Reviews tagging 'Confinement'

Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor E. Frankl

20 reviews

madshald's review against another edition

dark informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

4.25

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Torture, Trafficking, Homophobia, Gore, Antisemitism, Injury/Injury detail, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Racism, Hate crime, War, Confinement, Self harm, Death of parent, Deportation, Suicide, Forced institutionalization, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, Death, Genocide, Slavery, Medical content, Murder, Police brutality, Racial slurs, and Violence

coneyislandslap13's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

4.75

This book definitely seems less pedantic and condescending than many which try to tackle the issues of depression and hopelessness in people with logic and grace. Through detailing memorable instances of events throughout his trials in the concentration camps of the Third Reich, he gives reasoning behind people’s need for purpose and motivation, and does so in a way that can relate to victims of such horrific atrocities just as easily as to young children suffering some of the first minor complications they’ve ever had. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Excrement, Gore, Medical content, Antisemitism, Confinement, Death, Bullying, Classism, Colonisation, Cursing, Deportation, Drug abuse, Kidnapping, Emotional abuse, Forced institutionalization, Gaslighting, Genocide, Grief, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Religious bigotry, Mental illness, Medical trauma, Murder, Racial slurs, Slavery, Physical abuse, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Trafficking, Violence, and War

ac_rva's review against another edition

reflective medium-paced

4.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Slavery, Murder, Death, Antisemitism, Torture, Terminal illness, Excrement, Emotional abuse, Violence, Suicide attempt, Confinement, War, Hate crime, and Physical abuse

tctimlin's review against another edition

challenging dark hopeful informative reflective fast-paced

3.0

Part One, where Frankl describes his concentration camp experiences is moving and devastating.  Part Two, where he describes his therapeutic philosophy, is dry and frustrating (I am not at all convinced that just flipping the script for a depressed or ill person is going to magically solve their issues).  He ignores biology in favor of just mentally changing one’s attitude.  The Afterword actually does a better job of explaining his philosophy and showing the optimism behind Frankl’s approach.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Physical abuse, Suicide, Grief, Antisemitism, Bullying, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Forced institutionalization, Religious bigotry, Torture, Hate crime, Medical trauma, Mental illness, and War

cassidyzang's review against another edition

challenging informative reflective slow-paced

3.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, and War

mdwsn27's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

3.75

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Excrement, Fire/Fire injury, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Suicide attempt, Murder, Gaslighting, Genocide, Police brutality, Suicidal thoughts, War, Violence, Death, Antisemitism, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Racial slurs, Racism, Self harm, Slavery, Terminal illness, and Torture

grimmworld's review

I just could not handle reading a 1st hand account of the horrors of being a Jewish person in a concentration camp. This was touted as a inspirational memoir, & I have no doubt it is, but if you have any form of depression, this takes you to a dark place, you don't need to be there.  

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Hate crime, Religious bigotry, Torture, Grief, Death, Antisemitism, Confinement, Emotional abuse, and Genocide

You have to be in a perfect mind set in order to read this book. Not easily depressed, not over empathetic. If you cry while watching those coming home for Christmas commercials, you will have a problem reading this book.

flowingleaves's review against another edition

informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

3.5

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Medical content, Genocide, Hate crime, War, Violence, Confinement, Grief, Death, and Injury/Injury detail

spooderman's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Suicide, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Suicidal thoughts, Antisemitism, Child death, Torture, Death, Death of parent, Genocide, Suicide attempt, War, Confinement, and Violence

Moderate: Self harm, Cancer, Eating disorder, Ableism, Toxic relationship, Terminal illness, Forced institutionalization, Alcoholism, Panic attacks/disorders, and Drug use

samdalefox's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

5.0

It feels crass to rate this book. How can anyone give a score hearing a person's experience of the Holocaust, and detailing their own psychiatric field of work? I have expertise and lived experience in neither. However, I have given this 5 stars nonetheless.

The book was recommended by my mental health counsellor, highlighting Frankl's finding and assertion that the only thing a person has control over, is their attitude to their circumstances. This aspect has certainly helped me in my own mental health work.

Unlike some of the other reviews, I enjoyed the second part of the book as much as the first. (I read the 80's edition). This may be because of my medical science background and interest in psychiatry. I found Frankl's way of describing his personal experiences almost objectively, quite comforting and appealed to my natural way of thinking. Although the field has developed since his writing, I found it very interesting learning about logotherapy and found it complemented my interest in existentialism. I do think some of the observations he makes are still very relevant today, especially his comments relating to existential boredom.

The first part of the book where he describes his experiences in concentration camps was, of course, difficult to read. However this is the first time I've 'enjoyed' (for lack of a better word) reading about the Holocaust. Previous historical iterations from secondary sources always had the whiff of political war propaganda to me. Frankl's lived experience retelling has no such endorsement of war. What was significant for me, was he not only described his and other's various suffering, but attempted to explain it too. E.g. Why the prisoners and guards reacted in the ways they did. How their psychology and identity was affected as well as their physical health. Frankl goes through each stage of the prisoner's psychological response to his trauma. 

Overall, a harrowing, but important read. I think it has the potential to help many people. Maybe be more compassionate to others, maybe employ some logotherapy principles to their own life, maybe become more consciously opposed to war. 

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Genocide, Emotional abuse, War, Suicide, Death, Confinement, Antisemitism, Violence, Torture, Suicide attempt, Physical abuse, and Murder

Holocaust