Man’s Search for Meaning
Viktor Frankl’s memoir and logotherapy novel Man’s Search for Meaning is a hugely successful, influential book for modern psychology and to all readers. The haunting recounting of Frankl’s life inside Nazi concentration camps, his explanation and support of the practice along with the benefits of logotherapy, and because of his Case for Tragic Optimism makes this book truly a genre of its own between memoir and psychology. This novel has been counted as one of the top ten influential books by the Library of Congress and has sold over twenty-four million complies in multiple languages.
EXPERIENCES IN A CONCENTRATION CAMP
Man’s Search for Meaning is more than just a psychology book regarding logotherapy because it …show more content…
This theory gives credit to those who find success and meaning for their lives regardless of the pain, guilt, and death that may plague them. If the search for meaning is successful, it can not only can lead to happiness but also gives a patient or person capability to live through such suffering. If there is no meaning to be found, it can lead people into lives filled with worthlessness and hopelessness as seen with those prisoners in the concentration camps who gave up on their lives and would eventually pass away. The “existential vacuum” comes into play here in a generation filled with depression, aggression, and addiction because there is a lack of purpose or work that then leads back to the vacuum of feelings of emptiness and worthlessness. However, Frankl states that depression and suicide are not only caused by the existential vacuum, but that a strong meaning orientation can help take strides towards prevention and a means of combating such issues. In short, the case for tragic optimism can be boiled down to “defiant power of the human spirit”, and the steps people take to overcome the emotions, mindsets, and conditions that can cause havoc on their
Viktor Frankl’s memoir and logotherapy novel Man’s Search for Meaning is a hugely successful, influential book for modern psychology and to all readers. The haunting recounting of Frankl’s life inside Nazi concentration camps, his explanation and support of the practice along with the benefits of logotherapy, and because of his Case for Tragic Optimism makes this book truly a genre of its own between memoir and psychology. This novel has been counted as one of the top ten influential books by the Library of Congress and has sold over twenty-four million complies in multiple languages.
EXPERIENCES IN A CONCENTRATION CAMP
Man’s Search for Meaning is more than just a psychology book regarding logotherapy because it …show more content…
This theory gives credit to those who find success and meaning for their lives regardless of the pain, guilt, and death that may plague them. If the search for meaning is successful, it can not only can lead to happiness but also gives a patient or person capability to live through such suffering. If there is no meaning to be found, it can lead people into lives filled with worthlessness and hopelessness as seen with those prisoners in the concentration camps who gave up on their lives and would eventually pass away. The “existential vacuum” comes into play here in a generation filled with depression, aggression, and addiction because there is a lack of purpose or work that then leads back to the vacuum of feelings of emptiness and worthlessness. However, Frankl states that depression and suicide are not only caused by the existential vacuum, but that a strong meaning orientation can help take strides towards prevention and a means of combating such issues. In short, the case for tragic optimism can be boiled down to “defiant power of the human spirit”, and the steps people take to overcome the emotions, mindsets, and conditions that can cause havoc on their