Rider Man's Search For Meaning: The Classic Tribute To Hope From The Holocaust

Useful Boko for self improvement and knowing the suffering of humankind

A must read to find a meaning for your life

A timeless must read ! Simon Sinek and his search for "Why" are in fact nothing new. It goes way back in time with Frankl and his logotherapy Beautiful read

Good read

Good

Great read

I think that this book should begin every library and should be read by everyone. It really creates a very good model of understanding. Sets you up on a journey to seek meaningful lives. Highly recommended

Good Book

This book is a great compact size, and the book itself is inspiring. The cover is eye-catching and elegant.

Viktor E. Frankl is an incredibly impactful and thought-provoking read. This book delves deep into the human psyche, exploring themes of suffering, purpose, and resilience through the lens of Frankl's harrowing experiences as a Holocaust survivor. Pros: - Inspiring and Thought-Provoking: Frankl's insights into finding meaning in the midst of suffering are deeply moving and encourage readers to reflect on their own lives. - Accessible and Engaging: Despite the heavy subject matter, the book is written in a way that is easy to understand and highly engaging. - Timeless Wisdom: The lessons and philosophies presented are timeless, providing valuable guidance for anyone seeking a deeper understanding of life and their place in it. Cons: - Intense Subject Matter: The descriptions of Frankl’s experiences in concentration camps are harrowing and may be difficult for some readers. - Philosophical Depth: Some sections delve deeply into existential philosophy, which may be challenging for readers not accustomed to such material. Overall: Man's Search For Meaning is a must-read for anyone interested in psychology, philosophy, or personal development. Frankl's profound reflections on the human condition and his testament to the power of finding meaning even in the most tragic circumstances offer invaluable lessons in resilience and hope. Highly recommended for those ready to explore the depths of human purpose and perseverance.

I recently completed a master's in counseling and guidance and have been reading to find a set of books that will best address some of the disorders in the DSM-IV. Following is a list I have put together from my reading so far, and these are books that I would HIGHLY recommend. I would like to say up front that the DSM-IV is full of very normal behaviors that for some reason have become magnified or exaggerated in an individual to the point of causing a negative impact in their daily lives. Take OCD for example, it is quite normal and even preferable (from a safety perspective) to check and be sure that one has turned off all the burners on the stove after cooking, or to be sure the back door is locked before going to bed. But to continue checking time and again would be problematic and can lead to problems in an individual's life. Something is diagnosed as a disorder when it moves from being a "normal" activity to being something that causes dysfunction in daily living. So, one may read the DSM-IV and see themselves reflected in many of the disorders. The question is always: is this behavior negatively impacting my life? If so then that is when it crosses the line of normal and needs to be treated. Depression; I believe there are two sources for depression: one source is our own minds, we think ourselves into the depression - at least in this case we know where it is coming from and we should be able to step behind our thoughts and help ourselves move in a better direction. The other source seemingly comes from nowhere; one minute we are okay and the next we are thrown into the depths * Book = "Transforming Depression: Healing the Soul Through Creativity"- David H. Rosen" o I would recommend reading this at least through chapter 4, going further than that delves into some deep Jungian psychology which will not likely appeal to everyone. I certainly enjoy Jungian psychology and believe that Jung's work will become more and more important and critical to our understanding as we move forward in this field of psychology. Jung's psychology is really on the borderland between spirit/soul and the science of psychology and it is Jung's work that brought me into this field. However it is quite complex/deep/different and may lose some readers. For a very good intro to Jung's work, I would recommend "The Essential Jung" by Anthony Storr, but this is not light reading as is composed of excerpts from Jung's collected works. * Book = "Man's Search for Meaning" - Viktor Frankl o I would recommend this book for two primary reasons: one is it pushes very strongly the message that meaning is essential in our lives - as shown through Victor Frankl's imprisonment in Nazi concentration camps. Frankl comments on how he observed the individuals who gave up the fight and died, and the individuals who persevered - and most importantly what it was that he believes made the difference. The other reason I recommend this book is that it helps the individuals whose thoughts may have led them to depression to realize that things could be worse. Of course there are devastations we may face that can truly be to us, just as bad as a Nazi concentration camps, but for the most part, we often push ourselves into depression for reasons that are somewhat superficial compared to other realities. Depersonalization Disorder - essentially feeling like you are not really there * Book = "Feeling Unreal: Depersonalization Disorder and the Loss of the Self" - Daphne Simeon and Jeffrey Abugel o Excellent book which will help folks understand this disorder. This is for me a very interesting disorder, I think this is one disorder where the connection between our ego consciousness and perhaps what we are at a much deeper level is challenged. Normally we are locked into full belief in our reality - we believe we are very much a part of it and that we "are" the body in which we reside. This disorder forces us to question if we are the body we think we are. It would appear that whatever piece of our mind is keeping us in full belief is breaking down a bit, leaving us a bit outside of the "normal" feeling of being the body. Folks with this disorder can actually worry that they do not have control of their body and that this body may do something they do not want it to do. Driving a car for example can be quite traumatic if you think your body may be acting without your input. Bipolar disorder - the book I am recommending is focused on Bipolar II disorder - essentially swinging from manic (very happy and carefree) to severe depression. This book was actually required reading during the Masters program * Book = "An Unquiet Mind: A Memoir of Moods and Madness" by Kay Redfield Jamison o Excellent book written by a psychologist who suffers from this disorder. This book helps to understand the importance of medication for this disorder, as well as the path of destruction that can easily be paved during carefree, manic episodes. ADHD (attention deficit disorder) * Book = "Scattered: How Attention Deficit Disorder Originates And What You Can Do About It" - Gabor Mate o This is not just a great book for folks with ADHD, but for everyone - as many of the lessons here translate to all of us. This is an extremely excellent book on ADHD and living in general. OCD (obsessive compulsive disorder) * Book = "Tormenting Thoughts and Secret Rituals: The Hidden Epidemic of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder" - Ian Osborn o Excellent book on OCD - this book will help individuals with OCD as well as those who know someone with the disorder - to understand what is happening in the mind of a person with this disorder. This book will also help OCD folks realize that they are not alone and that many of the rituals or compulsions are shared by other folks with OCD. That is all for now, but I am still reading

Incredible!

