Erich Fromm
Erich Fromm
(born: March 23, 1900, Frankfurt am Main, German Empire - died: March 18, 1980, Locarno, Switzerland)
German sociologist, philosopher, social psychologist, psychoanalyst, representative of the Frankfurt School, one of the founders of neo-Freudianism and Freudo-Marxism.
Selfishness is a symptom of a lack of self-love. He who does not love himself is always worried about himself.
Social progress requires the standardization of people, and this standardization is called equality.
The main life task of a person is to give life to himself, to become what he potentially is. The most important fruit of his efforts is his own personality.
Man is the only animal that can be bored, dissatisfied, and feel expelled from paradise.
A person can play many roles and be subjectively confident that each of them is him. In fact, a person plays each role in accordance with his ideas about what others expect from him; and in many people, if not in most people, the real personality is completely smothered by the pseudo-personality. /Escape from freedom/
Man is the only animal for whom his own existence is a problem that he must solve and which he cannot avoid. He cannot return to the pre-human state of harmony with nature; he must continue to develop his mind until he becomes master of nature and master of himself.
A person needs the drama of life and experiences; and if he does not find satisfaction at the highest level of his achievements, then he creates for himself a drama of destruction. /Anatomy of human destructiveness/
He who, having knowledge, pretends not to know, is above all. Anyone who, without knowledge, pretends to know is sick. /The art of loving/
Modern man thinks that he is wasting time when he does not act quickly, but he does not know what to do with the time he has gained except to kill it. /The art of loving/
Immature love says, “I love you because I need you.” Mature love says, “I need you because I love you.” /The art of loving/
Love is an active interest in the life and development of what we love. Where there is no active interest, there is no love. /The art of loving/
It is the lack of self-love that gives rise to selfishness. He who does not love himself, who does not approve of himself, is in constant anxiety for himself. A certain inner confidence will never arise in him, which can only exist on the basis of genuine love and self-approval. The egoist is simply forced to focus only on himself, spending his efforts and abilities on getting something that others already have. Since in his soul he has neither inner satisfaction nor confidence, he constantly must prove to himself and others that he is no worse than others. /Escape from freedom/
Oddly enough, the ability to be alone is a condition for the ability to love. /The art of loving/
Modern man is a realist who has come up with a separate word for each type of car, but only one word “love” to express a wide variety of emotional experiences. /To have or to be?/
Every new step may end in failure - this is one of the reasons that makes people fear freedom. /To have or to be?/
There is a paradox in love: two beings become one and yet remain two. /The art of loving/
Whether we realize it or not, we are not ashamed of anything as much as abandoning ourselves, and we experience the highest pride, the highest happiness when we think, speak and feel truly independently. /Escape from freedom/
Caring and responsibility are the building blocks of love, but without respect and knowledge of the loved one, love degenerates into dominance and possessiveness. /A man for himself/
The choice between life and death is more imaginary than real; the real human choice is between a good life and a bad one. /A man for himself/
Knowing your true desires is much more difficult than most of us think; this is one of the most difficult problems of human existence. We desperately try to escape this problem by adopting standard goals as our own. /Escape from freedom/
The right to express our thoughts only makes sense if we are able to have our own thoughts. /Escape from freedom/
Love begins to manifest itself only when we love those whom we cannot use for our own purposes. /The art of loving/
Our society is a society of chronically unhappy people, tormented by loneliness and fears, dependent and humiliated, prone to destruction and experiencing joy from the fact that they managed to “kill the time” that they are constantly trying to save. /To have or to be?/
As important as it is to avoid empty talk, it is equally important to avoid bad company. By “bad company” I mean not only vicious people; their company should be avoided because their influence is oppressive and harmful. I also mean the society of "zombies" whose soul is dead, although the body is alive; people with empty thoughts and words, people who do not talk, but chatter, do not think, but express common opinions. /The art of loving/
Biographical summary
Erich Seligmann Fromm was born on March 23, 1900 in Frankfurt am Main. Since his parents were Jews, he was able to receive an excellent education for his environment. He studied at the gymnasium, where, along with general education subjects, Jewish religious traditions and religious theory were taught. After high school, Fromm became one of the founders of the Society for Jewish Public Education.
