Logotherapy in Educational Systems Dr. Andreas Schreiber

Abstract: In modern knowledge societies knowledge and education have fallen apart. The educational systems are designed for efficiency in order to spill out very knowledgeable and efficient “working bees” for the highly sophisticated job market. In order to survive and succeed people have to learn more and more – especially useful, i.e., practical stuff. The result: a tremendous pressure on parents, teachers, educators, and those who suffer most: youths. Meanwhile, the education of personality and personal growth fell by the wayside. The consequences: an increase of desperation, frustration, and aggression among adolescents which may trigger social unrests. How to guide and develop juveniles in their personal growing for the sake of a healthy, peaceful, and fulfilling future society? The answer lies in Viktor Frankl’s Logotherapy and Existential Analysis. Its principles are simple, but the impact is huge. With its basic anthropological premises freedom of will, will to meaning, and meaning in life it enhances the person’s ability to apply self-distancing in order to experience the “defiant power of the mind”, and self-transcendence in order to strive for a higher meaning or task. Supported by this juveniles learn to make personal, free and meaningful, but highly (also social) responsible choices. If Logotherapy is learned and applied especially by teachers and educators, or if it would be implemented in the educational body and social care system, it will help transforming the actual knowledge system into an educational, hence a real humane society.

Keywords: Logotherapy, knowledge society, educational system, freedom and responsibility, will to meaning

1. Introduction: Nowadays’ educa- that nowadays it seems to be impossible to tion for the “rat race” appear someway educated without having In modern knowledge-based societies a tremendous stock of quantitative knowledge and education seem to have knowledge in mind or, at least, ready at fallen apart. The evolution, or rather revo- hand. Thereby it’s not meant that only lution, of information and computer tech- encyclopedists are considered as educated, nology has fundamentally changed our rather that especially these persons are social awareness and valuation of infor- very much acknowledged as educated who mation based knowledge. In times of easi- are highly crafty in the smart technology in est accessibility of knowledge data, stored order to always and everywhere immedi- in the World Wide Web and steadily grow- ately be able to present a vast amount of ing as well as, regarding its factual cor- data which allows to have a more than rectness, becoming more and more detailed comprising glance at so called facts in or- by a more or less democratic process of der to verify any kind of statement some- self-regulating control and improvement, how spilled out by somebody. And this the reliability of and trust in such kind of cloudily stored data knowledge is assumed knowledge has deeply changed in a way nowadays as the basis of any education; hence it is considered as educated whoever humans who are living in such societies, is able to juggle with such kind of mainly the growing up kids and juveniles. knowledge virtuosically. This systemic primacy of applicability by It’s not the intention here to claim that the- quantification requires from youths a cer- se days it’s only knowledge or information tain approach to education, learning, and by itself by which one is recognized as even personal development which in the educated. For this would be only an inver- future ensures the best and most efficient sion of the absurd idea, which nevertheless exploitation of the learned, as well as of is rather common today, that alone the themselves as individuals, in order to sur- mere availability of knowledge is already vive as long as possible in a system of ab- the sole basic condition for education in solute competition without dropping out general. In my opinion, both of these asser- too early. In short, the educational system tions are insufficient, as education is rather of capitalistic Western societies is concep- a balanced mixture of information gather- tualized by highest possible efficiency in ing and a creative and rational handling of order to supply a job market which is high- these information by inferring, deducing, ly know-how oriented with knowledgeable, drawing consequences, and prognosticat- highly efficient “worker bees”. ing future situations in order to improve In order to survive and succeed in such interpersonal relationships, hence social described circumstances people have to coexistence or communal life. But it seems learn more and more – especially useful, that nowadays the concepts of knowledge i.e., practical stuff. They need to get spe- and education have fallen apart exactly in cialists, so called nerds, with highly devel- the mentioned way of availability of in- oped special skills, and they need to con- formation considered as sole basis for edu- tinue to actualize their knowledge in the cation and that education is interpreted in a given pace of renewal. This demand is very reductionistic quantitative perspec- called “life-long learning”, which is not tive. bad in general and is already done by most