Name: _________________________
Man’s Search for Meaning Reading Guide
Directions:
These questions should be answered as you read Man’s Search for Meaning. The purpose of these
questions is to guide your thinking about the book, assist you with note-taking, and assess the
thoughtfulness of your reading. You will also use your work on this assignment to help you complete a
final unit project. Therefore, answers should be complete enough to indicate careful reading.
At the end of this guide, there are some Post Reading Questions. In order to prepare for those questions,
you should be looking for the following themes as you read and making note of them: Friends,
Education/Intellectualism, Apathy, Love, Nature, Spirituality, and Employment/Work.
This assignment will count as one Daily grade.
Reading Schedule:
9/9-10:
9/11-12:
9/13-16:
9/17-18:
9/19-20:
9/23-24:
Black cover – Pages 3-22 / Red and White cover – Pages 21-40
Black cover – Pages 22-41 / Red and White cover – Pages 41-60
Black cover – Pages 41-62 / Red and White cover – Pages 61-83
Black cover – Pages 62-80 / Red and White cover – Pages 83-101
Black cover – Pages 80-93 / Red and White cover – Pages 101-115
Part II Pages (selected readings only, as indicated in this reading guide)
9/25-26 – Reading Guide DUE. Quiz.
Part I Questions (2 pts each) Also list the page number on which you found the answer or the quote.
1. Why would the guards assign each prisoner a number? What effect would this have on the Jewish
prisoner? Pg# _________
2. What are the “three phases of the inmate’s mental reactions to camp life”? Pg# _________
1)
2)
3)
3. Frankl says that shortly after arriving at Auschwitz, “The significance of the finger game was
explained to us.” What is ironic about Frankl referring to this exercise as a “game”? Pg# _______
4. A senior prisoner tells Frankl that “he is the only one who must fear the next selection.” What is
Frankl’s reaction? Why does he react this way? Pg# ___
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Man’s Search for Meaning Reading Guide
5. Frankl quotes Lessing by saying “There are things which must cause you to lose your reason or
you have none to lose.” (Note: in this case, “reason” means “sanity.”) What does this quote
mean? Give an example of a situation in the book that depicts this idea. Pg# _________
6. At one point Frankl recounts eating his soup and watching with unconcern as a nurse drags a dead
patient’s body out of the typhus hut. How has Frankl’s outlook changed since his arrival at
Auschwitz? Choose two words/phrases from this scene that illustrate the change in Frankl’s
outlook. Pg# ______
7. Frankl states that “the most painful part of beatings is the insult which they imply.” Give an
example from your life or from contemporary culture that depicts the meaning behind that
statement. Pg# ______
8. Why does the Capo in Frankl’s working party take a liking to him? What three ways does this
relationship benefit Frankl? Pg# ___
1)
2)
3)
9. Frankl brings up the paradox that “some prisoners of a less hardy make-up often seemed to
survive camp life better than those of a robust nature.” How does he explain this paradox? What
are your thoughts on the paradox? Pg# _________
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Man’s Search for Meaning Reading Guide
10. Despite the horrific conditions, Frankl finds meaning in his life at camp. Give a specific example.
Pg# _________
11. “How beautiful the world could be!” – What are the prisoners doing when this statement is made
(the context)? How does this scene depict a change in the prisoner’s concept of a meaningful life?
Pg# _________
12. What was the purpose of the cabaret? Pg# _________
13. Frankl says, “Humor was another of the soul’s weapons in the fight for self-preservation.” Have
you ever seen humor used to get through a tough event? Give an example from contemporary life.
