Erich Fromm. Introduction
Erich Fromm, born on March 23, 1900, in Frankfurt am Main, Germany, holds a prominent place in the field of psychoanalysis. He donned multiple hats – social behaviorist, philosopher, and even a Marxist. Born on March 23, 1900, in Frankfurt am Main, Germany, he emerged from a backdrop of orthodox Jewish parents.
As the sole child of a wine merchant, Fromm’s childhood was marked by phobias and a somewhat challenging temperament. His mother’s depression and his father’s volatile nature further complicated his early years. Despite a conservative upbringing, he rebelled against his religion, embracing atheism.
Fromm’s rejection of religion stemmed from its role in fostering strife and inequality. In a tumultuous era between the First and Second World Wars, he opted for more humanitarian and realistic philosophies.
Fromm’s academic journey was noteworthy. He initially delved into sociology but ultimately found his passion in psychology. Interestingly, as a young boy, he looked up to various Jewish intellectuals as his role models. These figures, including Hermann Cohen, Rabbi Nehemia Nobel, and Rabbi Salman Baruch Rabinkow, influenced his affinity for diverse and analytical schools of thought.
Ironically, his first professional role was as a rabbi, mirroring his evolving journey from tradition to a life dedicated to exploration and analysis.
World War I and Its Impact on Fromm
The cataclysmic First World War reshaped Erich Fromm’s beliefs and worldview profoundly. He once confessed, “When the war ended in 1918, I was a deeply troubled young man who was obsessed by the question of how war was possible, by the wish to understand the irrationality of human mass behavior, by a passionate desire for peace and international understanding. More, I had become deeply suspicious of all official ideologies and declarations and filled with the conviction ‘of all one must doubt.'”
This war left an indelible mark. After completing his legal theory degree at the University of Frankfurt in 1919, Fromm shifted his focus to sociology at Heidelberg University. Guided by the distinguished sociologist Alfred Weber, he earned his Ph.D. in 1922.
In the mid-1920s, Fromm shifted his academic focus to psychology. His chance to train in psychoanalysis came through Frieda Reichmann, who became his wife in 1926. Unfortunately, their marriage faced challenges due to the age gap and their prior therapist-patient dynamic, which hindered spontaneity and innocence. Despite their divorce, Fromm and Frieda maintained a friendly personal and professional connection.
Between the Wars
Fromm’s critical social theories soon led him to the renowned ‘Frankfurt School.’ He played a pivotal role in establishing the Frankfurt Psychoanalytic Institute and, following Max Horkheimer’s invitation, joined the esteemed Frankfurt Institute for Social Research. From 1929 to 1932, he taught at both institutions and conducted research on the totalitarian inclinations of German workers before Hitler’s ascent to power. This work was posthumously published as “The Working Class in Weimar Germany” in 1984.
With Hitler’s rise and the Nazi regime, Erich Fromm was compelled to flee his homeland, first to Geneva and ultimately to the United States. In 1934, he joined Columbia University and also lectured at Yale University and Bennington College from 1941 to 1950. His American years marked a fruitful partnership with Karen Horney, where they exchanged insights into psychoanalytical and sociological theories.
Erich Fromm’s influential book, “Escape from Freedom,” released in 1942, delved into the concept that liberating individuals from traditional medieval societal constraints, while granting newfound independence, also induced feelings of isolation, doubt, anxiety, and drove them towards irrational submission and compulsive behaviors. This examination of isolation, uncertainty, and the allure of totalitarian systems like fascism is regarded as a foundational contribution to the field of political psychology.
Fromm’s Insights into Five Fundamental Human Needs
Erich Fromm proposed that humans have five essential needs: relatedness, rootedness, transcendence, identity, and orientation.
Relatedness
Fromm highlighted the issue of alienation in modern society, stemming from unmet needs for relatedness. He considered alienation the central problem of mental health.
Rootedness and Unity
These needs are akin to relatedness, driven by a desire for unity between the human and nonhuman realms. Without establishing unity, life would be unbearable.
Excitement and Stimulation
Fromm asserted that humans possess an inherent need for excitement and stimulation. Pleasure and active interest drive this desire.
Effectiveness
Merely engaging in activity isn’t enough; humans crave meaningful, creative work that impacts the world, affirming their vitality.
Sense of Identity
Identity is closely tied to relatedness and effectiveness. It emerges as a response to the daunting world, providing a sense of competence and will.
Frame of Orientation
A need for a coherent worldview and a guiding reference point forms this requirement. It helps people understand their place in the world.
Transcendence
Fromm emphasized the need to transcend self-centeredness, connecting with others and escaping self-imprisonment. Religion can serve this need.
Impact of Religion on Human Development
Erich Fromm delved into the intricate dynamics of religion, perceiving life as a struggle between three fundamental dualities: freedom versus determinism, separateness versus unity, and knowledge versus ignorance.
Fromm gained recognition for his neo-Freudian examination of religion, asserting that religion serves as an escape from responsibility, favoring reason over religion.
He distinguished between priests and psychoanalysts, contending that only the latter empowers individuals as the responsible authorities of their own souls.
Yet, Fromm recognized a universal religious need within people. He argued that humans require meaning and a deeper orientation to the world than reason alone can provide, opposing Freud’s belief that religion is avoidable.
In his quest, Fromm aimed to differentiate between good and bad religion. He labelled authoritarian religion as “bad,” where individuals are excessively subservient to a higher power, sacrificing their integrity.
Conversely, “humanistic religion,” as Fromm termed it, emphasizes human strength over powerlessness and prioritizes individual fulfilment. Its goal is self-realization rather than blind obedience to authority.
