The Hitchhiker's Characters: The Meaning Of Life

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What is the meaning of life? This pressing question has troubled anyone who has ever tried to define it. All humans require a purpose in life, and it is in their nature to find their own role within society to create a better world. In The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy written by Douglas Adams, the author takes the characters through a quest to find their own meaning of life. Although not entirely revealed, each character finally discovers what it truly means to be alive and why they must continue living. Humans struggle to find purpose in life and strive to play a meaningful role in society. The story homes in on an indifferent human, Arthur Dent, who is unaware of his importance within the universe. After experiencing an array of cosmic impossibilities that destroys his own planet, Dent is somehow unscathed. When this realization of this near-death trauma experience reaches his conscience, he begins to think: “I don’t know if this sounds like a silly question, but what am I still doing here?” (Adams 36). This question begins to develop the idea that everyone exists but does not question the purpose of their existence. Arthur undergoes self-discovery in order to to finally realize that humans must define their own meaning of life. By struggling to fit into a single definition of the meaning of life, characters like Dent begin to belittle themselves because of the utter…show more content…
Douglas Adams’ novel depicts humans that go on an adventure to seek an ultimate answer to the purpose of being alive. The journey allows them to discover that they each have their own purpose and must try to continually redefine their roles in life. The answer to “What is the meaning of life?” has infinite possibilities, some of which can be applied to different individuals who seek different purposes. Having meaning gives humans a purpose. Humans must use their purpose to extend their role in the
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