journey, recognizing that it holds the key to personal flourishing. |
3. Wise Guidance | The protagonist receives guidance and mentorship from an enlightened teacher or mentor. |
4. Crossing the First Threshold | The protagonist enters a new realm, marking the start of its transformative odyssey. |
5. Entering the Abyss | The protagonist arrives at the destination where they confront the specter of their own mortality, Nihilism, and existential dread. |
6. Path of Trials | While progressing toward the impending trials, the protagonist encounters various tests and obstacles on their path to meaning. |
7. Temptation | The protagonist encounters persuasive forces attempting to divert them from the path of meaning and flourishing. |
8. Reconciliation with the Past | After a period of estrangement, the protagonist reconciles with their past experiences, integrating them into their journey of growth. |
9. Transformation | The protagonist undergoes a profound transformation, gaining new insights and wisdom that prepare them for the most challenging leg of the journey. |
10. Attainment of Meaning | The protagonist achieves their ultimate objective after a demanding struggle, contributing to their discovering meaning, purpose, and significance. |
11. Reluctance to Return | Having achieved a path towards flourishing, the protagonist contemplates the allure of staying in the newfound state rather than returning to their former existence. |
12. Facing Lingering Challenges | On the homeward journey, the protagonist confronts lingering challenges rooted in their past experiences. |
13. Crossing the Return Threshold | Back in their homeland, the protagonist overcomes the remaining obstacles and integrates their newfound wisdom into their life. |
14. Mastery of Two Realms | The protagonist attains mastery in both their inner and outer worlds, fostering their own flourishing and contributing to the flourishing of others. |
15. Establishment of Flourishing | As a moral exemplar, the protagonist role models a life of meaning, purpose, and significance, enhancing the flourishing of their community. |