Pg# _________
14. Frankl recounts a moment after he has left the camp of being shown a photograph of prisoners in
bed. His reaction is the opposite of his friend. Why? Pg# _________
15. When the chief doctor asks for volunteers for medical duties in another camp containing typhus
patients, Frankl volunteers. What reason does he give for volunteering? What does this illustrate
about the changes to his concept of a meaningful life? Pg# _________
16. What is the moral to the story of “Death in Teheran”? Pg# _________
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Man’s Search for Meaning Reading Guide
17. At one point Frankl has the opportunity to attempt an escape but he chooses not to. How does his
decision illustrate the qualities of life he finds to be meaningful? Pg# _________
18. Frankl believes that everything can be taken from a man but one thing. What is that thing? Pg# __
19. Dostoevski said, “There is only one thing that I dread: not to be worthy of my sufferings.” Why
does Frankl quote Dostoevski? What is he trying to say to his reader? Pg# _________
20. Frankl recounts witnessing a young woman’s death. She is cheerful despite knowing that she will
soon die. What two meaningful things does she value that gives her this comfort? Pg# _________
21. Frankl explains the concept of “provisional existence.” What, in your own words, does this term
mean? According to Frankl, why do some people living a provisional existence have a
meaningful life while others lives become meaningless? Pg# _________
22. Frankl says that his friend, F___ , the senior warden, died of typhus “to all outward appearances.”
This implies that Frankl thinks he died of something else. What does Frankl think killed F___?
Pg# _________
23. A crucial point in the narrative is that “it did not really matter what we expected from life, but
rather what life expected from us.” Explain, in your own words, what Frankls’ statement means.
Pg# _________
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Man’s Search for Meaning Reading Guide
24. Summarize what Frankl tells him comrades to encourage them and dispel their suicidal thoughts.
Pg# _________
25. Frankl describes several psychological symptoms experienced by freed prisoners. For each
symptom, explain what Frankl sees as the cause of the symptom. Pg# _________
A) Moral deformity:
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
B) Bitterness:
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
C) Disillusionment:
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Part II Questions (2 pts each)
You are required to read some, but not all, of Part II. The questions for this section are broken down by
the heading for the subjects you are required to read.
“The Will to Meaning”
26. According to the findings of the John Hopkins survey, what goal is “very important” to most
people? Pg# _________
“The Existential Vacuum”
27. Frankl says the existential vacuum is a widespread, modern phenomenon. He attributes this to the
loss of what two things? Pg# _________
28. The existential vacuum manifests itself in what common state of being? Pg# _________
29. What other common widespread phenomenon are tied to the existential vacuum? Pg# _________
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Man’s Search for Meaning Reading Guide
“The Meaning of Life”
30. Frankl writes that “each man is questioned by life; and only he can answer to life by answering
for his own life; to life he can only respond by being responsible.” This attitude gives each of us a
great deal of control over how we view the meaningfulness of our lives, regardless of the
circumstances. Think back on Part I. Give a quote or specific text reference that illustrates this
attitude.
A) Quote or text reference from Part I:
Pg# _________
a. Explain the connection between your chosen quote and the quote given in question 30.
“The Essence of Existence”
31. In what three ways do most people discover the meaning of their live? Pg# _________
A)
B)
C)
“The Meaning of Love”
32. How does loving someone else help a person understand their own potential? Pg# _________
“The Meaning of Suffering:
33. Frankl acknowledges that we cannot control all of the circumstances in our lives. But what does
he say we can change in order to control fate’s impact on the meaningfulness of life? Pg# _____
34. Does Frankl believe suffering is necessary to find meaning in life? Find a quote to support your
answer. Pg# _________
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Man’s Search for Meaning Reading Guide
Post Reading Questions (4 pts each)
35. Is the meaning of life static, or fluidly changing throughout an individual’s life?
A) Your opinion:
B) Frankl’s opinion (with a quote from the book to support your answer). Pg# _________
36. Each of the following themes came up in Man’s Search for Meaning. For each theme, find a
quote from the book that reveals the importance Frankl sees in that topic. Note: If you can’t find
anything for a given topic, YOU MAY CHOOSE TO SUBSTITUTE A DIFFERENT THEME
OF YOUR OWN CHOOSING (i.e. one not offered on this list). Be sure to record the page
number with each quote for future reference.
A) Friends
Pg. ________
B) Education/Intellectualism
Pg. ________
C) Apathy
Pg. ________
D) Love
Pg. ________
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Man’s Search for Meaning Reading Guide
E) Nature
Pg. ________
F) Spirituality
Pg. ________
G) Employment/Work
Pg. ________