295
people found this helpful, as of 2023
ranked #87,383 most helpful
out of 571,544,897 reviews
★★★★★
the following review is only one that those who have ever been depressed would understand
Whoever said life isn't fair was spot-on: it isn't. But that's ok according to Frankl the author here who spent the hardest years of his life in a Nazi concentration camp. Those that await life to contribute to their happiness or well-being will always be disapointed. Its not what you expect of life but what life expects of you. In an existential way Frankl points out that we are only a spec in the universe that has no meaning except for what we give it.
When I was in 1st grade I remember a poster on the colorful classroom wall that said "Your attitude determines your altitude." For some reason this book made me remember that poster of decades ago. The idea is that its not what happens to you but how you react to the situation. In fact in life you mostly cannot control what happens to you--some of it a result of nature and nurture--but you have 100% full control to how you interpret it.
I'm not wise enough to know if everything happens for a reason or not but I have learned that in everything there is meaning. The meaning is what you interpret it to be for you. Those that do not see meaning in life are often those that think of life as either unfair or as Frankl offers--boring. Logos (Greek for "meaning") is the root of Frankl's new form of therapy, Logotherapy, can be through work that you find meaningful (not your s***ty 9-5 job); finding love in another (not the mere infatuation with your significant other) or a cause that you truly believe in (not those unspecific pie in the sky things like world peace).
The encouragement in this book is to live your life like this is actually your second life, the first of which you screwed-up and now are about to do it again. You don't have to suffer to get there but keep in mind some of the most remarkable transformations have been those who were told that they only have so long to live (i.e. cancer patients) who went on to make their final months more meaningful than their entire life had been.
Its never too late. Whether you're confused, feel neglected by life or are just bored this book is for you (as it was for me). So what's the meaning of your life? When a student asked Frankl he said that his meaning was to show others how to find meaning in their life. I trust that this review can inspire you to have a read of Man's Search for Meaning--perhaps one of the most insightful and meaningful books of all time.
