Philosophy

The Denial of Death

The Denial of Death

  • Downloads：3819
  • Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
  • Create Date：2021-07-16 09:56:39
  • Update Date：2025-09-06
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Ernest Becker
  • ISBN：1788164261
  • Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
  • Download

Summary

Winner of the Pulitzer Prize in 1974 and the culmination of a life's work， The Denial of Death is Ernest Becker's brilliant and impassioned answer to the 'why' of human existence。 In bold contrast to the predominant Freudian school of thought， Becker tackles the problem of the vital lie - man's refusal to acknowledge his own mortality。

The book argues that human civilisation is a defence against the knowledge that we are mortal beings。 Becker states that humans live in both the physical world and a symbolic world of meaning， which is where our 'immortality project' resides。 We create in order to become immortal - to become part of something we believe will last forever。 In this way we hope to give our lives meaning。

In The Denial of Death， Becker sheds new light on the nature of humanity and issues a call to life and its living that still resonates decades after it was written。

Download

Reviews

Brian Mikołajczyk ，

A philosophy of how to think about death and how it impacts human's general psychological state。Ernest Becker's thesis starts out well-formed: death is a concept that humans are all-to-aware-of and need many coping mechanism to deal with it: religion， philsophy， and certain mental states。He then proceeds to do a post-hoc psychoanalysis of Freud and Kierkegaard for the majority of the book。 This is very unrelated to the thesis and overall he overvalues these two。A pretty bad read honestly。 A philosophy of how to think about death and how it impacts human's general psychological state。Ernest Becker's thesis starts out well-formed: death is a concept that humans are all-to-aware-of and need many coping mechanism to deal with it: religion， philsophy， and certain mental states。He then proceeds to do a post-hoc psychoanalysis of Freud and Kierkegaard for the majority of the book。 This is very unrelated to the thesis and overall he overvalues these two。A pretty bad read honestly。 。。。more

Miguel Abreu ，

Complicated book for myself。 The book touch many good ideas of how we portrait our life， and what we do to avoid the idea our mortal souls。

