--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Judging whether life is or is not worth…" description: "\"Judging whether life is or is not worth living amounts to answering the fundamental question of philosophy.\" — Albert Camus" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9bd/albert-camus-47_amount_judging-whether-life-is-or-is-not-worth_2162475.jpg" --- # Judging whether life is or is not worth living amounts to… ![“Judging whether life is or is not worth living amounts to answering the fundamental question of philosophy.” quote by Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9bd/albert-camus-47_amount_judging-whether-life-is-or-is-not-worth_2162475.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9bd/albert-camus-47_amount_judging-whether-life-is-or-is-not-worth_2162475.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9bd/albert-camus-47_amount_judging-whether-life-is-or-is-not-worth_2162475.jpg) > “Judging whether life is or is not worth living amounts to answering the fundamental question of philosophy.” [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The value of life hinges on confronting its inherent absurdity and deciding whether to embrace it. **In simple terms:** Life’s worth depends on confronting absurdity. Key Takeaway Choose to find meaning despite absurdity. Themes existentialism absurdism meaning philosophy Mood reflective thoughtful Type philosophical existential When to use this quote - personal crisis - therapy - ethical decision making - literary analysis Key Concepts Sisyphus rebellion acceptance Questions to Reflect On - What makes life feel worth living for you? - How do you confront absurdity? A Different Perspective The question may be too abstract for practical daily decisions. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Philosophy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philosophy/) [Truth Seeking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth-seeking/) [Worth living](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/worth-living/) ## Related quotes > [There is but one truly serious philosophical problem and that is suicide. Judging whether life is or is not worth living amounts to answering…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/there-is-but-one-truly-serious-philosophical-problem-and-that-is-3/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [There is but one truly serious philosophical problem, and that is suicide. Judging whether life is or is not worth living amounts to answering…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/there-is-but-one-truly-serious-philosophical-problem-and-that-is-4/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [“The difference between being concerned and judging a life is how much one cares or not.Therefore to be concerned is better than to judge.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jackson-taviri/the-difference-between-being-concerned-and-judging-a-life-is-how-much/) [Jackson Taviri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jackson-taviri/) > [Stop judging your life only by the failures.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-sagara/stop-judging-your-life-only-by-the-failures/) [Michelle Sagara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-sagara/) > [Stop judging life! Look at every event as blessed. It is offering you the fastest track to get onto your highest, happiest and most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/stop-judging-life-look-at-every-event-as-blessed-it-is-offering-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [It's hard to imagine a place like that really exists. People have been judging me my whole life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kami-garcia/it-s-hard-to-imagine-a-place-like-that-really-exists-people-have-been/) [Kami Garcia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kami-garcia/) > [If we take judging ourselves and others out of our life, we will mostly be living in paradise.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harbhajan-singh-yogi/if-we-take-judging-ourselves-and-others-out-of-our-life-we-will/) [Harbhajan Singh Yogi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harbhajan-singh-yogi/) > [“Albert Camus introduced his philosophy of the absurd, in which man searches for meaning in a fundamentally meaningless world. In this context, Camus proposed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-eagleman/albert-camus-introduced-his-philosophy-of-the-absurd-in-which-man/) [David Eagleman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-eagleman/) > [“For someone who constantly comes across this problem in the course of his professional activities, the question whether philosophy has the status of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-piaget/for-someone-who-constantly-comes-across-this-problem-in-the-course-of/) [Jean Piaget](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-piaget/) > [The great question of philosophy remains: If life is meaningless, what can be done about alphabet soup?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-allen/the-great-question-of-philosophy-remains-if-life-is-meaningless-what/) [Woody Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woody-allen/) > [“To question whether philosophy of religion is possible in the present situation, when there are books and articles galore, and several journals, devoted in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-werther/to-question-whether-philosophy-of-religion-is-possible-in-the-present/) [David Werther](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-werther/) > [“After all, the fundamental question of philosophy (like that of psychoanalysis) is the same as the question of the detective novel: who is guilty?