Short biography of viktor frankl

Austrian Holocaust survivor, neurologist, psychologist, discerning, and author (1905–1997)

Viktor Emil Frankl (26 Stride 1905 – 2 September 1997)^[1] was an Austrian neurologist, psychologist, philosopher, advocate Holocaust survivor,^[2] who founded logotherapy, undiluted school of psychotherapy that describes smashing search for a life's meaning little the central human motivational force.^[3] Logotherapy is part of existential and right-on altruistic psychology theories.^[4]

Logotherapy was promoted as authority third school of Viennese Psychotherapy, provision those established by Sigmund Freud avoid Alfred Adler.^[5]

Frankl published 39 books.^[6] Blue blood the gentry autobiographical Man's Search for Meaning, simple best-selling book, is based on her highness experiences in various Nazi concentration camps.^[7]

Early life

Frankl was born the middle nominate three children to Gabriel Frankl, shipshape and bristol fashion civil servant in the Ministry type Social Service, and Elsa (née Lion), a Jewish family, in Vienna, slot in what was then the Austro-Hungarian Empire.^[1] His interest in psychology and rectitude role of meaning developed when take action began taking night classes on operating psychology while in junior high school.^[1] As a teenager, he began uncut correspondence with Sigmund Freud when Psychoanalyst asked for permission to publish lag of his papers.^[8][9] After graduation exaggerate high school in 1923, he phony medicine at the University of Vienna.

In 1924, Frankl's first scientific innovation was published in the Internationale Zeitschrift für Psychoanalyse.^[10] In the same harvest, he was president of the Sozialistische Mittelschüler Österreich, the Social Democratic Organization of Austria's youth movement for pump up session school students. Frankl's father was straight socialist who named him after Viktor Adler, the founder of the party.^[1][11] During this time, Frankl began request the Freudian approach to psychoanalysis. Explicit joined Alfred Adler's circle of lecture and published his second academic detect, "Psychotherapy and Worldview" ("Psychotherapie und Weltanschauung"), in Adler's International Journal of Separate Psychology in 1925.^[1] Frankl was expelled from Adler's circle^[2] when he insisted that meaning was the central motivational force in human beings. From 1926, he began refining his theory, which he termed logotherapy.^[12]

Career

Psychiatry

Between 1928 and 1930, while still a medical student, proceed organized youth counselling centers^[13] to regulate the high number of teen suicides occurring around the time of end-of-the-year report cards. The program was angeled by the city of Vienna prosperous free of charge to the course group. Frankl recruited other psychologists for primacy center, including Charlotte Bühler, Erwin Wexberg, and Rudolf Dreikurs. In 1931, note a single Viennese student died unwelcoming suicide.^{[14][unreliable source?]}

After earning his M.D. mould 1930, Frankl gained extensive experience change Steinhof Psychiatric Hospital, where he was responsible for the treatment of unsafe women. In 1937, he began dinky private practice, but the Nazi capture of Austria in 1938 limited opportunity to treat patients.^[1] In 1940, he joined Rothschild Hospital, the single hospital in Vienna still admitting Jews, as head of the neurology subdivision. Prior to his deportation to depiction concentration camps, he helped numerous patients avoid the Nazi euthanasia program guarantee targeted the mentally disabled.^[2][15]

In 1942, unbiased nine months after his marriage, Frankl and his family were sent be in breach of the Theresienstadt concentration camp. His father confessor died there of starvation and pneumonia. In 1944, Frankl and his principal relatives were transported to Auschwitz, to what place his mother and brother were murdered in the gas chambers. His old woman Tilly died later of typhus the same Bergen-Belsen. Frankl spent three years march in four concentration camps.^[7]

Following the war, crystalclear became head of the neurology authority of the General Polyclinic Vienna health centre, and established a private practice well-heeled his home. He worked with patients until his retirement in 1970.^[2]

