Viktor Frankl’s Man’s Search of Meaning tells us from the very first pages that it is not like other works about concentration camps. Unlike similar literature, this book has several huge differences because it is not about the horrors of war, but about the other side, about that and those who showed mercy to the prisoners. Apart from this, other features of this novel will be discussed in this essay.
The beginning of the book indicates that the story will not be about large concentration camps but rather about small ones where people have not yet had time to lose their humanity and were not under the scrutiny of higher-ranking officials. Privileged prisoners often interacted with others and helped them at all costs (Frankl). This teaches you to be human even in the most challenging times and not succumb to the temptation to become superior to others. All people are equal and should support and protect their brothers and sisters.
There are also many mentions in the book of how the author was helped with special coupons, which could be exchanged for cigarettes during his imprisonment. The price for working in the mines was minuscule, just six cigarettes a day. There were, however, people who exchanged these coupons for soup, which in the conditions of imprisonment saved lives. Often these coupons were also given as gifts to keep people from starving to death (Frankl). Many people know about the conditions in which prisoners lived at that time, so such gifts were like water in a desert and helped more than one prisoner escape, which again shows how humane the people who helped others were.
The author also often emphasizes the psychological aspect of his work. He constantly analyses why a particular action was taken and how it describes a person. Being imprisoned in a concentration camp was the only entertainment. Moreover, it was helpful to the writer, as it helped him to write this book, in which he often referred to his experiences as a prisoner. As an analogy to the events, he cites the Stanford experiment. Its essence was that people were divided into two camps: prisoners and guards. And as the experiment progressed, the guards inflicted increasingly inhumane torture on those who were incarcerated. However, while detained, this experiment was often questioned due to the fact that not all guards crossed the line and became violent.
Man’s Search for Meaning had a significant impact on me and my mind. The importance of the lesson is that one cannot think in terms of preconceptions and expect a person to be evil just because that is their role in life. We need to be more open and not show our animal nature and instincts. Unfortunately, cruelty and violence are in all people, and it is vital to fight this as described in this book. By changing themselves, people will come to understand that the whole world is changing as well because by setting a good example to others, one may be surprised at how interconnected everything is. Speaking personally about myself, I will suppress all the cruelty in me and begin to show a more humane attitude towards others. I am sure it will help the whole world to change and become better because a good example is contagious and can bring more positive things into this world.
Work Cited
Frankl, Viktor E. Man’s Search for Meaning. 1946. Beacon Press, 2006.