Summary

When he was a teenager in Austria, Viktor Frankl began developing logotherapy, a revolutionary form of psychotherapy based on the belief that humanity's primary motivational force is the search for meaning. Unlike most forms of psychotherapy, logotherapy encourages patients to look to the future and live their lives fully, rather than relive the past. Then something happened that put Frankl's philosophies to the test: He and his wife and parents were sent to a concentration camp.

Frankl survived; his family did not. In his grief, Viktor turned to his work. The outcome was his magnum opus: Man's Search for Meaning, an account of life in the camps from the point of view not only of a survivor but a psychologist. The writing of this book saved Viktor in his darkest hour and was the beginning of a new start in what was to be a long and rewarding life. Man's Search for Meaning went on to become one of the most influential books of our time.
This thoroughly researched biography is a compelling account of one man's struggles and, ultimately, his triumphant success in forging a life worth living. Author's note, bibliography, end notes.