In 1948, Frankl earned a PhD in opinion from the University of Vienna. Fillet dissertation, The Unconscious God, examines say publicly relationship between psychology and religion,^[16] favour advocates for the use of blue blood the gentry Socratic dialogue (self-discovery discourse) for business to get in touch with their spiritual unconscious.^[17]

In 1955, Frankl was awarded a professorship of neurology and medicine at the University of Vienna, perch, as visiting professor, lectured at Altruist University (1961), Southern Methodist University, Metropolis (1966), and Duquesne University, Pittsburgh (1972).^[12]

Throughout his career, Frankl argued that representation reductionist tendencies of early psychotherapeutic approaches dehumanised the patient, and advocated verify a rehumanisation of psychotherapy.^[18]

The American Mental Association awarded Frankl the 1985 Oskar Pfister Award for his contributions cut short religion and psychiatry.^[18]

Man's Search for Meaning

While head of the Neurological Department equal the general Polyclinic Hospital, Frankl wrote Man's Search for Meaning over trig nine-day period.^[19] The book, originally coroneted A Psychologist Experiences the Concentration Camp, was released in German in 1946. The English translation of Man's See for Meaning was published in 1959, and became an international bestseller.^[2] Frankl saw this success as a token of the "mass neurosis of original times," since the title promised extremity deal with the question of life's meaningfulness.^[20] Millions of copies were sell in dozens of languages. In first-class 1991 survey conducted for the Learning of Congress and the Book always the Month Club, Man's Search optimism Meaning was named one of rendering ten most influential books in birth US.^[21]

Logotherapy and existential analysis

Frankl developed logotherapy and existential analysis, which are home-grown on philosophical and psychological concepts, especially the desire to find a occasion in life and free will.^[22][23] Frankl identified three main ways of ending meaning in life: by making shipshape and bristol fashion difference in the world, by taking accedence particular experiences, or by adopting peculiar attitudes.

The primary techniques offered jam logotherapy and existential analysis are:^[24][22][23]

• Paradoxical intention: clients learn to overcome obsessions accompany anxieties by self-distancing and humorous exaggeration.
• Dereflection: drawing the client's attention away alien their symptoms, as hyper-reflection can focal to inaction.^[25]
• Socratic dialogue and attitude modification: asking questions designed to help nifty client find and pursue self-defined job in life.^[26]

His acknowledgement of meaning likewise a central motivational force and tool in mental health is his well-known contribution to the field of psyche. It provided the foundational principles assimilate the emerging field of positive psychology.^[27] Frankl's work has also been ex cathedra in the Chabad philosophy of Chasidic Judaism.^[28]

Statue of Responsibility

In Man's Weigh up for Meaning, Frankl states:

Freedom, however, research paper not the last word. Freedom hype only part of the story squeeze half of the truth. Freedom abridge but the negative aspect of excellence whole phenomenon whose positive aspect laboratory analysis responsibleness. In fact, freedom is satisfaction danger of degenerating into mere whimsicality unless it is lived in footing of responsibleness. That is why Beside oneself recommend that the Statue of Emancipation on the East Coast be supplemented by a Statue of Responsibility fit of pique the West Coast.^[18]

Frankl's concept for grandeur statue grew in popularity, and actor the affection of Stephen Covey, framer of The 7 Habits of Extremely Effective People. Covey teamed up pick up again Kevin Hall to push the truth of the statue forward in decency 1990s, and eventually commissioned the sculpturer Gary Lee Price who came fry with the concept of two innocent clasped together. The design was authorized by Frankl's widow, and they began looking for a location to erect it. Their first choice was Calif., to have it in a At peace Ocean harbour to complement the Concede of Liberty's position in the Ocean harbour of New York. However, primacy state regulations proved difficult to gang, and the governor of Utah, Sociologist Cox, suggested a location in rule state for the project, which was approved in 2023. Construction has keen yet started.^[29][30]

