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Tragic optimism
Man’s will to meaning is his desire to live a meaningful life. A frustrated will to meaning can lead to psychological problems that require the attention of a therapist.
Will to meaning Quotes in Man’s Search for Meaning
The Man’s Search for Meaning quotes below are all either spoken by Will to meaning or refer to Will to meaning. For each quote, you can also see the other terms and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
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Experiences in a Concentration Camp
Quotes
I sensed my spirit piercing through the enveloping gloom. I felt it transcend that hopeless, meaningless world, and from somewhere I heard a victorious “Yes” in answer to my question of the existence of an ultimate purpose.
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Explanation and Analysis:
Thus 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 tasks are also real and concrete. They form man’s destiny, which is different and unique for each individual.
Logotherapy: The Meaning of Life
Quotes
One should not search for an abstract meaning of life. Everyone has his own specific vocation or mission in life to carry out a concrete assignment which demands fulfillment. Therein he cannot be replaced, nor can his life be repeated. Thus, everyone’s task is as unique as his specific opportunity to implement it.
Ultimately, man should not ask what the meaning of his life is, but rather he should recognize that it is he who is asked. In a word, each man is questioned by life; and he can only answer to life by answering for his own life; to life he can only respond by being responsible.
Get the entire Man’s Search for Meaning LitChart as a printable PDF.
Will to meaning Term Timeline in Man’s Search for Meaning
The timeline below shows where the term Will to meaning appears in Man’s Search for Meaning. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Logotherapy in a Nutshell: Introduction
...the psychologist Alfred Adler speaks of a “will to power,” Frankl focuses on a “ will to meaning .”
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Logotherapy in a Nutshell: The Will to Meaning
Frankl posits that the will to meaning , or the desire to find and create meaning in one’s life, is the primary...
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Logotherapy in a Nutshell: Existential Frustration
...state of existing as a human being, the value and purpose of existence, or the will to meaning . In other words, existential problems are those that involve the question of what it...
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Logotherapy in a Nutshell: Noögenic Neuroses
...dealt with in psychoanalytical practice, noögenic neuroses come from existential issues and problems with the will to meaning . Frankl says that the only treatment for these issues is logotherapy, which deals with...
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Frankl realized that this man’s will to meaning was existentially frustrated, and saw that what he needed to do was find a new...
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...orient towards his problems. It is unlike psychoanalysis, however, in that it holds that man’s will to meaning is far more important than his will to pleasure. Logotherapy seeks to make the patient...
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Logotherapy in a Nutshell: Noö-dynamics
...tension caused by existential frustration is essential for good mental health. For example, when Frankl’s will to meaning was frustrated in Auschwitz and he was not able to work on his manuscript, the...
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Logotherapy in a Nutshell: The Meaning of Suffering
Logotherapists believe that man’s will to meaning is stronger than his desire for pleasure or need to avoid pain. It is for...
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Postscript 1984: The Case for Tragic Optimism
...finds meaning in one’s life, one is naturally happy. However, when one has lost the will to meaning , one turns to pleasure to fill the void. In the concentration camps, it was...
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