...Man’s Search for Meaning As I began reading Victor Frankl’s book, I automatically started thinking of all the horrors and victims of the Holocaust that I had read about in other books or movies I had watched on the subject. As I read further into the book I realized that Dr. Frankl’s point was not to recount the travesties of the concentration camps but to show that man has the power to choose to continue to live and have a meaningful existence. This discussed some of the atrocities of the camps but the author did not dwell on the people whose primary jobs were to work the prisoners to death literally or to extinguish those considered inferior. He chose to use and relate examples of life that gave meaning to human suffering. It is hard to fathom or truly understand the life in a concentration or prison camp and even harder to comprehend when a person has lost everything except his or her own bodies and free will. I was amazed that people were able to have faith that they would be rescued and not feel pity for themselves. People across the world say they are starved but in reality, most of us don’t even have a clue as to what true hunger and starvation feels like. Although I feel that Dr. Frankl’s experience is not unique, his ability to develop it into a theory was, especially under the circumstances which he began formulating his Logo therapy. The passage, “we really had nothing now except our bare bodies - even minus hair; all we possessed, literally, was our naked...
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...Summary In Man’s Search for Meaning, psychiatrist and neurologist Viktor Frankl (1905-1997) wrote about his time as a concentration camp inmate during the Second World War. One thing he found out was it was not about those who were physically strong, who survived longest in concentration camps, but those who had a sense of control over their environment. Viktor Frankl was one of the few, who survived in a place. This was in a place that eventually millions of people would die. After three years in various concentration camps, his camp Türkheim was liberated, upon which he returned to Vienna, where he was born. Frankl then spent the rest of his life teaching what he’d learned during the worst of times. That people can, and must, find meaning...
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...Phillip Robertson 11/21/14 Dr. Michael Railey Biographical Sketch Viktor E. Frankl the author of Man’s Search for Meaning had a very important and eventful life. His life before being forced into the Nazi concentration camps although vague showed that he was a very accomplished psychiatrist with a scientific journal ready for publication and a loving husband. He then became a forced laborer until his medical skills saved him. He was moved from forced labor to a position as a doctor helping typhus patients until his camp was liberated. After his imprisonment in the concentration camps he used his experiences and observations of all he had seen to form a new school of psychology called Logotherapy. Summary The book starts off in the transport...
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...Man’s Search for Meaning Book Review There have been several books written by those who suffered in concentration camps during World War II; however, Man’s Search for Meaning by Viktor E. Frankl is the both a fascinating and hopeful book from this period. This book is comprised of two primary parts. Part one is “Experiences in a Concentration Camp,” and part two is titled “Logotherapy in a Nutshell”. There is also a postscript entitled “The Case for a Tragic Optimism”. Throughout the book, Frankl gives the readers a new perspective about to how to view life and reiterates the statement that life is utterly what you decide to make of it. Frankl clearly states that he did not want to solely focus on the negative aspects from his stay in four different Concentration Camps including Auschwitz and Dachau but rather his own personal experience of survival. Immediately upon entering Auschwitz in 1942, he had to part ways with his prized almost completed scientific manuscript, which meant a great deal to him. Man’s Search for Meaning teaches the reader that it is possible to be positive in the most dire of situations. There are several factors in the book that Frankl discusses that helped him survive in the camps. He noted that there are three phases of the inmate’s mental reactions to life in camp: the admission period, the period when he is deep into the camp routine, and that after his release and liberation. His camp experience seemed nothing shy of a nightmare. Liberation...
