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  • Essay / Paul Kalanithi “when breath becomes air” vs. Viktor Frankl's “Man's Search for Meaning”

    When Breath Becomes Air and Man's Search for Meaning have many different ideas associated with suffering. By reading these books, you can begin to compare and contrast different ideas and have stronger opinions on one idea than another. I believe that through suffering, it is important to remember religion to give meaning to our lives. Through suffering, religion can be used to find meaning in experience. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay In When Breath Becomes Air, Paul Kalantithi has the idea that it's not what causes suffering or how to overcome suffering, it's what we do to make sense of it. our life. He states, “I had to face my mortality and try to understand what was worth living” (Kalantithi 139). Suffering is not what we should focus on, especially in times of difficulty. The important thing to focus on is what makes us happy and what makes our life worthwhile. Without giving meaning to our life and doing what we truly love in life, is it worth suffering? Throughout his book, he repeatedly mentions that sometimes the “right” decision is not always the best. He explains to people on ventilators how they will never be able to live life the way they used to. Without some of these opportunities that give meaning to our lives, they are not always worth the suffering we go through. The man in search of meaning adopts a different approach to suffering. Viktor E. Frankl believes that we, as human beings, must endure countless suffering in order to find meaning in our lives. He believes that we will not always find our meaning at the end of our lives if we do not go through enough suffering. Victor Frankl illustrates this idea through his book stating, “If there is meaning to life, then there must be meaning to suffering” (Frankl 76). This shows that there is meaning in everything, even suffering. Just because suffering puts a strain on us as people doesn't mean we won't get a powerful message from it. Although Paul Kalantihi and Vicktor Frankl may have many differences in their texts, there are also similarities. In their books, both men believe that you can hear about many different experiences that people have had, but without experiencing them yourself, you don't understand how emotionally conflicting they can be. For example, Victor Frankl writes, “Those who have not undergone a similar experience can hardly conceive the soul-destroying mental conflicts and conflicts of will which a starving man experiences” (Frankl 43). This is very true for Kalanithi and Frankl. Frankl had lived through the Holocaust and lost many family members to the tragedy. Kalantihi was diagnosed with terminal cancer while completing his residency to become a doctor. He leaves behind a wife and an eight-month-old baby. These situations, in particular, would be extremely difficult to understand. Many of us have lost a family member to cancer or heard the story of someone who survived the Holocaust. Do we really understand what it feels like to suffer in their situation? Religion also plays a huge role in suffering. Since many people do not consider themselves religious, most of us turn to religion when we need help the most. During the.