Book Report on Viktor' Frankl's
Although Frankl had began a book on his psychological theories prior to his imprisonment in the concentration camps, the manuscripts of which were sewn into the lining of his coat immediately before his detention but subsequently lost when stripped of his belongings in the camp, his observations, examinations and analysis of the behavior of concentration camp prisoners strengthened the foundation on which his theories were based. Because of his background in psychiatry Frankl could not help but to develop findings from his observations of both his own behavior while imprisoned and the behavior of fellow prisoners. In Frankl's two-part book the first part of the book, titled Experiences in a Concentration Camp, offers the reader insight into the turmoil's of the common camp prisoner, its impact and influence on the prisoner's behavior, and Frankl's findings from observation and analysis of those behaviors. Through his personal experiences and observations Frankl found that there were three phases of a prisoner's mental reaction to life in a concentration camp with each period identifiable by its own set of symptoms and characteristics and within each period different self-defense mechanisms were utilized.
In the second part of his book Frankl goes on to summarize, to the extent possible, logotherapy. Even in his attempt at summarization, his discussion of logotherapy is somewhat lengthy and at times esoteric. After reading his discussion of logotherapy I feel that it can be even more simply stated. Unlike traditional therapies, which focus on resolution of past experiences, events, traumas and so on, logotherapy focuses on the future. It is a "meaning-centered" therapy that attempts to help one find meaning in his or her life through experiencing something or encountering someone, creating a an applicable work or doing a deed, or by the attitude we take toward suffering. It's grasping onto something or someone that gives us the strength and the courage to continue to strive. Frankl went on to observe that within a few days to a few weeks of being submersed in "camp life" that the prisoners developed a symptom characteristic of the second phase of the prisoner's mental reaction ---- that of "relative apathy". This phase, in my opinion, deserves special attention because not only was it the most disheartening and perhaps the longest of the three phases for the prisoner, but also because it was perhaps the most enlightening for Frankl. This "relative apathy" that was symptomatic of the second phase of the prisoner's mental reaction to life in the concentration camp was what Frankl referred to as "a kind of emotional death" caused by the prisoner's continuous exposure to the camp's horrors. And Frankl himself was not exempt. Frankl observed that both the prisoners and he had become emotionally impervious to the seemingly endless suffering that went on before their very eyes. As a result the majority of the inmates became insensitive and indifferent and the unrelenting struggle to preserve ones own life became the focus for the prisoners. Whereas at one time one could not bear to see another fellow prisoner being senselessly brutalized, now one watched unmoved and with no affect. As unfortunate and disturbing as this may seem, Frankl noted that this "apathy" was "a necessary mechanism of self-defense during the second phase of the inmates mental reaction. It was this apathy that afforded the prisoner the opportunity to detach himself from an unbearable reality. Divorced from what could be a tremendous emotional weight to carry and a distraction from ones own survival, the prisoner could focus his efforts and the little emotional energy he possessed on pr
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Approximate Word count = 1679
Approximate Pages = 7 (250 words per page double spaced)
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