The primary motive described here is the drive to find a reason to live—something that makes effort and suffering intelligible.
This is not a sentimental claim. It is tested against the reality that people can endure extreme hardship when they have a “why” that feels concrete and binding.
Meaning is also presented as personal: it cannot be outsourced, and it cannot be replaced by someone else’s values.
When a person loses contact with meaning, the problem is not only mood. It is direction. Without direction, everything becomes heavier.