Logotherapy (Third lecture)

What We Give to Life

As I indicated last time I am proposing to continue to explore further in this series of talks the philosophy of Victor Frankl and psychological theory which he calls "Logotherapy."

I wish to preface my talk by a short reading of a passage that I came across recently and which in my view epitomises Frankl's whole philosophy of life. In fact, it might have been written by Frankl himself. The passage is to be found in the anthology "The Choice is Ours," edited by Dorothy Berkley Phillips. I do not know who wrote it as the passage is given as anonymous but I suspect it might have been written by the editor of the anthology herself. Here it is:

"Life does not need comfort, when it can be offered meaning, nor pleasure, when it can be shown purpose. Reveal what is the purpose of existence and how he may attain it -- the steps he must take -- and man will go forward again hardily, happily, knowing that an effort, concentration, is the only life deserving the devotion, satisfying the nature and developing the potentialities of a self-conscious being."

"Reveal what is the purpose of existence and how he may attain it." This is exactly what Frankl aims at doing. As I mentioned in my last talk Frankl declares that meaning is to be found through

1. what we give to the world (Creative values)
2. what we take from the world (Experiential values)
3. the stand we take toward a fate we cannot change, such as incurable disease, an inoperable cancer (Attitudinal values)

am going to talk about what we give to the world (Creative values).

From Frankl's point of view meaning is to be found moment by moment. The meaning of Life differs from man to man, from day to day, from hour to hour. Every moment has its particular meaning and the act of living consists on responding to the demand of the moment, whatever it may be. As Dr. Jpseph Fabry, Director of the Institute of Logotherapy suggests, the ultimate meaning of life may remain beyond our reach but the demands of the moment can be attained. He says: "In the concept of logotherapy, each person is a unique individual who from birth to death goes through a series of unique situations, each of which offers meaning potentials. To recognize the meaning of the moment and respond to it (to be response-able) is to lead a meaningful life."

These moments may be experiential or creative. Moments in which we are offered something which we take or not, as the case may be, or moments in which something is demanded or required of us, in which we are being asked to give and contribute. The meaning of the moment may either one in which we are called upon to be open and receptive, or active and creative and contributive, or it may often be a combination of the two. The important thing is to be mindful of the moment, aware of its meaning and to respond fully to it -- to treat each moment as the most important at the moment and to give oneself up to it.

Let me give you two examples. On Arturo Toscanini's 80^th birthday, someone asked his son Walter what his father ranked as his most important achievement. The son replied. "For him there can be no such thing. What ever he happens to be doing at the moment is the biggest thing in his life -- whether it is conducting a symphony or peeling an orange."

After the death of the Hasidic Rabbi Moshe of Kobryn, someone asked one of his disciples -- what had been the most important things for his master. He answered "Always just what he was engaged in at the moment."

Frannkl points out that man needs to recognize life is asking him questions, putting challenges to him, and the answer that he gives not with words but with his life. To recognize the demand of the moment and to respond to it wholeheartedly and unreservedly is to live meaningfully.

Last time we saw that the key question was: what is life offering us? -- and everything depended upon our awareness of and response to it. Here the key question is: what is life asking of us and everything depends upon our awareness and response to it. As Frankl sees it, life is challenging us with the question: What are you going to do with your life? What are you going to give? "Giving," says Eric Fromm, "is the highest expression of potency. In the very act of giving I experience my strength, my wealth, my power. This experience of heightened vitality and potency fills me with joy. Giving is more joyous than receiving ….. because in the act of giving lies the experience of my aliveness."

"What does one person give to another? He gives of himself, of the most precious he has, he gives of his life. He gives him of that which is alive in him. He gives of his joy, of his interest, of his understanding, of his knowledge, of his humour, of his sadness, of all expressions and manifestations of what which is alive in him."

It is in such giving that we find life meaningful and worthwhile. The Englishman, L.P. Jacks, himself a leading Unitarian, has stressed that the chief duties of a human being are to get to understand as much of the universe as he can and then on the strength of that knowledge to do his utmost towards making it a better universe than it would have been if he had not happened to be born, by creating some bit of new value, though it be only making two blades of grass where one grew before, or mending the broken leg of a sparrow.

"What are your purpose and business?," Jack asks. "Your purpose and business are those of a creator of values. You are here to add value to the world in which you find yourself."

It is for each of us to decide in what way, given the powers and gifts that we possess and the situations with which we are confronted, we can add value to the world around us and in doing so discover not in theory but in experience the meaning of life.