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...Incomplete Essay Man’s Search for Meaning is a relatively short but powerful novel about an experience through a concentration camp from the eyes of psychologist and author, Victor E. Frankel. “I had wanted simply to convey to the reader by way of a concrete example that life holds a potential meaning under any condition, even the most miserable ones.” (Victor Frankl). The first half of the book takes place in concentration camps throughout Europe, including the legendary Auschwitz. In his account of the camps, Frankl describes the nature of man when subjected to immense suffering. He gives large contrasts of prisoners giving in to the suffering and how they rise above it. His ideas deal with the value of life even at times of suffering and hopelessness and how everyone has to understand that. One of the main topics he discusses concerning suffering is that of hope. Without hope then there would be no point in anyone enduring the suffering with which they endured during these Nazi concentration camps. Frankl says that, “Every man was controlled by one thought only: to keep himself alive for the family waiting for him at home, and to save his friends. With no hesitation, therefore, he would arrange for another prisoner, another ‘number,’ to take his place in the transport.” This really shows how much suffering people went through just in hope of returning to loved ones. Another one of his lines from his book is, “Emotion, which is suffering, ceases to be suffering as...
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...Why Choose to Go On Living? Even in the most terrible conditions imaginable, suffering is not meaningless, and one can choose to endure circumstance through discovering purpose. The idea that anyone could have survived the brutal conditions endured within the concentration camps during the holocaust is somewhat inconceivable, and yet, we have first-hand accounts from survivors of what took place within these prisons. Throughout the writings and memoirs of these individuals we discover the nuances and underpinnings of what camp life was like. In the book, Man’s Search for Meaning, Psychologist Victor Frankl describes his experiences in the Nazi death camps and implies that his wife symbolizes love and purpose. This essay will give four instances...
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...Reflections on Man’s Search For Meaning INT 101 Dr. Walker December 4 2013 Thomas Jefferson wrote – “Life, Liberty and the pursuit of happiness.”1 The pursuit of happiness seems to be the end game for life, but is it? Viktor Frankl is a concentration camp survivor and goes one level deeper in his book Man’s Search For Meaning. Finding the true meaning in life is the key to self-actualization. Frankl quotes the words of Fredrich Nietzsche – “He who has a why to live for can bear almost any how.”2 Frankl reveals what life was like in the concentration camps. He also discusses Logotherapy, which he created. Frankl was subjected to four different Nazi camps and was dehumanized to a mere number: 119,104. Moreover, Nazis murdered his wife, mother, father, and unborn child, yet Frankl was able to find a purpose for living in all his sufferings. Frankl goes into detail on the concentration camps. Life was hell on earth. What appeared to him was the mind’s power to protect. The longer the stay, the more numbing all human emotion became. There are some behaviors I would like to highlight. They are strong and appear based on Frankl’s experiences in the camps. Hope People died daily in the camps. The guards played a finger game. They would randomly point, and if you were picked, you died. The simple act of pointing delivered your fate. Prisoners who focused on the WHY to live had a better chance at survival. Frankl determined that a youthful face and eagerness to work increased...
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...him, but it was confiscated by the guards and were thrown away. Frankl was angry but he was not going to let that stop the creation of his book. While Frankl was at the camp he actually learned a lot of things from it and some he considered that changed his life. Frankl bared a lot of pain physically and mentally which only made him a stronger person. As he spent his days and nights in the camp Frankl became more and more fond of daydreaming about his wife, was she ok, or was she still alive. Thinking of her still being alive was a little much for him to bare, but he got through it by thinking as if him and his wife were with each other at the exact moment of him thinking of her. Summary In the book, man’s search for meaning, the author, Viktor Frankl, explains his meaning of life as he displays some of his trials and tribulations he had from his past life. He was born in Vienna, Austria where he also went to further his education in psychology. He started off as a doctor at a psychiatric hospital where he was greatly known for his good work. Frankl loved his family and his life was going so well until the unexpected happened. Dr. Frankl, along with his family, were captured and taken away as a victim to some concentration camps. Frankl and his family arrived at the first concentration camp in Auschwitz where they were separated from one another. He was hurt by the split up and just maintained his self-control. He had brought along some of his prize possessions for his book...