Yet this quantification of education is un- of the people naturally, though in different der consideration of postmodern, especial- subjects, profoundness, and pace. But in ly liberal economical, democratic societies contemporary work-life the content of ad- an inescapable consequence of the capital- ditional, life-long learning is more restrict- ist system. First, the steady developing ed to practical, applicable stuff, and the progress of labor division, production, and pace is fairly high, because our world-wide productivity is based on this form of knowledge doubles almost every 15 years, knowledge. Second, exactly this quantifi- as de Solla Price once claimed.1 Even cation is necessary in order to make when de Solla Price is not right in his as- productivity measurable and hence eco- sumptions and information knowledge nomically exploitable, i. e., transformable grows much slower than predicted, it is into capital. The consequences are fatal still increasing fast and in such a quantity and already to a wide extent observable: that keeps people extremely busy to catch- This pervasive quantification, which re- duced the appreciation of education to 1 Extracts of Derek J. de Solla-Price, Little Science, mere knowledge, has already also struck us Big Science (Frankfurt: Suhrkamp, 1974), accessed March, 9, 2015, http://www.ib.hu- berlin.de/~wumsta/infopub/price/price14.html. up, especially those who work in technical maybe also desperation to a certain kind of and natural science fields. And in my opin- aggression. This aggression could be di- ion the demand for life-long learning under rected against oneself or against others. If these harsh and speedy conditions is not such aggression among adolescents will only a by-product of the evolution of mo- conspire together it potentially can trigger dernity and postmodernism, but has an and lead to social unrests, at last. And this intention, inherent to the system, that holds would be a result which is unwanted by the ordinary living people in their situation society as well as by juveniles themselves, of “worker bees”, or in other, harsher and will be very difficult to get under con- words, of capitalistic slavery. trol again once it started to get a social The result of such societal situations is movement. easy to determine: There lies a tremendous The question may arise, how to guide and pressure on lots of people, especially on develop juveniles in their personal growing parents, teachers, educators, and those who for the sake of a healthy, peaceful, and suffer most: youths. Parents, teachers and fulfilling future society – without being educators have to provide a steadily in- ethically dogmatic or restrictive? creasing, already vast amount of infor- In my opinion, the answer lies in Viktor mation and knowledge in order to properly Frankl’s Logotherapy and Existential prepare the young generation for their Analysis. tasks as good, hard workers for the capitalistic system. They need to get fed with appropriate applicable stuff in order to Its principles are simple, but the impact is have best chances for their start of the “rat huge. With its basic anthropological prem- race” in the treadmill of regular employ- ises freedom to will, will to meaning, and ment. While the education system makes meaning in life Logotherapy enhances the available such applicable knowledge, the person’s ability to apply self-distancing in education of personality and personal order to experience the “defiant power of growth falls by the wayside. In order to the mind”, and self-transcendence in order catch-up with the pace of knowledge in- to strive for a higher meaning or task. Sup- crease the youth hasn’t got much time for ported by this, juveniles would learn to muse, for exploring different ways of in- make personal, free and meaningful, but terests and learning, or for experimenting highly responsible choices (individual as with different working biographies resp. well as social). They wouldn’t just run careers. But such freedom for experiments after a promised career and jump voluntari- would build a kind of educated, matured ly, but headless into the treadmill of an personality with lots of experiences, a only consume oriented working life. Ra- proper sense of judgment, and responsibil- ther they would consider actualizing some ity. And as a consequence of not being able more meaningful goals which are more to experiment with one’s own way of life beneficial to the whole of society. due to entering and competing the rat-race But before dreaming too much of such an people may develop some more or less idealistic scenario, we have a closer look at crucial frustrations, a kind of existential what is meant by this logotherapeutic ap- emptiness and vacuum, which may lead proach to the youth’s education, hence to through dissatisfaction over boredom, change, or better enhance our current edu- tential Analysis) with a set of assumptions cational system. and a stringent anthropology. As mentioned above there are three core assumptions in LthEA which will be ex- 2. Principles of Logotherapy and plained below. Existential Analysis “Logotherapy and Existential Analysis”2 is The main assumption is that man has free- founded by Viktor Frankl, a Viennese neu- dom which allows him to exert his will. rologist, psychiatrist, and