Viktor Frankl

Viktor Emil Frankl (26 March 1905 – 2 September 1997) was an Austrian neurologist and psychiatrist as well as a Holocaust survivor. Frankl was the founder of logotherapy, which is a form of existential analysis, the "Third Viennese School of Psychotherapy". His best-selling book Man's Search for Meaning (published under a different title in 1959: From Death-Camp to Existentialism, and originally published in 1946 as Trotzdem Ja Zum Leben Sagen: Ein Psychologe erlebt das Konzentrationslager, meaning Nevertheless, Say "Yes" to Life: A Psychologist Experiences the Concentration Camp) chronicles his experiences as a concentration camp inmate, which led him to discover the importance of finding meaning in all forms of existence, even the most brutal ones, and thus, a reason to continue living. Frankl became one of the key figures in existential therapy and a prominent source of inspiration for humanistic psychologists.

Life before 1945

Frankl was born in Vienna into a Jewish family of civil servants (Beamtenfamilie). His interest in psychology surfaced early. For the final exam (Matura) in Gymnasium, he wrote a paper on the psychology of philosophical thinking. After graduation from Gymnasium in 1923, he studied medicine at the University of Vienna and later specialized in neurology and psychiatry, concentrating on the topics of depression and suicide. His early development was influenced by his contacts with Sigmund Freud and Alfred Adler, although he would later diverge from their teachings.

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Famous quotes by Viktor Frankl:

"The one thing you can’t take away from me is the way I choose to respond to what you do to me. The last of one’s freedoms is to choose ones attitude in any given circumstance."
"When we are no longer able to change a situation - we are challenged to change ourselves."
"What is to give light must endure burning."
"Love is the only way to grasp another human being in the innermost core of his personality."
"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."
"Those who have a 'why' to live, can bear with almost any 'how.'"
"We who lived in concentration camps can remember the men who walked through the huts comforting others, giving away their last piece of bread. They may have been few in number, but they offer sufficient proof that everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms -- to choose one's attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one's own way."
"For the meaning of life differs from man to man, from day to day and from hour to hour. What matters, therefore, is not the meaning of life in general but rather the specific meaning of a person's life at a given moment."
"Everyone has his own specific vocation or mission in life; everyone must carry out a concrete assignment that demands fulfillment. Therein he cannot be replaced, nor can his life be repeated, thus, everyone's task is unique as his specific opportunity."
"The last of human freedoms - the ability to chose one's attitude in a given set of circumstances."
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Latest News for: viktor frankl

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The Essentials With Alexandra Popa: La Mer, Lingerie and Earl Grey Tea

New York Observer 24 Mar 2025
When Alexandra Popa launched her lingerie brand, Bordelle, in London in 2009, she was simply looking to create something she would wear ... Anett Posalaki. Alexandra Popa ... Skincare routine ... I’m currently reading Man’s Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl ... .
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Fondly, Forever

Kashmir Observer 18 Mar 2025
Austrian psychologist Viktor Frankl, in his book Man’s Search for Meaning, writes that a person who has a strong ‘Why’ to live can endure almost any ‘How.’ For Mama, that ‘Why’ was his unwavering ...
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BAFTA winner Lesley Paterson turns husband's ashes into a diamond | Daily Mail Online

The Daily Mail 15 Mar 2025
As well as a sports scientist, he directed a number of films and had been collaborating with his wife on bringing Viktor Frankl’s 1946 book Man’s Search for Meaning - based on his experiences in a Nazi concentration camp - to the big screen ... .
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Aging can give us new freedoms, depending on our perspective

Salina Journal 10 Mar 2025
Think of Viktor Frankl, while imprisoned by the Nazis in Auschwitz, who said, “Forces beyond your control can take away everything you possess except one thing, your freedom to choose how you will respond to the situation.”.
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Control issues? These two simple words could help

The Los Angeles Times 05 Mar 2025
When you say, “Let me,” you remind yourself that in any situation — and this is literally the teaching in “Man’s Search for Meaning,” [Holocaust survivor] Viktor Frankl’s work — the only thing that’s ...
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