The meaning of life
I think the changes that we have seen over the past 40 years have made a lot of people re-assess their lives, the ways they view life and life forms as well as the relationships between them and other people and other species in the ecosystem.
The various ways that people view life - from historical, philosophical, sociological and cultural perspectives. This is due to the global economic, environmental and cultural changes that have happened between 2020 and 2060. Or, perhaps nothing has really changed and humans just repeat the same cycles of history as we have been doing for thousands of years.
Inspiration: "The setting sun" and "No longer human" by Dazai Osamu, "The stranger" by Albert Camus, "Two serious ladies" by Jane Bowles and "A streetcar named desire" by Tennessee Williams. These works came to my mind as they curiously and beautifully explore the darker sides of the human mind, their consciousness, the societies surrounding them and the resulting way of living that each character chooses for themselves. Some characters are able to find beauty, kindness and meaning/purpose even in the most terrifying and unusual situations, yet others do not see why and how they should continue living as humans. The fact that the other people around those characters either bear the same psychological burdens or cannot comprehend (and thus, condemn) the characters' ways of living contribute to the characters' tragedy, death and liberation.
I think the changes that we have seen over the past 40 years have made a lot of people re-assess their lives, the ways they view life and life forms as well as the relationships between them and other people and other species in the ecosystem. (Re)visiting those iconic works will be a great way for all of us to do that.