From 1919 to 1922 studied at the University of Heidelberg, where the main subjects were psychology, philosophy and sociology. After graduation, he received a Ph.D. He became too carried away by the ideas of Sigmund Freud, abandoned all the values on which his upbringing was based, and began to study psychoanalysis, which he later began to integrate into practical medicine.
Selfishness
But Fromm wrote not only about society, he was also interested in interpersonal relationships. He decided to publish his thoughts on this matter in a separate book, “The Art of Loving.” Fromm writes about many aspects of healthy and strong relationships.
He first mentions love in “Flight from Freedom,” when he writes about the phenomenon of selfishness. Fromm believes that due to a lack of self-love, a person becomes selfish, because he is not confident in his own abilities, has no internal support and tries to find approval from others, this is the only way a person can exist.
It is the lack of self-love that gives rise to selfishness. He who does not love himself, who does not approve of himself, is in constant anxiety for himself. A certain inner confidence will never arise in him, which can only exist on the basis of genuine love and self-approval. The egoist is simply forced to focus only on himself, spending his efforts and abilities on getting something that others already have. Since in his soul he has neither inner satisfaction nor confidence, he constantly must prove to himself and others that he is no worse than others.
Other quotes about love by Erich Fromm originate from this statement.
Book “The Art of Loving”
This work contains not only thoughts about interpersonal relationships, but also other thoughts about human nature. But let's focus on the first question for now.
Immature love says, “I love you because I need you.” Mature love says, “I need you because I love you.” ("The Art of Loving")
This quote from Erich Fromm from The Art of Loving represents the fine line where love begins and ends. Needing another person because he is able to make life easier, help with something, and the like is not love, but an ordinary consumer attitude.
Love is an active interest in the life and development of what we love. Where there is no active interest, there is no love.
Loving people know everything about each other. There are no unsaid words, secrets or envy of the other’s successes between them.
From this quote from the book “The Art of Loving” by Erich Fromm, the following statement by the author follows:
There is a paradox in love: two beings become one and yet remain two.
In the modern world, everything is so mixed up that as soon as a person meets someone who treats him more or less kindly, he dissolves in him and forgets about his own life and his own goals.
As a result, such behavior ruins the lives of both: the one who gives loses precious time and may end up with nothing, and the one who receives will feel obligated.
Love begins to manifest itself only when we love those whom we cannot use for our own purposes.
I'm ready to do anything for the sake of science
In 1925 he organized a private practice. This gave him the opportunity to constantly observe people, studying the social and biological components of the human psyche.
In 1930 he began teaching psychoanalysis at the University of Frankfurt. Until 1933, he was director of the department of social and psychological research at the Horkheimer Institute. Later he improved his knowledge at the Berlin Psychoanalytic Institute. At that time, he managed to make several useful contacts, thanks to which he was able to get to Chicago. When the Nazis came to power, Erich Fromm emigrated to Switzerland, and a year later to New York.
American students are beginning to speak with quotes from Erich Fromm. In 1940, he received American citizenship, worked as a teacher at Bennington College and was a member of the American Institute of Psychoanalysis. In 1943, he took part in the creation of the New York branch of the Washington School of Psychiatry. Later it was renamed the W. White Institute of Psychiatry, Psychoanalysis and Psychology, which Fromm headed from 1946 to 1950.
