About This Site
Lifestudies.Org is a website run by Masahiro Morioka, a professor of philosophy and ethics at Waseda University and the editor-in-chief of Journal of Philosophy of Life. He proposes new philosophical disciplines: philosophy of life and life studies.
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Philosophy of Life and Life Studies
Philosophy of life is an academic discipline that deals with philosophical issues surrounding life, death, and nature. Life studies is a study method that can only be accomplished by "never detaching oneself from the subject being investigated".
>> Detailed explanation about philosophy of life and life studies
Books
List of books
English Books
Recent Japanese Books
Papers and Essays
List of papers and essays
> Recently Uploaded articles
What is Antinatalism?: Definition, History, and Categories (2021)
Antinatalism is the thought that all human beings or all sentient beings should not be born. In this paper, I briefly summarize the history of antinatalistic thoughts and propose a set of categories on antinatalism and related thoughts.
A Solipsistic and Affirmation-Based Approach to Meaning in Life (2019)
In this paper, I make two arguments: 1) There is a solipsistic layer in meaning in life, and 2) the heart of meaning in life can be dynamically incorporated into the affirmation of having been born into this world, which I call “birth affirmation.”
Philosophy, Manga, and Ōmori Shōzō (2018)
An examination of Morioka's Manga Introduction to Philosophy and Ōmori Shōzō's philosophical writings. With Pierre Bonneels.
The Trolley Problem and the Dropping of Atomic Bombs (2017)
In this paper, I show that the dropping of atomic bombs was a typical example of the events that contained the logic of the trolley problems in their decision-making processes and justifications, and secondly, I discuss five aspects of “the problem of the trolley problem".
Philosophy of Life in Contemporary Society (2017)
An outline of "philosophy of life" as a philosophical discipline.
Manga and Philosophy
: Why Was the Book “Manga Introduction to Philosophy” Written? (2015)
A PowerPoint PDF presentated at the
first conference of the European Network on Japanese Philosophy, Barcelona, Spain.
Is Meaning in Life Comparable?
: From the Viewpoint of ‘The Heart of Meaning in Life’ (2015)
The aim of this paper is to propose a new approach to the question of meaning in life by criticizing Thaddeus Metz’s objectivist theory in his book Meaning in Life: An Analytic Study. I demonstrate that “the heart of meaning in life” cannot be compared with other people’s meaning in life.
Feminism, Disability, and Brain Death: Alternative Voices from Japanese Bioethics (2015)
In this paper, the ideas of “the swaying of the confused self” in the field of feminism, “inner eugenic thought” concerning disability, and “human relationship-oriented approaches to brain death” that appeared in Japanese bioethics are discussed.
Why Beyond Bioethics?: The Reaction of a Japanese Philosopher to American Bioethics (2015)
-- New Perspectives in Japanese Bioethics, pp.73-86. (You can read some parts of the paper on Google Books. The full paper will be uploaded to Lifestudies.org soon.)
A Phenomenological Study of “Herbivore Men” (2013)
"Herbivore men" is a term that became a buzzword in Japan in 2008-2009. It refers to gentle young men who are not very assertive in love and sex. This paper illustrates the outline of this phenomenon from the viepoint of gender studies.
How a Japanese Philosopher Encountered Bioethics (2013)
I illustrate how a Japanese philosopher reacted to a newly imported discipline, “bioethics,” in the 1980s and then tried to create an alternative way of looking at “life” in the field of philosophy. This essay might serve as an interesting case study in which a contemporary “western” way of thinking succeeded in capturing, but finally failed to persuade, a then-young Japanese researcher’s mind.
Why is It Hard for Us to Accept Moral Bioenhancement?: Comment on Savulescu’s Argument (2013)
This paper criticizes Julian Savulescu and his colleagues’ argument on moral bioenhancement. Our personality ought to be constructed upon our inner foundation, which should not be tampered with by outside intervention or control, and I dare say this belief is a healthy one that should not be overturned.
Human Dignity and the Manipulation of the Sense of Happiness: From the Viewpoint of Bioethics and Philosophy of Life (2012)
A life with dignity means a life in which we are able to explore our own life, equipped with both happiness and unhappiness, without regret, through relationships with others, without being exploited by the desires of anyone, and without being dominated by our own desires.
The Review of Life Studies
A collection of articles written by Masahiro Morioka and his friends.
Video Recordings
The Exploring Antinatalism Podcast #28 - Masahiro Morioka
Aired on February 2, 2021.
What Is Birth Affirmation? The Meaning of Saying ‘Yes’ to Having Been Born
Third International Conference on Philosophy and Meaning in Life, University of Birmingham, July 23, 2020 (online).
[Tokyo Philosophy Project 03] Rivka Weinberg talks about "philosophy of procreation " with Masahiro Morioka
Recorded on October 6, 2019.
[Tokyo Philosophy Project 02] Yujin Nagasawa talks about "mortality and immortality " with Masahiro Morioka
Recorded on October 3, 2019.
Animated Persona: The Ontological Status of Deceased Persons
Fifth Conference of European Network of Japanese Philosophy, Nanzan University, Nagoya, August 31, 2019.
The Method of Life Studies and Tanabe’s Metanoetics: Post-Religious Spirituality
Fourth Conference of European Network of Japanese Philosophy, University of Hildesheim, Hildesheim, September 6, 2018.
Manga and Philosophy
TUJ Philosophy Lecture Series Vol. 8, May, 2018.
[Tokyo Philosophy Project 01] Thaddeus Metz talks about "meaning in life" with Masahiro Morioka
Recorded on August 27, 2018.
What is "the Dignity of the Human Body"?: A Japanese Philosopher’s Reaction to Brain Death and Organ Transplantation
Symposium: "A Japanese approach: between life and death, from nature to artefacts", Maison des Sciences Humaines ULB, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Brussels, March 19, 2018.
Tokyo Philosophy Project
Academic Journal
Journal of Philosophy of Life
A peer-reviewed academic journal specializing in the philosophy of life, death, and nature, supported by the Project of Philosophy and Contemporary Society, Advanced Research Center for Human Sciences, Waseda University.
Research Project
Tokyo Philosophy Project
A research project supported by the Project of Philosophy and Contemporary Society, Advanced Research Center for Human Sciences, Waseda University.
SNSs
 Life Studies Blog
 Facebook - Masahiro Morioka
twitter - masa_morioka
 Academia.edu
 ResearchGate
Email
Email
Special Reports
Special Report: No.1
Brain Death and Transplantation in Japan
Special Report: No.2
Japanese Responses to the World Trade Center Attack
Special Report: No.3
Bioethics around the World
Special Report: No.4
Herbivore Men
Other pages
Japanese website 
Japanese version of LIFESTUDIES.ORG.
French website 
French version of LIFESTUDIES.ORG.
Links
List of websites made more than 10 years ago.
Older pages
(c) LIFESTUDIES.ORG 1999 -
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