Chinchila ，

This book is hard for me to review because I have a lot to say and I'm not sure if I am able to organise all my thoughts in a clear and concise way。 This book is very interesting。 Interesting in the sense that it has missed the mark。 At times it felt like a far-fetched theory that was not backed by any hard fact but only by speculation and， what I call， mental gymnastics。 I'm going to try to list my thoughts in a clearer way: - According to Becker， our whole civilization as a human species is bu This book is hard for me to review because I have a lot to say and I'm not sure if I am able to organise all my thoughts in a clear and concise way。 This book is very interesting。 Interesting in the sense that it has missed the mark。 At times it felt like a far-fetched theory that was not backed by any hard fact but only by speculation and， what I call， mental gymnastics。 I'm going to try to list my thoughts in a clearer way: - According to Becker， our whole civilization as a human species is build as a response to our fear or denial of death， in contrast to the biological impulse and sexual theory （which I also don't subscribe to）。 While the fear of death as the basis of human civilisation （or rather， human civilisation as a defense mechanism against the fear of death） seems like an upgrade from the sexual theory or the biological impulse theory， it is still deeply flawed and full of holes。 Humans are much more complex than that。 Hell， even other animals are much more complex than that。 If his theory was true， there would be no suicides， no people that sacrificed their lives。 - Becker holds more optimistic views towards religion， for my taste。 I couldn't help but feel that by religion he only meant "Christianity"。 I would never expect an atheist to believe that religion and the leap of faith is a good solution for humanity， especially since history has shown time and time again that it has done more damage than repair。 At least， we are on the same page that religion is a lie。 Becker feels that this lie is necessary because it protects our feeble minds from the terror of death。 According to him， we need a "father figure" like we did when we were little babies and god serves as the perfect substitute for that （I could write a whole book on why this is so wrong）。 He feels sorry that religion has weakened its influence in this age of reasoning。 He says that Christianity would be a perfect religion for this purpose （Dude， No！）。 Another point that he mentions is that religion paints death as a transformation and not as the end and this lie makes us feel good and less terrified。 If we believe that death is not the end but just the beginning of an eternal journey， it will make the experience of death less traumatizing。 Firstly， with this reasoning， he makes humanity look like they have the IQ of an ant。 Give us some credit！ We won't go insane as a species just because we know we will perish forever。 We can handle the truth！ We are not little children that need to be kept in a protective bubble。 And if some of us are， they need to grow up。 Secondly， it is clear that his understanding of religion is very limited and one-faceted。 It is paradoxical that the one thing that is supposed to make death easier for you， makes your life more terrifying and just as unbearable。 The one thing that is supposed to make leaving your life easier， actually makes living itself more difficult， with all the stupid rules it imposes。 Moreover， how is death described in religion less terrifying than real death？ On what plane of existence is it a good idea to introduce eternal hell or a life full of suffering in order to get to heaven？ Wasn't religion supposed to be comforting， because that doesn't sound comforting to me at all。 Religious people are some of the most fearful people I know。 They are afraid of thinking for themselves， of asking questions， of pissing off the invisible daddy， of going to hell， of sinning， of people that are different than them， of the end of the world， of the armageddon， and also no less terrified of death itself。 How can you call that living？ You might as well just end it， skip living like that， and go straight to heaven/hell。 I would expect the views on this book only from someone that never goes deeper and just likes to scratch the surface。 The idea of religion as a saving lie also disregards so many other negative aspects of religion （wars， genocide， racism， discrimination， bigotry， wilful ignorance， anyone？）。 I strongly believe we don't need to trade a horrible thing for another horrible thing， that has historically proven how much it is holding us back。 - Becker also believes that science is not capable of providing comfort。 I have only one thing to say to this （well， really a lot of things， but they can be summarised as this）: Eppur si muove。 Science is not something you have to believe in。 Science deals with hard facts。 You don't get to choose if something is to your liking or not。 You don't get to choose what fact to "believe"。 The beauty of facts is that they are true in spite of your wishes or beliefs。 You can choose to ignore and not believe the fact that the Earth rotates around the Sun， but it doesn't stop the Earth from rotating around the Sun。 Just because religion has scared most people into ignorance， doesn't mean that the other half of the population wants to remain in the "comforting darkness"。 We have a saying in my country that goes "Na o qorr sy。 Po qorri prape i nxjerr te dy syte" which roughly means that you can't give sight to someone that doesn't want to see。 I have personally found a lot of comfort in science and the way that I see life and death。- Anality - This was one of the interesting parts that I liked exploring in this book。 I stumble across this concept time and time again and I always find our fascination with feces baffling。 Maybe the anality theory deserves some credit。 I also don't see any other reason why children or even adults （for example， the mentally ill） get obsessed with feces or the anal cavity。 Maybe it is really because it reminds us of our "creatureliness"。 Again， it is very interesting that humans have a hard time accepting that they are just another animal。 Clearly more advanced， but still， by definition an animal。 I also see the role of religion in making humans feel special and not just an animal。 On the contrary， religious agendas push the idea that the whole world/universe was created for us。 I personally believe humanity needs a good dose of humbleness and not another hero complex/project and grandiosity idea。- I disagree with the idea of denying death。 Haven't we already established that repressing trauma is not a good idea？ We don't need to deny death。 We need to accept it。 Fear of death is not fear of the actual process of dying。 It is instead fear of pain and suffering， of not living， not feeling， and not experiencing anymore。 If that is the case， what we need to do is go on and live， experience， experiment， enjoy life to the fullest while it lasts。 Why lie to ourselves？ Will it stop us from dying？ No！ Then， might as well just accept it for what it is。 Vain of us to assume that any "immortality project" that we undertake will let us live forever through our legacy。 Vain of us to assume that anything that we do is of any cosmic importance。 Time will erase even the most impressive of man from our collective memory。 Immortality projects， as Becker himself was able to recognize， can be causes of wars， conflict， and chaos。 And if we spend our lives denying death， then what happens when it is at our door？ How do you deal with that when you have never actually prepared yourself because you were too busy trying to deny it？ If you've been hiding from it throughout your entire life， and now you must face it， how do you deal with it？ That would actually be more terrifying。 It doesn't just go away if we ignore it hard enough。 - Another problem that I had with this book is how mental illnesses are illustrated。 The definitions of schizophrenia， depression， neurotics， etc。 were so misguided， unscientific， and romanticized。 Mentally ill people are not people who know some truth hidden from the rest of us。 Becker warned that he wouldn't be able to sum up the whole complexity of these disorders in just a few paragraphs but then went on and gave an inaccurate description， which felt like he wasn't even trying。 I understand that our understanding of mental illness was not as adequate then as it is now （and it still has a long way to go） but it wasn't as bad as the definitions in this book would lead you to believe。 - Many arguments that Becker makes are based on references and theories that are narrow-minded， outdated， and prejudiced。 I don't want to ever have to read about castration and the inferiority of female genitals again！ Ugh！ - My personal experience with death: I know that my experience is not unique as a person who has struggled with depression and suicidal thoughts。 As any other suicidal person will confirm， thinking about your own death hurts， at first， and then you get used to it。 You get to replay your death in your head so many times that you are completely desensitised to it。 It doesn't hurt anymore， it doesn't feel wrong， it doesn't scare you。 It becomes comforting and welcoming。 There are things that are more terrifying to me than death， such as failed suicide attempts that leave you hopeless and bound to a bed or a wheelchair， unable to finish what you started， and a burden to your family。 The fact that so many people overcome the fear of death and accept it as a way out is the key indicator that there are things to life that are more terrifying and more painful than death。I find that accepting your mortality makes living way easier。 There is no point in denying it because we will never conquer it （and it is a good thing we won't。 Immortality sounds awful and Becker has at least done a good job illustrating this in the book）。 As Stephen Hawking has said in one of his books， accepting that he would die soon made him try to accomplish as much as he could while he was still alive， not taking tomorrow for granted。 I believe that this is the approach that we need to take， and not the "I don't care that I'm suffering now because I will be happy when I die and go to heaven"， or "I better start a cult so that people will carry on my legacy decades after I'm gone， making me immortal"。 。。。more