psychotherapist Logotherapy doesn’t follow Sartre in his who lived from 1905 till 1997. statement that we are even condemned to Logotherapy is Frankl’s answer to reduc- freedom. Rather, we are free but simulta- tionism and nihilism in human and medical neously also restricted and determined by sciences of his days and was meant as other forces like our physiology, health, bringing back humanism into the field of familial and social situation, historical and psychotherapy.3 In the context of European contemporary political circumstances etc. history of psychotherapy Logotherapy of- Frankl called these restrictions our “fac- ten is recommended as “Third Viennese ticity”. Nevertheless he highly valued free- School of Psychotherapy”, succeeding dom as the key prerequisite of being hu- Sigmund Freud’s Psychoanalysis and Al- man, while not denying the determinants fred Adler’s Individual Psychology. In the and limitations of phenomenal life. That’s American context it can be placed between why Frankl always emphasized the positive humanistic & existential psychology and freedom in contrast to the negative one. transpersonal psychology.4 Frankl’s The latter means “being free of s.th.”, Logotherapy attempts helping people in whereas the former signifies the “freedom their existential and essential search for to s.th.” meaning in life in order to overcome now- The usual and daily understanding is rather adays existential sufferings like frustration, bound to the negative freedom whereby boredom, and emptiness. The therapeutic people try to get rid of, e.g., burdens, suf- approach (i.e., Logotherapy) is based on a ferings and socio-political restrictions. But particular philosophical theory (i. e., Exis- first, we cannot be absolutely free, i.e., we always will have limitations and determi- nations. Second, after achieving such a wished state of being, so that no re- 2 In the following this extended term is mostly used either in its short-term: Logotherapy, or with the strictions exist anymore, man needs to abbreviation: LthEA. have an idea of where to go to resp. he For a concise understanding of these two terms we may briefly summarize: Logoherapy is a certain needs to aim at a goal. And this goal, ac- method of psychotherapy which focuses on the cording to Logotherapy, should be mean- noetic human dimension in order to elicit the meaningful. Such an aim or purpose is envis- ing in life; Existential Analysis is the anthropological theory of the former which focuses on the hu- aged by our faculty of willing, because will man way of existence. always has to address oneself towards 3 See Viktor Frankl, Der Mensch auf der Suche something. Hence, the character of will is nach Sinn: Zur Rehumanisierung der Psychothera- pie (Freiburg: Herder, 1976). to be intentional. And as long as we do 4 See Ann V. Graber, Viktor Frankl’s Logotherapy: Method of Choice in Ecumenical Pastoral Psychol- ogy (Lima (Ohio): Windham Hall Press, 2004), pp. 171 – 177, esp. figure 8, p. 176. have a will we cannot not willing.5 So the achieve with his whole power of striving. question arises what will essentially in- As Frankl asserts, the will to pleasure tends. The answer lies in the second prin- (Freud) and the will to power (Nietzsche, ciple of Logotherapy and Existential Anal- Adler)7 are only derivative will powers ysis: which gain their superiority only and Man is driven by the will to meaning. This foremost once the will to meaning is frus- trated and not being fulfilled for a longer assumption may puzzle, because normally 8 people do have different wishes where time. their willing is going to, for example more The third logotherapeutic principle an- health or wealth, this or that object (like swers to the now arising question, whether cars, jewelries) etc., especially more power it is generally and in concrete possible to and/or acknowledgement. But at the very find meaning in spite of often experienced end what only counts is the fact that all situations which seem rather meaningless these purposes need to make any sense, and far away of any possibility for mean- need to be meaningful, or have any signifi- ing. cance for the person. Conceded all the oth- Although it is often mentioned as the as- er will objectives, but on the highest level sumption of “meaning in life”, we can of abstraction or the deepest level of psy- formulate this third logotherapeutic princi- chological yearning willing aims at a rea- ple as follows: sonable and comprehensible meaning for all the person’s dimensions of being-in- Life itself, always and ever, has the-world. To illustrate this point of view meaning, however bad the circum- Frankl often cites Nietzsche, that if man stances may be. has a “why” for his living he is capable of And this is the touchstone of all 6 bearing almost every “how”. Hence, from Logotherapy, and can be considered as its a logotherapeutic point of view man has most fundamental dogma. For Frankl there quite good chances living a satisfying and was no doubt about the residence of mean- successful life, as long he is able to recog- ing in life, and he stated that even in the nize or detect in principle the possibility of worst and most adverse situations man is a reason for ones sufferings, or a “where- still able to find some meaning, because