The path to happiness
While reading “Escape from Freedom,” the question involuntarily arises: “Is there really no way to be happy?” Erich Fromm mentioned this as well:
Whether we realize it or not, we are not ashamed of anything as much as abandoning ourselves, and we experience the highest pride, the highest happiness when we think, speak and feel truly independently. ("Escape from Freedom")
It's simple, but actually complicated. Falling under the influence of public opinion, it is difficult for a person to remain true to himself, even when it comes to the simplest things. What can we say about big goals and grandiose plans?! To break this vicious circle, you need to at least once try to protect your interests, complete the work you started and, overcoming adversity, achieve a small plan. The inspiration, relief and joy that comes after will be remembered for a lifetime. And then all that remains is to raise the bar.
Heritage
In addition to all his achievements, he was professor emeritus at Yale University and taught in Michigan and New York. In 1960 he became a member of the Socialist Party. He manages to successfully combine political activity, teaching and the creation of scientific treatises. Quotes from Erich Fromm are worth their weight in gold, but with such a busy schedule it is difficult to lead a full and healthy life.
In 1969, Fromm suffered a heart attack and, due to tuberculosis, began increasingly visiting Switzerland, where he finally moved in 1974. He suffered further heart attacks in 1977 and 1978.
He died on March 18, 1980, leaving behind many interesting psychoanalytic and sociological theories. Quotes and aphorisms of Erich Fromm are an invaluable heritage that he passed on to humanity in the hope that they will be correctly understood. However, this is what we will do.
"Escape from Freedom"
Perhaps this is the first work by Erich Fromm that university students at the Faculty of Sociology are introduced to. To tell the truth, it is quite difficult for an untrained person to understand this work. And the point is not at all in complex terminology or an old-fashioned style of storytelling, I just don’t want to admit that a person is just a “cog in the social system” who constantly plays different roles, is selfish due to a lack of love, and only the lucky few manage to experience real pride in what they do. that they didn’t give up on themselves. Quotes from Erich Fromm from “Escape from Freedom” are often not perceived by the modern generation, because, as they say, the truth stings in the eyes. It’s only thanks to them that you can understand the true state of things, and by understanding them, you can change your life.
Adviсe
In “The Art of Love” you can also find several useful recommendations, for example:
As important as it is to avoid empty talk, it is equally important to avoid bad company. By “bad company” I mean not only vicious people; their company should be avoided because their influence is oppressive and harmful. I also mean the society of "zombies" whose soul is dead, although the body is alive; people with empty thoughts and words, people who do not talk, but chatter, do not think, but express common opinions.
The author notes that the environment influences a person in all aspects of life. Man is a social creature, so he will always reach out for the majority. He will change his opinion, behavior, and even his level of intelligence will increase or decrease depending on who is nearby. It is also worth paying attention to quotes about time and knowledge:
He who, having knowledge, pretends not to know, is above all. Anyone who, without knowledge, pretends to know is sick. ("The Art of Loving")
Modern man thinks that he is wasting time when he does not act quickly, but he does not know what to do with the time he has gained except to kill it.
Thoughts and everyday life
Well, let's start looking at quotes from Erich Fromm:
The right to express our thoughts only makes sense if we are able to have our own thoughts.
The psychologist is absolutely right in this; a person should not talk about what he does not fully understand. People can fill their minds with snatches of other people's phrases and thoughts, but without understanding what is happening, even the most ingenious idea will turn into ordinary garbage. In one modern novel (“Will You Show Me Hell?”) there is a phrase: “A ready-made answer has no chance of creating a thought.” Fromm also speaks about this: to think, to think, to create - this is what a person should do.
Knowing your true desires is much more difficult than most of us think; this is one of the most difficult problems of human existence. We desperately try to escape this problem by adopting standard goals as our own.
This is another problem of humanity that will always exist. Here we are talking about the same notorious dusty script that everyone follows.
Do people really want to live the way they are supposed to? Study, work, family, a stable and unremarkable existence - this is considered a mandatory norm, and those who go against it will certainly face rejection, aggression and misunderstanding. Therefore it is necessary:
Play many roles and be subjectively sure that each of them is him. In fact, a person plays each role in accordance with his ideas about what others expect from him; and in many people, if not in most people, the real personality is completely smothered by the pseudo-personality.