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...Problem 5 “Mans Search for Meaning” 5 The 5 programs 5 The Study 6 Table 1: Study Results 6 Analysis Team Annie Malpartida Brad Ingram Daniel Ojst Fernando Lamelas Jeremy Spund Introduction The Problem Manufacturing across the Midwest has seen sharp declines in the May 08 to May 09 Year. The automotive industry saw a reduction of over 39%, Steel output was down 36.8%, and manufacturing as a sector saw a 24% decrease.[i] But what does this mean for Morgan Moe Drugstores? Why is manufacturing so important? The Midwest primary output is manufacturing and agriculture. A decline in either one of these sectors means that the workers driving the Midwest economy have less to spend; meaning that the economic circulation in the region as a whole decreases. This loss of manufacturing is seen in the falling revenues of Morgan Moe. In many ways, the company has dealt with the difficult economic climate well. It has closed underperforming stores, consolidated the workforce, and reduced overhead. However, the laying off of many employees had some consequences. Negative press, internal rumors, and malcontent are spreading through the workforce. Websites like www.Ihatemorganmoe.blogspot.com are developing to further spread the discontent of laid-off workers. “Mans Search for Meaning” Upon reading this book, Jim Claussen, the Vice President of Human Relations, read a book by the psychologist Vicktor Frankl. Man’s Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl[ii]...
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...Man’s Search for Meaning Viktor Frankl's “Man’s Search for Meaning” is a story about his survival in Nazi concentration camps. He speaks about the flight and mindset he had in order to survive. This is a story that makes you feel that you can get through the toughest times if he could endure what he did especially in the Auschwitz concentration camp. Most of our complaints and problems are truly trivial compared to his life in the various camps for being a condemned Jew in Nazi Germany during World War II. While reading about Frankl’s life I could not believe I complain about trivial problems I have in todays world. The most significant idea I uncovered during my reading was that we have the freedom to control how we choose to react to situations and problems we step in to and inherit. Unlike an animal that reacts to stimuli, we have the freedom to think about how we want to act. No one can take away our ability to use the power of our mind to control our reactions. For me the most significant idea I uncovered during my reading was that human freedom is the freedom to control our attitude toward the situations we inherit. We do not have to respond to stimuli like animals, and no one can take this ultimate freedom away. I believe this idea of controlling my own freedom contributes significantly to my personal and professional life. I have truly adopted and follow a saying, “Don’t worry about the things you cannot change.” This to me is exactly what Frankl did living in the...
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...Throughout the book Catcher in the Rye, by J.D. Salinger, a boy who does not know his place in life, illustrates the human need for logotherapy. Viktor Frankl, a Holocaust survivor, wrote "Mans search for meaning", in which he describes his experiences and ways of resisting the efforts of dehumanization in the holocaust. In Viktor Frankl's writing he delineates Logotherapy, which are three principles of mankind. The main character in Catcher in the Rye is Holden Caulfield, he is an unstable young man, who wanders around New York for three days, without knowing where to go or what do. Holden Caulfield would benefit if he applied Logotherapy to his everyday life. The first principle of logotherapy states that's man has an inborn will to meaning, "We seek to live not only for ourselves, but to contribute something of worth to other people and to the world we live in."(370) Holden Caulfield rarely shows this trait, but he does reveal it seldomly to people he does not know for example when he says to a cab driver, "You know those ducks in that lagoon right near central park? That little lake? By any chance do you happen to know where they go, the ducks, when it gets all frozen over?∦"(60) This exhibits that Holden cares for some things, which means he has a will to meaning somewhere inside of him, he just needs to find it, like one of his teachers says, "∦but I can very clearly see you dying nobly, for some highly unworthy cause"(188) In this quote, Mr. Antolini...