MAN’S SEARCH FOR MEANING by VIKTOR E. FRANKL A BOOK REVIEW About the author – Viktor E. Frankl was Professor of Neurology and Psychiatry at the University of Vienna Medical School. He was the founder of what came to be called the Third Viennese school of Psychotherapy (after Freud’s psychoanalysis and Adler’s individual psychology) – the school of Logotherapy. Born in 1905 he died at the age of ninety two in the year 1997. Logotheraphy is based on the belief that it is the striving to find a meaning in one’s life that is the most powerful motivating force in our lives. When asked about the difference between psychoanalysis and logotheraphy, the author puts it a nutshell by saying that while in psychoanalysis the patient must tell you things which are at times very disagreeable to tell, in logotheraphy he must hear things which sometimes are very disagreeable to hear. This a small yet powerful book for it details out the development of his theory through his own experiences of the holocaust during World War Two. Having himself survived Auschwitz and the other Nazi concentration camps he brings to the fore man’s attitude to his existence, an existence restricted by external forces. In the author’s own words – “An active life serves the purpose of giving man the opportunity to realize values in creative life, while a passive life of enjoyment affords him the opportunity to obtain fulfillment in experiencing beauty, art, or nature. But there is also a purpose in that life which is almost barren of both creation and enjoyment and which admits of but one possibility of high moral behavior: namely, in man’s attitude to his existence, an existence restricted by external forces.” The book is in two parts – Part one gives an autobiographical account of the author’s experiences in the Nazi concentration camps, living every day in the uncertainty of whether he would see another day, watching fellow prisoners being taken away to the gas chambers and wondering when his turn would come, enduring the sufferings heaped upon all the prisoners. It is about how everyday life in a concentration camp is reflected in the mind of an average prisoner. He talks about the sacrifices, the crucifixion and the deaths of the great army of unknown and unrecorded victims. As you read you are able to visualize the horrors of the Holocaust in graphic detail. It is in the midst of all this brutality heaped by man upon man and the suffering that never seemed to end that the prisoner lives what is called a provisional existence for the prison term was not only uncertain but unlimited. Not being able to aim at an ultimate goal in life he ceases living for the future. The person who had lost faith in the future was doomed. The author quotes Nietsche “He who has a why to live for can bear with almost any how”. But it is easy for the author to say that it did not really matter what we expect from life, but rather what life expects from us. One gets the feeling that throughout the book the author speaks in the language of a psychotheraphist and which is of course true. But if one puts himself in the position of the average prisoner who has reached the end of his tether I think the ‘why’ and ‘how’ would have ceased to have any meaning. I quote the author’s words when he talks about the meaning of life – “the meaning of life, differs from man to man, and from moment to moment. It is impossible to define the meaning of life in a general way. Questions about the meaning of life can never be answered by sweeping statements ‘Life’ does not mean something vague but something very real and concrete, just as life’s task are also very real and concrete. They form man’s destiny and which is unique for each individual. No man and no destiny can be compared with any other man or any other destiny” That is true, but it is when he says that when man finds it his destiny to suffer he will have to accept his suffering as his task, his single and unique task that we may ask is it really possible to expect that. It is here that the author does sound like a preacher. How many are really prepared to carry the cross. Being a psychologist the author also touches upon the psychological make-up of the camp guards. Part one is intense in its descriptions and analysis of the inmates and their life in the various concentration camps. Being told by an inmate and a psychologist at that, it makes powerful reading. It also lays the ground work for the author’s exposition of his theory of Logotheraphy and its practice. Part two – Logotheraphy in a nutshell. This part is divided into several sections where author discusses the neuroses that arises from existential problems and the dynamics involved, the understanding of which is simplified by anecdotal references. But it is the sections on The Will to Meaning, Existential Frustration, The Existential Vacuum, and The Essence of Existence that I found of particular interest. I will try to summarize these sections below for they are reflections of Existentialism – Man’s search for meaning is the primary motivation in his life and not a secondary realization of instinctual drives. His will to meaning can be frustrated. This existential frustration can result in neuroses. Here the author says that the term ‘existential may be used in three ways 1) Existence itself, the specifically human mode of being 2) the meaning of existence; and 3) the striving to find a concrete meaning in personal existence, that is to say the will to meaning. Quoting the author the existential vacuum is a widespread phenomenon of the twentieth century – “No instinct tells him what he has to do, and no tradition tells him what he ought to do; sometimes he does not even know what he wishes to do. Instead he either wishes to do what other people do (conformism) or he does what other people wish him to do (totalitarianism).” The book first published in 1959 has undergone many reprints and translations in various languages and has been labeled as one of the outstanding classics to emerge from the Holocaust. It is also called a remarkable tribute to hope and offers us an avenue to find greater meaning and purpose in life. This perhaps is one of the books I would place on my shelf of the great books I have had the opportunity to go through.