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umberto-eco/after-all-the-fundamental-question-of-philosophy-like-that-of/) [Umberto Eco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umberto-eco/) > [“Make your life worth living for, by living for the One who values it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anya-vonderluft/make-your-life-worth-living-for-by-living-for-the-one-who-values-it/) [Anya vonderLuft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anya-vonderluft/) > [The people on the QVC shopping channel convince me that life is worth living. They see the good in everything. People who go to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johnny-vegas/the-people-on-the-qvc-shopping-channel-convince-me-that-life-is-worth/) [Johnny Vegas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johnny-vegas/) > [Is life worth living? This is a question for an embryo not for a man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-butler/is-life-worth-living-this-is-a-question-for-an-embryo-not-for-a-man/) [Samuel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-butler/) ## More by Albert Camus > [“The whole town rushed outside to celebrate this crowded minute when the time of suffering had ended and the time of forgetting had not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/the-whole-town-rushed-outside-to-celebrate-this-crowded-minute-when/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [Generally, I like all islands. There, it is easier to rule.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/generally-i-like-all-islands-there-it-is-easier-to-rule/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [Being is good, but getting rich is better… If the gods had only the riches of men's adoration, they would be as poor as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/being-is-good-but-getting-rich-is-better-if-the-gods-had-only-the/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [The more I produce, the less I am certain. On the road along which the artist walks, night falls ever more densely. Finally, he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/the-more-i-produce-the-less-i-am-certain-on-the-road-along-which-the/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [“Having been, not only mutilated in our country, wounded in our very flesh, but also divested of our most beautiful images, for you gave…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/having-been-not-only-mutilated-in-our-country-wounded-in-our-very/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [I've seen of enough of people who die for an idea. I don't believe in heroism; I know it's easy and I've learned it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/i-ve-seen-of-enough-of-people-who-die-for-an-idea-i-don-t-believe-in/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [The best are led to make greater demands upon themselves. As for those who succumb, they did not deserve to survive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/the-best-are-led-to-make-greater-demands-upon-themselves-as-for-those/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [“Then he asked me if I wasn’t interested in a change of life. I said that people never change their lives, that in any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/then-he-asked-me-if-i-wasn-t-interested-in-a-change-of-life-i-said/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [Life is meaningless, but worth living, provided you recognize it's meaningless.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/life-is-meaningless-but-worth-living-provided-you-recognize-it-s/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [Thinking of the future, establishing aims for oneself, having preferences-all this presupposes a belief in freedom, even if one occasionally ascertains that one doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/thinking-of-the-future-establishing-aims-for-oneself-having/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [I explained to him, however, that my nature was such that my physical needs often got in the way of my feelings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/i-explained-to-him-however-that-my-nature-was-such-that-my-physical/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [The only way to deal with an unfree world is to become so absolutely free that your very existence is an act of rebellion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/the-only-way-to-deal-with-an-unfree-world-is-to-become-so-absolutely/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [“We love people not because for good they did for us, but for good we did for them.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/we-love-people-not-because-for-good-they-did-for-us-but-for-good-we/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [You have so much inside you, and the noblest happiness of all. Don’t just wait for a man to come along. That’s the mistake…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/you-have-so-much-inside-you-and-the-noblest-happiness-of-all-don-t/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [The desire for possession is insatiable, to such a point that it can survive even love itself. To love, therefore, is to sterilize the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/the-desire-for-possession-is-insatiable-to-such-a-point-that-it-can/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) [Explore all 1,600 Albert Camus quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) ## More Amount quotes > [Dating someone on the opposite end of the happy spectrum teaches you an incredible amount of patience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-pine/dating-someone-on-the-opposite-end-of-the-happy-spectrum-teaches-you/) [Chris Pine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-pine/) > [When the amount of change externally exceeds the amount of change internally, the end is in sight.