Even if they don't get due recognition, many people have the merit of publishing ideas with the potential to impact today's society. This was the case of Erich Fromm Today we will show you a little about his life, as well as introduce you to the psychoanalyst's works and ideas.

About Erich Fromm

Born in 1900 in the German empire, Erich Fromm was a remarkable thinker of his time The psychoanalyst was also a sociologist, philosopher, and researcher at the Institute for Social Research at the University of Frankfurt.

It is worth saying that it was because of him that the city of Frankfurt popularized Jewish education, and Fromm was one of the teachers. With a background in Psychoanalysis, he continued his studies at the institute, being one of the pioneers in merging Psychoanalysis into scientific research.

Ideas

According to Erich Fromm, Sociology and Psychology were the necessary bases for analyzing the problems of society. He sought to clarify the relationship between social development and the psychology of the human being, including the structure of the Self.

According to the psychoanalyst, the human being is responsible for himself from the moment he is born For him, getting away from nature is difficult, which leads people to seek to be dominated or to dominate other individuals.

For Fromm, the paths that human beings take are directed towards masochism, submission, sadism, and domination. However, he argues that the healthy form of relationship between people is built through love, thus being productive. Through it, humanity can maintain its own integrity and guarantee its freedom, preserving the union with its fellows.

The effects of detachment

As mentioned above, Erich Fromm argued that at a certain point in a human being's life, he detaches himself from his nature. The psychoanalyst himself pointed out the difficulty in this process, since there is a somewhat harmful compensation. Even so, this detachment makes you have:

Freedom

Once out of the womb, the human being is faced with vast possibilities to explore the world around him in any way he chooses. Yet, when he leaves the womb, he mold your personality in a healthy way, it prevents a harmful and compromising character deviation for any kind of relationship .

Productive relationships

Another gain for the human being is the possibility of finding and maintaining productive relationships. Perhaps this issue can explain the existence of diverse groups and societies around the world.

The Cost of Freedom

Erich Fromm pointed out that the freedom guaranteed to the human being when he leaves his nature comes at a cost. As he stated, not everyone can accept the burden of being free, seeking again to be dependent .

It is worth saying that when one chooses to be directed by another person, the responsibility and burden of choices disappear immediately. In this case, even though the other person's will always prevail, the sense of security that the addict has makes his life more comfortable. However, even though it may frighten, freedom need not be seen in a terrifying way by people.

After all, conformism leads a person to become blind in his obedience to the rules created by others. Consequently, this loss of self-will contributes to a decline in his mental health. This is because thinking, deciding, and dealing with the consequences of one's actions contributes to an individual's growth .

The meaning of mental health

For Erich Fromm, mental health is the ability to love, to create, and to be free from addictions. This idea concerns a person's experiences with himself. Thus, those with mental health can see external and internal realities and have the freedom to have an individual existence that is driven by reason .

Consequently, mental health enables an individual to better conduct his relationships and better process the collective reality. In other words, it helps the individual to be critical, as he becomes a questioner of pre-established conventions. In view of this, instead of simply accepting what is imposed on him, the person with mental health rejects anylimitation that hurts your ability to think.

Have or Be

One of Erich Fromm's most widely read works, Have or Be shows the psychoanalyst's analysis of the contemporary social crisis. According to Fromm, in the search for a solution to this problem, two modes of existence can be found: having and being.

O way of having is founded on the idea that the real human essence is to have, since anything else is irrelevant. This is why modern society invests so much in the pursuit of expensive things in an attempt to make a personal statement After all, she shows that her value is in what she consumes.

I want information to enroll in the Psychoanalysis Course .

Erich tried to point out the implications of this way of living, arguing that society should invest more in its essence and less in material goods. way of being According to him, through this line of thinking, it would be possible for people to live in harmony and in a healthy way by being together.

Works

Consisting of a huge catalog, Erich Fromm's work has been translated into several languages, gaining worldwide reach. If you want to ensure a full immersion in the psychoanalyst's work, we recommend reading his translated books, starting with:

• The Fear of Freedom ;
• To have or to be? ;
• From Having to Being: Posthumous Works Vol. 1 ;
• The Art of Love ;
• From Love to Life ;
• The Discovery of the Social Unconscious: Posthumous Works Vol. 3 ;
• Analysis of Man ;
• The Revolution of Hope ;
• The Heart of Man ;
• Marxist Concept of Man ;
• My Encounter with Marx and Freud ;
• Freud's Mission ;
• The Crisis of Psychoanalysis ;
• Psychoanalysis and Religion ;
• Psychoanalysis of Contemporary Society ;
• Dogma of Christ ;
• The Spirit of Freedom ;
• The Forgotten Language ;
• Anatomy of Human Destructiveness ;
• The Survival of Mankind ;
• Zen Buddhism and Psychoanalysis with D.T. Suzuki and Richard de Martino .

Concluding remarks about Erich Fromm

Even if Erich Fromm does not get the academic recognition he deserves, he has been of the utmost importance for the understanding of human nature Through his work, the psychoanalyst outlined the necessary guidelines to analyze the true essence of the human being.

It is worth reiterating that Fromm's works reveal the author's involvement and seriousness with what he proposes to discuss. For those who are seeking to expand their own limits and reach new understandings about the human being, it is well worth starting the readings we have indicated. After all, understanding the human essence enables the creation of means to reach a healthy and valuable freedom.

You can fully achieve this by enrolling in our online Psychoanalysis course. The online classes will give you the guidance and support you need to work on your personal needs while developing your potential. Merging Erich Fromm's knowledge with our course will make your possibilities for growth incredibly greater .