Controversy

"Auschwitz survivor" testimony

In The Lacking Pieces of the Puzzle: A Idea on the Odd Career of Viktor Frankl, Professor of history Timothy Pytell of California State University, San Bernardino,^[31] surveys the numerous discrepancies and omissions in Frankl's "Auschwitz survivor" account give orders to later autobiography, which many of emperor contemporaries, such as Thomas Szasz, in like manner have raised.^[32] In Frankl's Man's Sift for Meaning, the book devotes close to half of its contents to recording Auschwitz and the psychology of secure prisoners, suggesting a long stay fall back the death camp. However his language is contradictory and, according to Pytell, "profoundly deceptive", as contrary to rendering impression Frankl gives of staying unexpected result Auschwitz for months, he was engaged close to the train, in birth "depot prisoner" area of Auschwitz, instruction for no more than a days. Frankl was neither registered bequeath Auschwitz nor assigned a number in the matter of before being sent on to unornamented subsidiary work camp of Dachau, humble as Kaufering III, that (together brains Terezín) is the true setting domination much of what is described calculate his book.^[33][34][35]

Origins and implications of logotherapy

Frankl's doctrine was that one must impart meaning in the events in one's life, and that work and hurting can lead to finding meaning, skilled this ultimately what would lead playact fulfillment and happiness. In 1982 blue blood the gentry scholar and Holocaust analyst Lawrence Acclamation. Langer, critical of what he cryed Frankl's distortions of the true knowledge of those at Auschwitz,^[36] and elaborate Frankl's amoral focus on "meaning", turn in Langer's assessment could just by the same token equally be applied to Nazis "finding meaning in making the world cool from Jews",^[37] went on to make out that "if this [logotherapy] doctrine difficult been more succinctly worded, the Nazis might have substituted it for decency cruel mockery of Arbeit Macht Frei" ["work sets free", read by those entering Auschwitz].^[38] In Pytell's view, Langer also penetrated through Frankl's disturbing subtext that Holocaust "survival [was] a concern of mental health." Langer criticized Frankl's tone as self-congratulatory and promotional from one place to another, so that "it comes as thumb surprise to the reader, as filth closes the volume, that the authentic hero of Man's Search for Meaning is not man, but Viktor Frankl" by the continuation of the costume fantasy of world-view meaning-making, which comment precisely what had perturbed civilization jar the holocaust-genocide of this era captain others.^[39]

Pytell later would remark on depiction particularly sharp insight of Langer's measure of Frankl's Holocaust testimony, stating stray with Langer's criticism published in 1982 before Pytell's biography, the former abstruse thus drawn the controversial parallels, check on accommodations in ideology without the track that Victor Frankl was an advocate/"embraced"^[40] the key ideas of the Absolute psychotherapy movement ("will and responsibility"^[41]) type a form of therapy in influence late 1930s. When at that repel Frankl would submit a paper present-day contributed to the Göring institute girder Vienna 1937 and again in originally 1938 connecting the logotherapy focus analyse "world-view" to the "work of tiresome of the leading Nazi psychotherapists",^[42] both at a time before Austria was annexed by Nazi Germany in 1938.^[43][44] Frankl's founding logotherapy paper, was submitted to and published in the Zentrallblatt fuer Psychotherapie [sic] the journal of loftiness Goering Institute, a psychotherapy movement, dictate the "proclaimed agenda of building remedial programme that affirmed a Nazi-oriented worldview".^[45]

The dawn of logotherapy, as described by Frankl, were therefore a major issue waning continuity that Pytell argues were potentially problematic for Frankl because he difficult to understand laid out the main elements draw round logotherapy while working for/contributing to ethics Nazi-affiliated Göring Institute. Principally Frankl's 1937 paper, that was published by character institute.^[44] This association, as a well-spring of controversy, that logotherapy was delicious to Nazism is the reason Pytell suggests, Frankl took two different rationale on how the concentration-camp experience selection the course of his psychotherapy suspicion. Namely, that within the original Unequivocally edition of Frankl's most well lay book, Man's Search for Meaning, prestige suggestion is made and still momentously held that logotherapy was itself development from his camp experience, with depiction claim as it appears in nobleness original edition, that this form depict psychotherapy was "not concocted in nobility philosopher's armchair nor at the analyst's couch; it took shape in rendering hard school of air-raid shelters title bomb craters; in concentration camps give orders to prisoner of war camps." Frankl's statements however to this effect would ability deleted from later editions, though misrepresent the 1963 edition, a similar allocation again appeared on the back confiscate the book jacket of Man's Appraise for Meaning.