to” resp. a purpose for ones actions. And it life itself is meaningful. This assumption is is exactly this, so this second assumption, considered as the main one of LthEA, as what man only and ultimately wants to the whole therapeutic way wouldn’t function as Logotherapy, if it is not believed in 5 This description may function for an attempted explanation of the phenomenon that human nearly this dogmatic assertion. cannot cease his willing, unless with hard discipli- nary and meditative work on renouncing the world and human’s rationality. But this may be also an illusion, if Nietzsche’s saying is true: Man rather 7 With these slogans Frankl characterizes the fun- wants to will nothingness than not to will. (“…und damental differences between his theory and the eher will er noch das Nichts wollen, als nicht wol- other powerful psychotherapies of his days which len.“; Friedrich Nietzsche, „Zur Genealogie der simultaneously have been his psychotherapeutic Moral.“ In Jenseits von Gut und Böse. Zur Genea- parentage. That Freud’s Psychoanalysis as well as logie der Moral; KSA 5, ed. Colli, Giorgio & Adler’s Individual Psychology has been more com- Montinari, Mazzino (Berlin: De Gruyter, 1999), pp. plicated as expressed in these slogans was well 245 – 413, here p. 339; italics in original) known to Frankl. 6 Viktor Frankl, Die Psychotherapie in der Praxis 8 Viktor Frankl, Der unbewusste Gott: Psychothe- (Wien: Deuticke, 1975), p. 51. rapie und Religion (München: dtv, 2006), p. 72. To summarize, Frankl stated that for hu- gaged in more or less creative activities, man beings it is totally essential and natu- experiencing some wonderful natural or ral to ask for meaning, that even man’s will interpersonal moments or great art like ultimately longs for meaning, and that music or paintings, or overcoming personal there is meaning in life. But, it is to ask, adversities like strokes of fate, illness, per- what is this meaning, what makes our be- sonal losses etc. by changing the inner per- ing meaningful, and how can we discover spective or attitude makes life meaningful. and fulfill it? We also will get answers like “being your- Meaning is an idea of something that gives self”, “staying up-right”, “being honest, our lives some good reason to be lived, that faithful, and authentic”. These answers gives us orientation for living in order to reflect the logotherapeutic assumption that make good choices in the realm freedom meaning is fulfilled by actualizing one’s with its multitude of possibilities, and own values and – with respect to the multi- hence not to lose track and waste our pre- tude of possible values – by the three mentioned ways of actualization: creativity, cious life-time. As such meaning is associ- 9 ated with the idea of a purpose or goal in experience, and change of attitudes. This each one’s life which makes it worth living so called meaning-triad also has its inner for. However, as everybody will know by order and logic of prioritization. The most own experiences, it’s not always easy to important value to actualize is that of crea- recognize one’s own, great and maybe sin- tivity. It’s not meant by this that one has to gle life task. Then we keep on searching be creative in a strict, artistic sense. Rather right and left, experiment with this or that creativity means to act into the world. As offer of life’s possibilities, but possibly long as man is able to and the situation is still cannot find it. Meanwhile we commit suitable for, one should act upon one’s with some societal goals like getting rich, own inner value system and at least try to making a great career, staying healthy or contribute to the world with his or her en- whatever, but feeling still empty and frus- gaged action. The value of creativity asks trated because we haven’t found our single for what one has given to the world and to and own purpose. Or given that we’ve others. Of course, there are times to relax found it and now want to achieve it, but far and refrain from doing by your own, but too often we nevertheless deviate from rather to enjoy and receive the contribu- chasing after it due to the many other at- tions of others or of the world, so as to tractions which hit us on the way and dis- listen to other people or other people’s tract us, or even due to some strokes of fate work, experiencing nature’s gifts like a which renders us incapable to follow our wonderful sunset or a soft breeze in spring purposes. How to deal with such daily sit- time. The value of experience hence asks uations, especially in our current capital- for what one has received and still can re- istic society, logotherapeutically? ceive from others or the world. And the third value of changing attitude, which The answer of Logotherapy is rather sim- comes last in the hierarchy of actualization, ple, though it knows that its actualization is but first in respect of dignity, asks for the quite complicate. Logotherapy starts from manner of dealing with situations where the experience of ordinary people. Asked what makes their life meaningful the aver- 9 Viktor Frankl, Ärztliche Seelsorge: Grundlagen age and natural answer is that being en- der Logotherapie und Existenzanalyse (Wien: Deuticke, 2005), pp. 91 – 95. it’s absolutely impossible either to act up- situations. All