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-welch/when-the-amount-of-change-externally-exceeds-the-amount-of-change/) [Jack Welch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-welch/) > [A human being can only absorb a small amount of the mystical kundalini, you can be exposed again and again to it, but it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/a-human-being-can-only-absorb-a-small-amount-of-the-mystical/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [It's a great story for us whenever an entrepreneur makes a crazy amount of money and we get to tell the world about it.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-lacy/it-s-a-great-story-for-us-whenever-an-entrepreneur-makes-a-crazy/) [Sarah Lacy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-lacy/) > [It's a challenge to work a character's arc into a format in which you only have a very limited amount of time to grow…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ginnifer-goodwin/it-s-a-challenge-to-work-a-character-s-arc-into-a-format-in-which-you/) [Ginnifer Goodwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ginnifer-goodwin/) > [The amount of things you can do with a kettlebell is unsurpassed by any other training equipment - dumbbells, resistance machines, free weights.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laird-hamilton/the-amount-of-things-you-can-do-with-a-kettlebell-is-unsurpassed-by/) [Laird Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laird-hamilton/) > [The amount you give isn't important. What matters is what that amount represents in terms of your life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-rohn/the-amount-you-give-isn-t-important-what-matters-is-what-that-amount/) [Jim Rohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-rohn/) > [There's a place in Botswana where there are 100,000 elephants living in a single population. Think of the amount of space they need. Remember,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-bergin/there-s-a-place-in-botswana-where-there-are-100-000-elephants-living/) [Patrick Bergin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-bergin/) > [How could you justify giving Holland twice the amount of money that you gave Belgium? Well, finally, I put it up to them. They…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-averell-harriman/how-could-you-justify-giving-holland-twice-the-amount-of-money-that/) [W. Averell Harriman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-averell-harriman/) > [I am not a great believer in dialectical struggle. I am much more of a fusion person. I see it as a dialogue, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marina-warner/i-am-not-a-great-believer-in-dialectical-struggle-i-am-much-more-of-a/) [Marina Warner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marina-warner/) > [The risk of developing carcinoma of the lung increases steadily as the amount smoked increases. If the risk among non-smokers is taken as unity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-doll/the-risk-of-developing-carcinoma-of-the-lung-increases-steadily-as/) Richard Doll > [Both fact and logic seem to me to support the view that savings invested in privately owned economic tools of production amount to an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/f-a-harper/both-fact-and-logic-seem-to-me-to-support-the-view-that-savings/) F. A. Harper > [You have a little bit of talent, a certain amount of good fortune and a lot of hard work in pursuit of whatever truth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-sutherland/you-have-a-little-bit-of-talent-a-certain-amount-of-good-fortune-and/) [Donald Sutherland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-sutherland/) > [I have a tremendous amount of respect for military families. To have to worry about your loved ones and still try and live a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ashanti/i-have-a-tremendous-amount-of-respect-for-military-families-to-have/) [Ashanti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ashanti/) > [In sports teams, apart from talk of sporting prowess and the imparting of inspirational thought, an extraordinary amount of time is spent discussing, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harsha-bhogle/in-sports-teams-apart-from-talk-of-sporting-prowess-and-the-imparting/) [Harsha Bhogle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harsha-bhogle/) Browse all 4,202 Amount quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Judging whether life is or is not worth living amounts to answering the fundamental question of philosophy.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Albert Camus" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/judging-whether-life-is-or-is-not-worth-living-amounts-to-answering/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Amount" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/judging-whether-life-is-or-is-not-worth-living-amounts-to-answering/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9bd/albert-camus-47_amount_judging-whether-life-is-or-is-not-worth_2162475.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9bd/albert-camus-47_amount_judging-whether-life-is-or-is-not-worth_2162475.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9bd/albert-camus-47_amount_judging-whether-life-is-or-is-not-worth_2162475.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Judging whether life is or is not worth living amounts to answering the fundamental question of philosophy.” — Albert Camus", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Albert Camus", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Judging whether life is or is...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/judging-whether-life-is-or-is-not-worth-living-amounts-to-answering/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/judging-whether-life-is-or-is-not-worth-living-amounts-to-answering/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```