Fromm’s Relationship with Freud
Erich Fromm’s extensive body of work often revolved around the ideas of Sigmund Freud. He arrived in the United States during the lead-up to the Second World War, a time when his principles clashed with those of American Freudians.
Fromm believed that an individual’s psyche was shaped by both biology and society. His primary focus lay on how consumerism impacted one’s sense of self.
Diving deep into Freud’s theories, Fromm discerned a notable shift in Freud’s ideas before and after the First World War. Pre-WWI, Freud explained human impulses as a battle between needs and repression. Post-WWI, the conflict was framed as a struggle between Eros (Life instinct) and Thanatos (Death instinct). According to Freud, these impulses intermingled and clashed within individuals.
Eros represented life-affirming qualities like love, sexuality, imagination, pride, and procreation, while Thanatos encompassed life-denying impulses such as violence, brutality, annihilation, and death. Fromm criticized Freud and other neo-Freudians for not acknowledging the inconsistencies between these two hypotheses.
Critisism on Freud’s Concept
Fromm criticized many of Freud’s concepts like the Oedipus complex, life and death instincts, and the libido theory. He diverged from Freud by emphasizing the role of society and culture in individual human development.
He delved further into Freud’s dualistic thinking, asserting that Freud’s portrayal of human consciousness as a conflict between extremes was limiting. Fromm accused Freud of being constrained by the patriarchal norms of his time, labeling him a misogynist. Nevertheless, Fromm held Freud in high esteem, considering him, along with figures like Albert Einstein and Karl Marx, a pioneer of the modern era, despite the shortcomings in his theories.
Fromm’s Affinity with Marxism
Karl Marx held a profound influence on Erich Fromm, whom he regarded as one of history’s greatest intellectuals. Fromm’s 1955 book, “The Sane Society,” drew inspiration from Marx’s early teachings. Fromm’s brand of socialism and communism rejected both Western capitalism and the mechanized, life-denying communism of the Soviet Union.
He saw the latter as leading to global isolation. Embracing Marx’s early ideas, Fromm became a pioneer of socialist humanism, advocating for these philosophies in Western societies.
In 1944, Fromm entered his second marriage with Henny Gurland, which eventually granted him American citizenship. In 1950, he relocated to Mexico due to his wife’s health issues, as her doctor recommended a more suitable climate for her recovery. Sadly, Henny passed away in 1952.
As an active psychoanalyst, Fromm played a pivotal role in establishing the Mexican Institute of Psychoanalysis, serving as its director until 1976.
Erich Fromm’s Pivotal Works
Fromm’s writings reflect a deep philosophical humanism, pondering human existence, intellectual growth, and the impact of technology. In the technocratic world, Fromm sought ways to preserve humanity’s spirit, the essence of life and social cohesion. Having witnessed the devastating consequences of two world wars, he contemplated the terrifying effects and destructivness of modern technology.
In his work, Fromm aimed to discern the governing principles of individual and societal life. He sought enduring truths in Freud’s and Marx’s ideas, while also critiquing their limitations. Ultimately, he endeavored to synthesize their insights, as articulated in his 1962 work, “Beyond the Chains of Illusion.”
Fromm’s philosophical musings found expression in his final significant work, “To Have or To Be” (1976). He posited that life consisted of two components: ‘having’ and ‘being.’ ‘Having’ pertained to material possessions and was rooted in violence and excess, while ‘being’ was centered on love and fostered communal harmony and constructive actions. Fromm stressed the need for a balance between the two, as an overwhelming focus on ‘having’ would lead to chaos and destruction, advocating for the harmonious coexistence of both forms of life.
Erich Fromm. Summary
Today, Erich Fromm stands as a pivotal figure in 20th-century psychoanalysis. While initially influenced by Freud, he later joined the ranks of neo-Freudians, such as Karen Horney and Carl Gustav Jung.
While Fromm gained recognition as a theorist in the 1950s and 1960s, he remained distant from the school of psychoanalysts. In the latter part of his life, he delved into themes of death and change. His work “The Anatomy of Human Destructiveness” explored these concepts. In this work he emphasized that mankind’s driving force arises from the absence of genuine existence and individuality.
Fromm’s impact extended to humanistic psychology. He viewed life as a paradox, where humans exist both within and apart from nature. This duality gave rise to fundamental existential needs: relatedness, creativity, rootedness, identity, and a frame of orientation, as per Fromm’s insights.
Fromm firmly believed in humanity’s potential and the importance of cultural harmony as the basis for a brighter future. His third and final marriage was to Annis Freeman in 1953. He continued his role at the Mexican university while lecturing at various American universities and actively engaging in politics. He was a civil rights activist, led anti-nuclear weapons campaigns, participated in anti-Vietnam protests, and organized environmental protection movements.
In 1980, Erich Fromm, after a rich intellectual life, passed away in Locarno, Switzerland, succumbing to a heart attack. His legacy continues to shape discussions on psychology, philosophy, and humanism.
Publications
Fromm’s notable publications include “Psychoanalysis and Religion” (1950), “Marx’s Concept of Man” (1961), “Beyond the Chains of Illusion: My Encounter with Marx and Freud” (1962), “The Dogma of Christ, and Other Essays on Religion, Psychology and Culture” (1963), “The Life and Work of Sigmund Freud” (1963), “Social Character in a Mexican Village” (1970), “The Anatomy of Human Destructiveness” (1973), 1962 work, “Beyond the Chains of Illusion”, “To Have or To Be” (1976).