322期 / 读书·人类最后的终极自由 - Man's Search for Meaning

**奥斯维辛幸存之后，他帮助全球1200万人寻找人生的意义**


Victor是一名犹太心理学家，二战期间被关进了奥斯维辛集中营，父母、妻子和朋友们全部遇难，幸存之后的他将自己在集中营里的经历与感受，结合心理学的角度，于1946年写成了这本书。目前这本书全球销量1200万册，是“最影响美国的10本书”之一。但Victor一直强调，这本书如此受欢迎，不是他的成功，而是人性的遗憾。


在所有的人权与自由都被剥夺之后，他感悟到了人类的终极自由：选择自己态度的自由。作为集中营里的囚徒，他们连身上的毛发都被剃光，没有任何物品，但Victor认为，有两种东西是纳粹无法夺走的：过去的美好回忆，和未来的可能性。


活下来的Victor，也经历了其他获救的幸存者会经历的几个阶段：无法感知自由和快乐、身体狂热地补偿食物和睡眠、以及回归正常社会却无法融入的抑郁。而这本书最有价值的一点，是Victor作为一位心理学家，对于集中营这种极端环境对人心理的影响，进行了记录、观察与思考。之后在维也纳，Victor创立了自己的心理学派：Logotherapy。


我个人对于积极的心态是否会影响集中营里囚徒的生死有些存疑，但这本书的价值，不仅是展现集中营环境的影响，而是提出这个问题：人活着的意义是什么？答案没有一个普适的标准，每个人的意义都不相同，寻找自己活着的意义，是我们每人都要经历的一步。


本书最后一句话非常耐人寻味：
Since Auschwitz we know what man is capable of. And since Hiroshima we know what is at stake. 


Man's Search for Meaning by Victor E. Frankl is a great book about psychology, the value of life, and of course, the meaning of life. Victor was the survivor of the Auschwitz concentration camp. He lost all the things and people he loved but learned one thing. Everything can be taken from a man but not the last of the human freedoms: to choose one's attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one's own way. The first part of the book reveals the cruel of the camp, but also the greatness of humanity, and the second part book focuses on the psychological research of Victor. After been saved from the camp, he founded his own theory: logotherapy.


Recommend this book to you if you are wondering the meaning and the goal of your life. You can skip the psychological part if you are not a fan about the subject, but I'm sure you will definitely get inspiration and motivation from his story about the concentration camp.