To do this let's begin to think in circles by beginning to think in terms of a point. In terms of mathematics, point is a location in space. A point is a circle so small it actually has no size at all. Just roll over the equations as you read and absorb the flavor of what is being said. Through this thought, philosophers attempt to tackle the concept of man the entity.
Philosophers attempt to understand why man has value.
Don't let the mathematical formulas scare you. They simply help reinforce the concept of math and philosophy being very similar in spite of their own perception that they are very different. Each point, taken singularly, seems to have little importance, but taken as a whole, they have infinite importance for it is through the concept of a point that we begin to define the space within which our universe exists. So it is with the individual. Each individual appears to have little significance when compared to the vastness of the universe, time, the sea of humanity, but taken as a whole they have infinite significance.