It took me a while to read Man's Search for Meaning, and I considered it as hard to read. Overall, I didn't really like the book because of the constant connections of a life event to a meaning. I think after some years from now, I'll revisit the book to see if my perspective changed.
In the book, Frankl talked about how the concentrations camps changed people psychologically, and through that, he explains logo therapy and how he survived the Nazi camps. From previous books that I have read about the Holocaust, it was mostly said that survivors were lucky. Here, Frankl says that it was luck but also more of the prisoner's attitude. The quote that I like that relates to this idea is, "…it did not really matter what we expected from life, but rather what life expected from us." (pg. 77)
This quote was used to explain how someone should view the meaning of their life, but instead I interpreted it as the mindset someone should have while going through life. Frankl suggests for people to be proactive about decisions they can make rather than feeling helpless. Even though optimism isn't regarded as a practical, Frankl's idea is optimistic while still reasonable. He explains that although we may not have control over our circumstances, we do control our attitudes towards them. It's a positive way to view life, and I think it brings hope.
Also, this quote reminded me of the whole mind over matter "phenomenon". In the book, Frankl explains it as the will to live. Specifically on pages 74-76, he talks about prisoners who had died because they had lost hope and essentially their will to live. He also gave examples of how "fear brings about that which one is afraid of..." (pg. 124) Even though most mind over matter instances usually demonstrate positive outcomes, I still think the book provides examples showing how important our dispositions are. Yeah...I don't know if it's generally realized how much one own's mind can manifest.
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