Stories About Principles

Imagine a story about three people living in different areas, and each of them are trying to figure out what the point of life is. This is not a story about people, as their lives don't cross each other. And it's not a story about a place because the location isn't really shared. This is a story about principles. 

You can also think of them as concepts or philosophies. The point is that sometimes a story focuses on ideas and explores the different ways that an idea can be understood and pursued. 

On a tangential note, exploring the meaning of life is almost always a great endeavor. Exploring and contemplating all the different answers that people come up with is a mind-opening experience, and can strongly improve your understanding of fundamental drivers of your characters.