other situations – which on or experience something positive from. actually are the majority of our lives – are In situations where nothing else can be to be handled by either creative or experi- done any more, where there’s no beauty to ential values, dependent on the situation be recognized and experienced it is asked itself. We mentioned already that there are for the highest faculty man is capable for, times for creation, and times for recreation. namely to take a stance on it by rather he- But how can we figure out what’s the actu- roically bear the situation and try not to al demand of this or that situation? This lose dignity. To change one’s own attitude question brings us back to the above quest to be able to endure adverse strokes of fate of how to recognize meaning. Frankl is is one of the most difficult, yet most digni- focusing on the so called “meaning of the fied tasks one can master in his life. moment”. As every situation and every Logotherapeutically spoken, suicide is no individual person is singular and unique, solution. and regarding the whole of history also Regarding the power of such an attitudinal important and irretrievable, we need to change it is often referred to a saying of listen to every moment’s situation in order Jerry Long who only later, quite a while to recognize what ought to be done in es- after his accident, came across with pecially this or that single case. It may Logotherapy, and eventually lectured with sound difficult and exhausting to listen Viktor Frankl and got a psychotherapist every single moment closely to what is to himself. When Long was a young guy just be done in order to fulfill meaning and finishing high school he suffered an probably weave on the fulfillment of the swimming accident by jumping vigorously meaning of all man’s history. This requires into shallow water and got a quadriplegic a rather unbearable responsibility, one may for the rest of his life. But his attitude to- argue. First, it is not that complicate to wards life was so strong that he partly re- listen to the demand of the momentary covered and coined an impressive and il- situation as we do have our inner voice, lustrative saying: “I broke my neck, but it our conscience which is the integral of our didn’t break me!”10 – This is a highly personal value system and which tells us – demonstrative story of what is meant by in a very peculiar way – what ought to be the value of changing one’s attitude to- done. Second, yes, it requires a huge wards unchangeable fateful situations and amount of responsibility, but this is not supports in concrete to explain the unbearable, rather it is a kind of uncom- logotherapeutic assumption of the “defiant fortable in usual common life. Responsibil- power of mind”. ity is the faculty of response-ability, i. e., we do have the ability to respond to cir- Before explaining this, let’s get back to the cumstances. Additionally we do not only meaning-triad. It should be clear now that have the ability for that, but rather the duty the change of attitude is one of the hardest, as responsibility is the rear side of free- but dignified tasks man can ever fulfill, dom. As we have the freedom to will, and this is reserved for really unchangeable which means to have choices, we also do have the duty to make responsible, hence 10 See the impressive interview of Viktor Frankl meaningful choices. and Jerry Long: “Frankl – I broke my neck, but it didn’t breake me”, accessed March 9, 2015, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1_lmMl4P7cQ To summarize, we explore and experience three-dimensional object, which cannot be meaningfulness by actualizing values. Ab- fully captured by addition of its projections stractly there are three ways of actualiza- into lower dimensions, man must be taken tion which are called in Logotherapy the always and ever in his three-dimensional creative values, experiential values, and the totality. In the figure below we see a cylin- value of change of attitudes. All these val- der which is projected from the side and ues are highly situational and require rec- from above. One projection shows a rec- ognizing the meaning of the moment, tangle or a square, the other a circle. If we which means to cognize that what ought to want to understand the cylinder out of the be done in this special and singular mo- combination of the two two-dimensional ment. This is possible by listening to the figures we will greatly fail. voice of conscience which integrates all experienced and adopted personal values and shows by exclusion what would be (or at least: would have been) the right and responsible decision. The response-ability is a faculty of human being which is closely interwoven with the presupposition of freedom and the core feature of willing. With the latter we now come to the explanation of the above mentioned “defiant power of mind” and the presentation of the LthEA underlying anthropology. With the Source: Graber, 2004, p. 69 topic of meaning we could already recognize the emphasis on the situation and its uniqueness. Likewise man is considered as Frankl hence applies this example as anal- an individual and unique person. Moreo- ogy for understanding man. We do recog- ver, Frankl interprets each individual not nize three phenomenal dimensions of man only as undividable11, but also as whole which are: the body (physis), the psyche, and complete. This is explained by Frankl and the mind/spirit (nous). There are still figuratively in the so called dimensional virulent difficulties in sciences, namely in ontology where he emphasizes the whole- philosophy, to fully explain their interrela- ness and completeness of man.12 Like a tion, especially that between body and mind. Commonly the era of dualistic theories, commencing with Rene Descartes’ 11 Cf. the Latin origin: in-dividere = not (to) devide. 