iktor E. Man 's Search for Meaning. Boston: Beacon, 2006. Print.
a. What ideas and insights of the author did you find to be the most profound and why?
b. How would you best describe the ethical core of the author? Cite evidence of that from the book.
c. In what ways did you allow the text to speak into your personal and professional life? How can the text contribute to your life? What changes, if any, would you like to make in your personal ethical framework as a result of having read the text?
d. What questions does the text inspire you to consider?
There is a sort of serendipity that I have been assigned to read this book at this particular time in my life. I say this for multiple reasons, the most important of which is the fact that my ex-husband has just recently received the crippling diagnosis of leukemia and is receiving treatment now for bone marrow cancer. Reading Man’s Search for Meaning was perhaps a salve for my breaking heart, but also a gut-wrenching reminder that life and its so-called ‘meaning’ are ephemeral.
Interestingly enough, I wonder how I got to this point in my life and have never been introduced to this book? Viktor Frankl’s autobiographical account of his life in the most desperate of times is a story of optimism in the truest sense of the word. This brave man was able to explore his meaning of life in the depths of personal despair. I am not doing a book review, and it is not my intention to do a summary of ones man’s account of the desolation that forever changed him. It is my intention to reflect on how this text inspired me, excited me, horrified me, and touched the recesses of my soul. I am reminded, again and again as I make my way through this book to “Live as if you were liv...
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...ing his story with all who read his words. He also bears his soul and gives readers the opportunity to see in a transparent way how he actively and intentionally manifested his attitude; in the most difficult of times he put on a brave face and acted genuinely with the environment, as well as with others.
In summary, my ex-husbands experience with cancer has made me question my own meaning of life. My self-imposed questions to find my personal meaning have changed since reading Man’s Search for Meaning and I have been more introspective and reflective about the many ways in which I get positive feedback in my own life. I believe that the search for meaning is a dynamic process that changes moment by moment. The point being made is to examine those moments. I will forward this book on to my friend living with cancer in hopes the text will help him find his meaning.
Warren, Richard. The Purpose-driven Life: What on Earth Am I Here For? Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2002. Print.
1.b. I do not think I'd like to live in this society because it does not allow free thinking, or anything else that makes humans the way they are. There was nothing to differentiate people, nothing to like or dislike about each other. The only thing that was good was that everyone was treated equal. In America, we say this, but there are obvious exceptions. Such is not the case in the world depicted in the novel.
b. Much of the chapter is a long explanation of how whites have brutalized nonwhites (pp.98-101). Difference between cynical and realist.
2. Do you think that this story is enlightening in any way in regard to how people view themselves and others?
Through all of his courage, he found what he was looking for. He dug deep and went to the extremes that were not normal to himself. All of his work leads to his dynamic characteristics.
Frankl suffered during his time in a concentration camp. Frankl thinks that suffering is all part of the experience that someone will have in his or her life. “When a man finds that it is his destiny to suffer, he will have to accept his suffering as his task; his single and unique task. ( 99) No one can relieve you from your suffering, your chance lies in the way that you handle your suffering is Frankl’s idea.
3. Do you think Franklin should have shared her information more freely with the others? Why or why not?
Viktor Frankl’s book, Man’s Search for Meaning, is a powerful and insightful book, however, does the center message intertwine with his religious beliefs? Frankl’s book shares the same concerns as religion such as: First, his beliefs of having nothing will give one a Higher Purpose; second, his belief that we must change to become worthy; and third, that we need fill an “empty soul” with God to find meaning.
B. FINAL THOUGHTS (What should the reader consider or remember? How should reader act on this issue?
2) What is the main conflict in the book? Is it external or internal? How is this conflict resolved throughout the course of the book?
...d. Jeffrey W. Hunter. Vol. 254. Detroit: Gale, Cengage Learning, 2008. 287-89. Literature Criticism Online. Web. 9 Apr. 2014.
Joshua Nealy, a prominent medical school graduate, died last night from complications of losing his dream of becoming a practicing physician. He was 39 years-old. Soft-spoken and borderline obsessive, Joshua never looked the part of a “professional”, but, in the final days of his life, he revealed an unknown side of his psyche. This hidden quasi-Jungian persona surfaced during the last three years of pursuit of his long reputed dream profession, a position, which he spent nearly 10 years attaining. Sadly, the protracted search ended this past March 18th in complete and utter failure. Although in certain defeat, the courageous Nealy secretly clung to the belief that life is merely a series of meaningless accidents or coincidences. It’s not a tapestry of events that culminate in an exquisite, sublime plan. Asked about the loss of her dear friend, Emily, the girlfriend turned fiancé and dPT expert of Berkshire County, described Joshua as a changed man in the last years of his life. "Things were worse for him; not following his dream left him mostly lifeless, uninspired," Sammons noted. Ultimately, Joshua concluded that if we are to live life in harmony with the universe, we must all possess the powerful ability to change ourselves and the world around us; the choice to make ours from nothingness.
What is the meaning of life? What is the point of living if we all eventually die? Philosophers have come up with many different theories regarding this subject. However, there remains a lack of any agreed upon theory for the meaning of life. Thomas Nagel and Harry Frankfurt are two philosophers who have offered their opinions on this issue. In his book called What Does it All Mean?, Nagel distinguishes between meaning within a life and the meaning of life as a whole. The differences between the two create a discrepancy that does not provide a clear conclusion which attributes meaning to our lives. On the other hand, in his book called The Reasons of Love, Frankfurt argues that love is the key to a meaningful life. He describes the idea of self-love, the purest form of love that commits us to finding meaning in our lives. This paper discusses Nagel’s distinction between the two types of meaningfulness, Frankfurt’s analysis of the love-meaning connection, and my argument that Frankfurt’s point of view addresses Nagel’s meaning within a life but not meaning of life as a whole. Then, the paper concludes with my belief that the search for the meaning of life is the meaning of life itself.
Here are some Critical Thinking Questions to help you familiarize yourself with Chapter 2! (This is not an assignment, just an exercise to help you become more comfortable with the chapter).
c. Traditional writing is too historical. Instead of looking at writing of the past for