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...A Critical Review of Man’s Search for Meaning by Laura Beres Introduction In Man’s Search for Meaning, Viktor E. Frankl tells the very personal story of his experience as a prisoner in a concentration camp during the Holocaust. He presents this story in the form of an essay in which he shares his arguments and analysis as a doctor and psychologist as well as a former prisoner. This paper will review Frankl’s story as well as his main arguments, and will evaluate the quality of Frankl’s writing and focus on any areas of weakness within the story. Summary This section contains a summary of Man's Search. Frankl begins his book by stating that his purpose in writing the book is not to present facts and details of the Holocaust, but to provide a personal account of the everyday life of a prisoner living in a concentration camp. He states, “This tale is not concerned with the great horrors, which have already been described often enough (though less often believed), but…it will try to answer this question: How was everyday life in a concentration camp reflected in the mind of the average prisoner?” (21). Frankl then goes on to describe the three stages of a prisoner’s psychological reactions to being held captive in a concentration camp. The first phase, which occurs just after the prisoner is admitted to the camp, is shock. The second phase, occurring once the prisoner has fallen into a routine within the camp, is one of apathy, or “the blunting...
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...ought to govern human conduct, the values worth pursuing, and the character traits deserving development in life.  Responsibility as a key concept of contemporary morality Although often used, the term is rarely explained in the business ethics literature. Max Weber 1919: separates the ethics of conviction from the ethics of responsibility. Walter Schulz 1972: defines responsibility as „self-commitment originating from freedom in worldly relationships,“ maintaining the polarity of responsibility (with an inner and an outer pole). Responsibility includes three components:  Subject: Authority: Contents: Who is responsible? To whom is one responsible? For what is one responsible? Viktor E. Frankl in “Man’s Search for Meaning“ (1984): “Freedom is only part of the story and half of the truth. Freedom is but the negative aspect of the whole phenomenon whose positive aspect is responsibility. In fact, freedom is in danger of degenerating into mere arbitrariness unless it is lived in terms of responsibility. That is why I recommend that the Statue of Liberty on the East Coast be supplemented by a Statue of Responsibility on the West...
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...College Writing II Searching for The Meaning of Life to make a Life Worth Living It was a typical Sunday night and after a long weekend you go to bed exhausted. After what seemed like minutes you open your eyes to the sound of the alarm blaring in your ear. Wanting nothing more but to hit the snooze button and drift back to sleep you turn on your phone and realize you are already running late to class. Immediately you jump out of bed, grab your backpack and sprint out the door. At the same time you run out of the door your phone slips from your pocket and it shatters on the concrete. You feel as if it is the end of the world, and the only thing on your mind is the thought of not being able to check Facebook or Twitter for the rest of the day and it just tears you apart. After what seems to be the worse day ever your phone rings. Irritated and unable to see who is calling you angrily answer the call. Realizing it is your mother on the other line you immediately interrupt her to tell her it is dire that you get a new phone as soon as possible. After ignorantly insisting for a new phone your mother then informs you that your grandmother has severely fallen and it is not looking to good for her and she might not make it. Taken back you instantly realize how selfish and ungrateful you were acting. Sometimes people get caught up in materialistic things and lose sight of the true meaning of life. It is moments like these that bring us back to reality and remind us not...
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...* Oskar’s father always made him feel special, in every way he could (Sahara Desert) (pg 86) * After Oskar’s father passed away he needed a new role model, he needed someone to look up to, he needed someone to answer his questions * The point of Oskar writing these letters is so that he can find meaning un his life and by writing these letters he believes he can find meaning to his life * He is trying to find a new father, he wants to fill a gap in his life * There is a book called “man’s search for meaning” and it is written by Viktor Frankl, the summary of this book is that the meaning of life can be discovered in 3 ways * 1) you can perform a deed * 2) one can experience or encounter someone * 3) one can demonstrate a certain attitude toward suffering * Relates back to Oskar because he has to find meaning in his life, he is at a point where he is very lost and confused. Also that he has to find the meaning to the key, how it connects back to his father * Viktor Frankl discovered this thing called logotherapy, what this means is you have to find all meaning in things and you will be satisfied * Oskar writes the letters to find meaning in his life and by writing these letters it brings him satisfaction * Oskar has a feeling of becoming isolated so he writes these letters to people that he admires hoping he gets a response * Relates to the post-modern world because before the war that’s how people would communicate. That’s...
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