12 Regarding the wholeness Frankl doesn’t consider dualism of res extensa and res cogitans, is it as a completed perfection, but rather it develops over, but still there lacks a sufficient and into such only with the end of life resp. in the death. satisfying explanation even in monistic- But Frankl assumes man already and in every second of his life as complete and whole, so that he materialistic theories of how the immateri- stresses that the essential feature of “existence” al mind interacts with the body, specifical- never could be literally analyzed, i.e., dissected, but ly with the brain. rather be illuminated as a unitary phenomenon. Whenever we dissect the spheres or dimensions of man, then we do this only for methodological rea- [1959].“ In Logotherapie und Existenzanalyse: sons in order to make it descriptive and for being Texte aus sechs Jahrzehnten, by Viktor Frankl able to communicate about it. (See: Viktor Frankl, (München: Piper, 1987), pp. 57 – 185, here pp. 63 – „Grundriß der Existenzanalyse und Logotherapie 73). Letting these highly sophisticated debates to two human core features which consti- aside, Frankl’s solution is quite practical tute the essence of man. and for a certain extension convincing. The The first is called self-distancing. Man interpretation of these three phenomena as noetically has the freedom to behave either dimensions gives way to focus on each along his physical and psychic (pre-) con- separately – like physicians mostly treat ditions, or against them. He can take a the bodily dimension, whereas psychother- stance on them, he can decide whether he apist intervene in the psychic one and for wants to react on their signals instantly and example philosophers address mainly the as usual, or first reflect about it and make a noetic one – by keeping in mind that only mindful decision how to react upon it. As all together constitute man. Only as such man is free, he is not bound to repeat al- the wholeness is guaranteed and perceiva- ways his reactions, but can say “No” and ble. The idea of Frankl’s dimensional on- act different. This power was already men- tology is the essential inseparability of the- tioned above as “defiant power of mind”. se dimensions; they cannot be abstracted Once Frankl demonstrated this faculty in from each other, i. e., being isolated or one of his many tv-interviews, which I extracted one from the other. If an object is cannot exactly recall which one, when he three-dimensional, then there is nothing to was asked on top of his favorite mountain add on or subtracted from. Another ad- Rax, near Vienna, how he became such a vantage of the dimensional perspective is passionate rock climber, although he suf- its attributive character, which means that fers vertigo. His answer was stunningly we do not necessarily need to take the simple: “I don’t need to take any nonsense mentioned issues as objects or substantial- from myself.”14 What he means is that alt- ly, but rather as attributive descriptions, hough there is the real and tremendous like “bodily, psychic, and noetic”. anxiety of height he still can attempt to Coming back to human beings, we now willingly overcome it by trying his best in can state that exactly this exceeding third climbing, especially as he loved to be in noetic dimension discerns man from ani- the mountains and hanging off a rock. For mal. Sure, man also inhabits the physical usual daily life this example will show us and psychic dimensions which both are that we don’t need to react upon any situa- mutually interdependent, influencing and tion as one usually is supposed to do, but determining, but the specific feature of take a how small ever hiatus between stim- humanness lies in the dimensionally differ- ulus and response in order to consciously ent faculty of the noetic, i.e., the freedom decide how to respond to this or that situa- of will to meaning wherein such phenome- tion. na like freedom, responsibility, love, will- The second core feature of man is called ing, thinking, reasoning, consciousness etc. self-transcending. Besides the ability of are dwelling. Frankl describes this differ- taking a stance on the situation man is situ- ence as the psycho-physical parallelism on ated into, he also is able to totally abstain one hand, and the psycho-noetic antago- 13 from himself in order to address something nism on the other. Especially the latter that lies completely outside of his own provides two types of freedom according mental and physical vicinity – for example

