Born in Vienna in 1905, author, psychiatrist, and holocaust survivor Viktor E. Frankl led a life filled with considerably unspeakable horrors. His name was first brought to my attention through a riveting class discussion in the clinical neuroscience class I took over the summer at the University of British Columbia. As a prominent neurologist and psychiatrist of the time, we briefly overviewed his experiences and contributions to the field of neurology in class, but his name stuck with me to the point that I impulsively purchased his book while browsing the seemingly endless corridors of the UBC Bookstore.
In his novel, Man’s Search For Meaning, Frankl chronicles his experiences in Nazi death camps as well as how they led him to the realization and further development of a kind of existential analysis that essentially has to do with the concept of suffering. It addresses how one can find meaning in all forms of existence, including ones of the most brutal nature, and even then, find a reason to still continue living. Based on his experiences, Frankl argues that there’s no way to avoid suffering in life or to in any way control that which happens to us in life. This is of no importance however because while one has no control over the events that we inevitably have to deal with in life, we are wholly in control of how we choose to respond and cope with the challenges that life sets out before us. After living in concentration camps for three years, Frankl returned to his home town of Vienna and furthered developed and lectured on his personal approach to psychological healing. In his teachings, he argues that humanity is essentially motivated by striving to find meaning in life. It is this motivation that allows and enables individuals to overcome painful experiences in life. Allow the novel itself is a short read (only 165 pages!), it’s surely one to go back to and read over and over again in times of hardship.
Frankl’s philosophy unceasingly continues to amaze and inspire me. Although the content is by no means relatable, taking into consideration the privileged life I lead, sitting behind my computer blogging about a fantastic book I’ve come upon, the general theme conveyed in his writing still resonates within me. Prone to despair, often times I find that I easily let the smallest occurrences impact me on disproportional scales. Reading about Frankl’s experiences provided me with an amazing shift in perspective that essentially called me to rethink how I was going about my life and coping with the everyday situations set out before me. Everyone experiences hardships at one point or another in their life, whether that manifests itself as an unmanageable amount of homework leading to stress and anxiety, depression, having to deal with war in your country, or having to literally endure the suffering that comes with being stripped of an identity and living in a concentration camp, suffering is universal. Through his impeccably written memoir, Frankl calls and inspires us all to find significance in the very act of living. After all, what more could we possibly ask for?
