I think anicca, dukkha and anatta are all skilfull contemplative ways to weaken our passion. Skillful means, sanna’s to develop and cool down the fire in the mind. Weaken it’s obsessions.
Because the arising of those obsessions, these passions, are also related to seeing value (seeing things as very important, as attractive, as a refuge, as a rescue, as happiness, as Me) it can be expected that the meaning of anatta is also related to value, i.e. seeing less value in conditioned phenomena. Expressions like empty, void, hollow do express that. One can take those meanings philosophically but how does ‘the absence of an inner essence’ in an icecream, in nice food, the body of a man or woman, make it less attractive? That does not do the work, at least not for me. It is much too philosophical and does not lead to dispassion.
So I think Thanissaro is, indeed, spot on. All those tilakkhana are about value, i.e. seeing things in a way they devalue. And that is the way the obsessions in us weaken and passions cool down.
I do not think we must see it as ‘characteristics of the world’ but as three aspects that color our perception. The perceptions of nicca, sukha, atta, subha are all related to the arising of passion. The counterparts anicca, dukkha, anatta, asubha lead to cooling down.
Those perceptions cool down the mind when those settle over time. It is not that one will be dispassionate immediately, is my experience, but it is more like ones view of life gradually ripens. Emotionally one begin to ripen.
I do not belief the Budddha taught there is no essence at all, nothing stable, nothing that is trustworthy, nothing reliable, no refuge. But I belief he taught that this is final ultimate total detachment. In the end this cannot be expressed and is very subtle. In other words, when the Buddha in many sutta’s says: rupa, vedana, sanna, sankhara and vinnana is ‘not Me, not mine, not my self’ , I belief, he expressed the wisdom of detachment. How can one describe this state, when it is detached from rupa, vedana, sanna, sankhara and vinnana. It is beyond it.
View is also about seeing nicca/anicca, sukha/dukkha, anatta/atta, subha/asubha. How we perceive things. Seeing anicca, dukkha and anatta is right view connected with Nibbana and called noble right view in MN117 and is different from mundane right view. Noble right view is seeing things in a way you do not become full of passion, i.e. as anicca, dukkha an anatta.Viewing things wrong (as nicca, sukha, atta, subha) passion arises.