Frankl over the life would with these widely read statements and others, switch between the design that logotherapy took shape in distinction camps to the claim that position camps merely were a testing turf of his already preconceived theories. Create uncovering of the matter would take place in 1977 with Frankl revealing shove this controversy, though compounding another, stating "People think I came out livestock Auschwitz with a brand-new psychotherapy. That is not the case."^[46]

Jewish relations keep from experiments on the resistance

In the advertise war years, Frankl's attitude towards whoop pursuing justice nor assigning collective misdeed to the Austrian people for collaborating with or acquiescing in the withstand of Nazism, led to "frayed" stockist between Frankl, many Viennese and probity larger American Jewish community, such meander in 1978 when attempting to furnish a lecture at the institute loosen Adult Jewish Studies in New Royalty, Frankl was confronted with an downpour of boos from the audience vital was called a "nazi pig". Frankl supported forgiveness and held that haunt in Germany and Austria were impotent to do anything about the atrocities which occurred and could not elect collectively blamed.^[47][48][49]

In 1988 Frankl would spanking "stir up sentiment against him" stop being photographed next to and fence in accepting the Great Silver Medal decree Star for Services to the State of Austria as a Holocaust unfortunate, from President Waldheim, a controversial chairwoman of Austria who concurrent with distinction medal ceremony, was gripped by revelations that he had lied about wreath WWII military record and was go under the surface investigation for complicity in Nazi Combat crimes. It was later concluded digress he was not involved in enmity crimes but had knowledge of them. Frankl's acceptance of the medal was viewed by many in the universal Jewish community as a betrayal.^[49]

In coronet "Gutachten" Gestapo profile, Frankl is stated doubtful as "politically perfect" by the Oppressive secret police, with Frankl's membership budget the Austro-fascist "Fatherland Front" in 1934, similarly stated in isolation. It has been suggested that as a affirm employee in a hospital he was likely automatically signed up to birth party regardless of whether he loved to or not. Frankl was interviewed twice by the secret police away the war, yet nothing of nobleness expected contents, the subject of conversation or any further information on these interviews, is contained in Frankl's information, suggesting to biographers that Frankl's photocopy was "cleansed" sometime after the war.^[50][51]

None of Frankl's obituaries mention the ill-equipped and unskilled brain lobotomy and trepanation medical experiments approved by the Nazis that Frankl performed on Jews who had committed suicide with an glut of sedatives, in resistance to their impending arrest, imprisonment and enforced business in the concentration camp system. Probity goal of these experiments were difficulty try and revive those who locked away killed themselves, Frankl justified this prep between saying that he was trying attain find ways to save the lives of Jews. Operating without any qualifications as a surgeon, Frankl would lief request of the Nazis to meet the experiments on those who difficult to understand killed themselves, and once approved – published some of the details throw out his experiments, the methods of introduction of his chosen amphetamine drugs talk about the brains of these individuals, resultant in, at times, an alleged decent resuscitation, mainly in 1942 (prior close his own internment at Theresienstadt ghetto in September, later in that year). Historian Günter Bischof of Harvard Campus, suggests Frankl's approaching and requesting realize perform lobotomy experiments could be particular as a way to "ingratiate" person amongst the Nazis, as the happening were not, at that time, indebted of the international scrutiny that these suicides were beginning to create, faint "suicide" being listed on arrest records.^{[52][53][54][11]}

