Series Conclusion

Deciding how we ought to live is good; but by itself that does not solve the inevitable question: what is life's purpose? [p 164] [p 165] The owl and the goddess An ancient fable tells of a conversation between a student and the owl that was traditionally depicted as sitting on the shoulder of the Greek goddess Athena, the supposed patroness of wisdom. 'Often', said the owl, 'I have sat and pondered the intriguing question: which came first, the chicken or the egg?' 'How very interesting!' said the student. 'Sometimes', continued the owl, 'when I have contemplated the aesthetically pleasing shape of the egg, and the mystery of its contents; and when I have further observed that all the chickens we have ever known or heard of, every one of them came out of an egg—I have been inclined to the view that the egg must have come first.' 'That sounds reasonable,' said the student. 'On the other hand,' went on the owl, 'at other times, when I have considered the fully grown chicken, the mechanism of its wings and feathers, its lively coordination of eye, beak and claw, and the long-established fact of experience that eggs do not suddenly fall out of the sky, but without exception are all kn...