James Molloy ，

This book was so bad it put me too far behind in my 2021 reading challenge， as it took me so long to want to finish it。I would only recommend to those interested in psychology that REALLY like Otto Rank。This is awful。

Taylor Coomer ，

Take Tine to Read & Think The author makes some good points and others that I do not necessarily agree with。 However， overall the author gives a mostly unbiased opinion on why humanity is fearful of death from various psychologists’ perspectives: Freud， Adler， and Jung。 Also he ties in the need for a higher meaning per Rank and Kierkegaard。 Really interesting， but dense read。

Calvin Isch ，

Meh… overrated and often incoherent。 Worth a read only for historical interest。

Chris Boutté ，

After years of hearing authors recommend and cite this book， I finally got it。 It’s a really interesting subject because we’re the only species who is aware of our own mortality， so， I wanted to see what the most cited book said about it。 I respect the book and author， and I understand why so many people love it， but personally， I wasn’t a fan。 There were definitely great insights and conversations within the book from a psychology and philosophy perspective， but it felt like 90% of the book was After years of hearing authors recommend and cite this book， I finally got it。 It’s a really interesting subject because we’re the only species who is aware of our own mortality， so， I wanted to see what the most cited book said about it。 I respect the book and author， and I understand why so many people love it， but personally， I wasn’t a fan。 There were definitely great insights and conversations within the book from a psychology and philosophy perspective， but it felt like 90% of the book was just about Freud。 Maybe it’s because I’m more new school， but like this book， I respect what Freud did， but I’m not a fan of his work now that we know how many of his theories had severe flaws。 So， as you can expect from a book that’s highly Freudian， there’s a lot of talk about our sexual and unconcious desires， and there’s a lot of theories behind how we cope with life and death， and there’s even a weird chapter in here on mental illness that made no sense to me。 To get an understanding of how far we’ve come or to see what the hype is about， you should read this book。 But， personally， I’m not disappointed that I waited so long to read this book， and I think there are many other books on human nature that are far better。 。。。more

Margarita ，

The underlying premise here is that humans lie to themselves。 To repress the fear of our own mortality， we reach out for some kind of heroism。 Heroism – for good or ill – is a way for each of us to transcend death and become immortal。 The lens taken to support this premise is psychoanalysis with sprinklings of philosophy and religion。 Becker dissects positions and arguments taken by Freud， Rank， Kierkegaard while infusing his own commentary into the fold as well。 This isn’t the kind of read that The underlying premise here is that humans lie to themselves。 To repress the fear of our own mortality， we reach out for some kind of heroism。 Heroism – for good or ill – is a way for each of us to transcend death and become immortal。 The lens taken to support this premise is psychoanalysis with sprinklings of philosophy and religion。 Becker dissects positions and arguments taken by Freud， Rank， Kierkegaard while infusing his own commentary into the fold as well。 This isn’t the kind of read that will leave you feeling uplifted or inspired， but it is well-researched and articulated， though stylistically rather dense。 。。。more

