To Plan or Not to Plan? That is the (a priori) question

Authors

  • Rosemary Lodge Author
  • Zoe Gelis Author

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.65828/1p6wcj13

Keywords:

Plan, consciousness, freedom, desire, meaning, flow, determinism, mid-life

Abstract

In this paper the authors discuss the meaning and relevance of making plans. They conclude that although plans may initially be meaningful, paradoxically the relentless completion of plans can render life meaningless. They can inhibit personal growth if stuck to rigidly and can also inhibit our freedom and the freedom of others, freedom being a fundamental aspect of consciousness. An alternative type of plan is proposed that is more flexible and relational, and a model of the process of modifying plans in light of one's own experience, the world and others is suggested.

Full text available
Complete access to the full archive of articles is available with SEA membership. Existing members: please log in with your membership password to view full text. Non-members can buy a single article or issue by registering an account on this website, then selecting a padlocked full text button to purchase.

References

Csikszentmihalyi, M. (1990). Flow: The psychology of optimal experience. New York: Harper and Row. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/cbo9780511621956

Dutton, K. (2020). Black and White Thinking: The burden of a binary brain in a complex world. London: Bantam Books.

Gendlin, E.T. (1997). Experiencing and the Creation of Meaning: A philosophical and psychological approach to the subjective. Evanston: Northwestern University Press.

Kierkegaard, S. (1992[1846]). Concluding Unscientific Postscript to Philosophical Fragments Volume 1. London: Penguin Books.

Sartre, J.P. (2003 [1943]). Being and Nothingness. Oxford: Routledge. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203827123

Setiya, K. (2017). Midlife: A philosophical guide. Oxford: Princetow University Press.

Spinelli, E. (1997). Tales of Un-Knowing: therapeutic encounters from an existential perspective. London: Duckworth.

Published

2021-01-01

Cite This Article

To Plan or Not to Plan? That is the (a priori) question. (2021). Existential Analysis: Journal of the Society for Existential Analysis, 32(1), 64-72. https://doi.org/10.65828/1p6wcj13
Download: RIS · BibTeX

Articles by the same author(s)

Related articles