14 Frankl, Viktor: “Ich muss mir doch von mir 13 Viktor Frankl, Grundriß, p. 62. selbst nicht alles gefallen lassen!” another person, another living being, an- of freedom and the will to meaning, which other item or task which transcends totally pervades humankind as its motivational the own self-centered wishes, goals or force. And as stated above, the power of aims. With this faculty man is able to fully will always is directed towards meaning transcend oneself, go out and beyond his that dwells in every situation as well as in own interests – which literally means “to the totality of the individual life. 15 exist”. And it is especially in this possibility of 3. Conclusion: Benefits of self-transcending where Frankl positions Logotherapy for educational sys- the quest for meaning. Man will find a real tems meaning, a significance which justifies the whole of the individual’s wholeness, only For now it should be made clear what the if he transcends, if he steps out of himself principles of LthEA are. It emphasizes the in the direction towards others, if he for- individual freedom which lies in the noetic gets or loses one’s self by serving other dimension in order to transcend one’s self persons, a beloved one, or a higher pur- towards something meaningful and take a pose. stance on one’s own reactions in order to not only follow them mechanically and half-conscious, but with full awareness of one’s own “defiant power of mind” to make meaningful and responsible choices. The aim of Logotherapy is helping people in self-development in a way that these persons are no longer blaming others or circumstances for their own situations or even failures. Rather it’s aimed at strong, Source: Andreas Schreiber conscious and self-responsible persons who make their decisions based on their own and inner value system according to To summarize, in Frankl’s logotheory man the objectively demand of what ought to be is considered as singular, unique, indivisi- done resonating with their conscience. ble, and hence phenomenally appearing as wholeness, whose structural elements are Applying LthEA in educational systems self-transcendence and self-distance. The- would help juveniles to grow up with more se basic features lie in the noetic dimension self-respect and respect of others, with a which discerns man from animal and higher awareness not only of their personal which, though not only surpasses the di- freedom of acting out their individuality, mensions of the physis and psyche, but but also of their responsibility for their also pervades them as it were as their inner choices and deeds, and for their self- pivot. The constitutive moments of the education. The latter means that each per- nous are particularly the basic conditions son is responsible by himself for developing his own character and personality by self-reflection and self-awareness. The 15 Cf. the original meaning of Latin: ex-sistere = stand forth, “Online Etymology Dictionary”, ac- attitude of hanging loose and/or only fol- cessed March 9, 2015, http://etymonline.com/?term=existence. lowing the mass opinion is not supported rience already a change of attitudes to- or tolerated in LthEA. wards the logotherapeutic core assump- If it could be implemented in contempo- tions and anthropology, and gain a differ- rary educational systems, hence into the ent, more self-reflected and responsible whole educational body and even social perspective on fellow humans and the care systems, it will help transforming the world in general. actual knowledge-based society into an On the long run of implementation of educated, real human one. For this it might LthEA in the educational body it is to ex- be necessary to first teach the teacher and pect that more and more people will reject educators, so that they can act and react to enter the capitalistic “rat race” and fol- therapeutically whenever the situation re- low more their inner of conscience in order quires it. Second, it might be also neces- to actualize meaning. sary and helpful on the long run to instruct also the juveniles in Logotherapy’s body of thought. It is not that all should become therapists by that. Rather people who get in touch and even involved with LthEA expe-

References:  Graber, Ann V. Viktor Frankl’s Logotherapy: Method of Choice in Ecumenical Pastoral Psychology. Lima (Ohio): Windham Hall Press, 2004  Frankl, Viktor. Die Psychotherapie in der Praxis. Wien: Deuticke, 1975  Frankl, Viktor. Der Mensch auf der Suche nach Sinn: Zur Rehumanisierung der Psychotherapie. Frei- burg: Herder, 1976  Frankl, Viktor. „Grundriß der Existenzanalyse und Logotherapie [1959].“ In Logotherapie und Exis- tenzanalyse: Texte aus sechs Jahrzehnten, by Frankl, Viktor. München: Piper, 1987  Frankl, Viktor. Ärztliche Seelsorge: Grundlagen der Logotherapie und Existenzanalyse. Wien: Deuticke, 2005  Frankl, Viktor. Der unbewusste Gott: Psychotherapie und Religion. München: dtv, 2006  Nietzsche, Friedrich. „Zur Genealogie der Moral.“ In Jenseits von Gut und Böse. Zur Genealogie der Moral; KSA 5, edited by Colli, Giorgio & Montinari, Mazzino, 245 – 413. Berlin: de Gruyter, 1999

 “Online Etymology Dictionary”, accessed March 9, 2015, http://etymonline.com/?term=existence.  “Frankl – I broke my neck, but it didn’t breake me”, accessed March 9, 2015, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1_lmMl4P7cQ  Extracts of de Solla-Price, Derek J. Little Science, Big Science. Frankfurt: Suhrkamp, 1974, accessed March, 9, 2015, http://www.ib.hu-berlin.de/~wumsta/infopub/price/price14.html.