Man's Search for Meaning

By: Viktor Frankl

Format: Physical Book

Completed: 3/16/2023

What's it about: True story of Psychologist, Viktor Frankl, being imprisoned during WW2 in various concentration camps, including Auschwitz. He survives and uses the rest of his life to study the idea of "meaning" in life, and aid others in finding happiness.

Main Takeaway: That man needs meaning to survive. Frankl was no doubt lucky to survive, but very early on he decides that he must survive so that he can finish his book on psychology. He begins to use his time in the camps as an experiment of sorts, watching who survives and why some men succumb to the tortures and decide to give up. The main thing is that humans have become somewhat devoid of meaning in life, and we fail to look at life through that lens. The book has been used to help depressed and suicidal people for almost 100 years now, and is a great resource for anyone hurting. It also shows the famous Friedrich Nietzsche quote, "He who has a why to live for can bear almost any how."