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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License
Article
The Fourth Meaning in Life: With a Discussion of What Viktor E. Frankl Calls Meaning
Author(s)
Kenjiro Uemura
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DOI:10.17265/2159-5313/2018.06.005
Affiliation(s)
The Open University of Japan
ABSTRACT
The purpose of this paper is, first of all, to show what V. E. Frankl calls meanings
rooted in three values: creative values, experiential values, and attitudinal
values. Creative values are what one finds by creating a work or doing a deed.
Experiential values are realized by experiencing something or encountering
someone. Attitudinal values are what a person discovers by the attitude she/he
takes toward unavoidable suffering. The author points out that these three
kinds of values have something in common: connectedness or relationship.
Creative values (e.g., an artistic masterpiece) show the worker’s connectedness
with the work accomplished. Experiential values also stand for the relationship
between, say, a person and natural beauty. Frankl describes a person’s
attitudinal values by stating “He may turn a personal tragedy into a triumph.”
In short, we can say that attitudinal values indicate relationship between the
sufferer and suffering itself. The author states the core of Frankl’s three
values is the aforementioned connectedness or relationship. In other words,
what Frankl calls meanings indicates manifestation of connectedness or
relationship in the form of creations, experiences, and attitudes. However, in this paper, the author insists that even if Frankl’s three
kinds of values are not realized, there is another value to realize beyond
Frankl’s three kinds of values, which is coexistence. Within this context,
Frankl fails to mention cases where one cannot find meaning in life by a deed
or work they does, an experience they encounter, or an attitude they takes in
the midst of suffering. The three types of meanings in life need a skill, a
chance, and/or ego-strength. We can discover meaning in life just by being
together, and the author proposes the fourth meaning in life, or coexistent
values. It can be defined as “values realized by having meaningful relationships or togetherness with
others.” Careful analysis of Frankl’ writings shows connectedness aspects of
logotherapy, in addition to meaningfulness aspects of logotherapy which are
necessarily referred to by researchers on Frankl. The fourth meaning in life
could shed new light on the understanding of logotherapy.
KEYWORDS
Viktor E. Frankl, creative values, experiential values, attitudinal values, coexistent values, logotherapy
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