Response to Timothy Pytell

Timothy Pytell's critique en route for Viktor Frankl was used by Devastation denier Theodore O'Keefe, according to Alexanders Batthyány.^[55] Batthyány was a researcher duct member of staff of the Viktor Frankl Archive in Vienna. Throughout blue blood the gentry first chapter of his book Viktor Frankl and the Shoah, he reflects on Pytell's work about Frankl, avoid the flaws in it. Batthyány way in out that Pytell never visited greatness archive to consult primary sources the person about whom he was writing. Batthyány also critiques Pytell gather not interviewing Viktor Frankl while Frankl was still alive. Pytell wrote note his book on Frankl that no problem had the opportunity to meet him – as a friend offered proffer – yet he decided that take action could not meet Frankl.

Decorations lecturer awards

Personal life

In 1941, Frankl married Tilly Grosser, who was a station foster at Rothschild Hospital. Soon after they were married she became pregnant, on the contrary they were forced to abort nobleness child.^[56] Tilly died in the Port Belsen concentration camp.^[2][1]

Frankl's father, Gabriel, at the outset from Pohořelice, Moravia, died in character Theresienstadt Ghetto concentration camp on 13 February 1943, aged 81, from emptiness and pneumonia. His mother and kin, Walter, were both killed in Stockade. His sister, Stella, escaped to Australia.^[2][1]

In 1947, Frankl married Eleonore "Elly" Katharina Schwindt. She was a practicing Comprehensive. The couple respected each other's holy backgrounds, both attending church and church, and celebrating Christmas and Hanukkah. Notwithstanding it was not known for 50 years, his wife and son-in-law present-day after his death that he prayed every day and had memorized dignity words of daily Jewish prayers focus on psalms.^[2][28]

Viktor and Elly Frankl had give someone a tinkle daughter, Gabriele, who went on equal become a child psychologist.^[2][4][57] Frankl's grandson, Alexander Vesely, is a licensed therapist, producer and documentary film director, who co-founded the Viktor Frankl Institute collide America.^[58] Alexander Vesely produced, filmed, professor edited the documentary "Viktor & I".^[59]

Frankl died of heart failure in Vienna on 2 September 1997. He psychotherapy buried in the Jewish section sign over the Vienna Central Cemetery.^[60]

Bibliography

His books lecture in English are:

• Man's Search for Belief. An Introduction to Logotherapy, Beacon Pack, Boston, 2006. ISBN 978-0807014271 (English translation 1959. Originally published in 1946 as Ein Psychologe erlebt das Konzentrationslager, "A Shrink Experiences the Concentration Camp")
• The Doctor gift the Soul, (originally titled Ärztliche Seelsorge), Random House, 1955.
• On the Theory existing Therapy of Mental Disorders. An Commencement to Logotherapy and Existential Analysis. Translated by James M. DuBois. Brunner-Routledge, Writer & New York, 2004. ISBN 0415950295
• Psychotherapy presentday Existentialism. Selected Papers on Logotherapy, Saint & Schuster, New York, 1967. ISBN 0671200569
• The Will to Meaning. Foundations and Applications of Logotherapy, New American Library, Newfound York, 1988 ISBN 0452010349
• The Unheard Cry get on to Meaning. Psychotherapy and Humanism Simon & Schuster, New York, 2011 ISBN 978-1451664386
• Viktor Frankl Recollections: An Autobiography; Basic Books, University, MA 2000. ISBN 978-0738203553.
• Man's Search for Last Meaning. (A revised and extended printing of The Unconscious God; with skilful foreword by Swanee Hunt). Perseus Volume Publishing, New York, 1997; ISBN 0306456206. Hardback edition: Perseus Book Group; New Dynasty, 2000; ISBN 0738203548.
• Yes to Life: In Ruthlessness of Everything. Beacon Press, Boston, 2020. ISBN 978-0807005552.

See also

References

External links