Seqhuoia ，

I had been wanting to read this book for a long time， and I finally decided to give it a go this month。 What a brilliant book， with penetrating insights into the tragedy of the human animal—shining light on the inherent duality it experiences， its feelings of ambivalence， its puniness， its fear of ultimate freedom and of course; its fear of outright demise。Overall， it’s indubitably one to consider reading if you are interested in explanations about how we go about living in this world。 This isn’ I had been wanting to read this book for a long time， and I finally decided to give it a go this month。 What a brilliant book， with penetrating insights into the tragedy of the human animal—shining light on the inherent duality it experiences， its feelings of ambivalence， its puniness， its fear of ultimate freedom and of course; its fear of outright demise。Overall， it’s indubitably one to consider reading if you are interested in explanations about how we go about living in this world。 This isn’t for the faint-hearted though; the heightened awareness prompted by this book could be really fatal for one who is unable to handle it。 Otherwise， go all in—excavate as much as you can from this crucial mine of veracity; veracity unspoken by the masses as they concern our pale， life-long companion: death。 。。。more

Austin ，

One of the worst books I’ve ever read， this makes Jordan Peterson look like Bertrand Russel

Jovany Agathe ，

It is logical to believe there are other forms of consciousness operating at levels above us。 Otherwise we are the top and you know we suck

Antonio Stark ，

A classic book on psychoanalysis and the milestone of the post-Freudian approach。 This Pulitzer-winning book gave a succinct summary of Freudian psychology， as well as a review of the works of Kierkegaard and Rank。 This book posits novel arguments on the role of religion， sex， self-identification， and the （myth of） human fate/faith。 A recommended read to anyone interested in meta-religion， philosophy on the purpose/drive of life， the concept of 'immortality （casua sui） projects' A classic book on psychoanalysis and the milestone of the post-Freudian approach。 This Pulitzer-winning book gave a succinct summary of Freudian psychology， as well as a review of the works of Kierkegaard and Rank。 This book posits novel arguments on the role of religion， sex， self-identification， and the （myth of） human fate/faith。 A recommended read to anyone interested in meta-religion， philosophy on the purpose/drive of life， the concept of 'immortality （casua sui） projects' 。。。more

Andrea VH ，

The denial of death is a rare masterpiece for various reasons， although the most fundamental one in my opinion is the ability of the author to explain the nature of various mental illnesses or human conditions in very simple terms。 The ability to explain complex ideas into simple， easy to-follow and even appealing ideas is in fact the art of genius。 What will you find in this book？I。 Discussion about the heroic vs villain-Becker exposes a compelling theory about our insecurities， fears， claiming The denial of death is a rare masterpiece for various reasons， although the most fundamental one in my opinion is the ability of the author to explain the nature of various mental illnesses or human conditions in very simple terms。 The ability to explain complex ideas into simple， easy to-follow and even appealing ideas is in fact the art of genius。 What will you find in this book？I。 Discussion about the heroic vs villain-Becker exposes a compelling theory about our insecurities， fears， claiming that we， humans， have made the "hero" an ideal we ought to aspire to。 I。e- Why do people post the very best， superficial photographs on Instagram， why are models skinny， why are rich individuals photographed and interviewed as powerful leaders？ -Most importantly， why do all those individuals who are not skinny， rich， classy， popular， feel less worthy， anxious， depressed？ II。 Discussion about the nature of the hero- Psychology vs Religion。 Although to some this theory might be too extreme or even presumptuous， bold， here the author refers to the hero as the "Knight of faith"-Those individuals who are able to let go， to give， those who open up to life due to their ability to trust or believe in something greater than themselves-Yes， it is deep and might even sound too abstract but here the author uses mental illnesses like depression， schizophrenia， perversion， as extremes individuals tend to go to when not being able to deal with the reality of life。 Apparently， only the individual who believes in life， who gives up control and accepts， is the only true hero， the only individual with equilibrium， the sane individual with no need of harmful addictions。 I invite everyone willing to challenge their thoughts， conventions， or intellectual curiosity to read it。 It truly has something to say and the language and style is I dare to state， superb。 。。。more

Zachary Bunch ，

This could be a relatively dangerous book for someone who perhaps lacks the ability to cope with life changing revelations。 It could easily be argued， however， that no human being exists on this planet that truly possesses a defense for a revelation of this magnitude。 If you are looking for a book and/or theory that can potentially change the way you look at yourself， others， and your surroundings— this is the book for you！ I personally look forward to furthering my knowledge of psychoanalytic t This could be a relatively dangerous book for someone who perhaps lacks the ability to cope with life changing revelations。 It could easily be argued， however， that no human being exists on this planet that truly possesses a defense for a revelation of this magnitude。 If you are looking for a book and/or theory that can potentially change the way you look at yourself， others， and your surroundings— this is the book for you！ I personally look forward to furthering my knowledge of psychoanalytic thought by reading Becker's later texts。 Five stars！ 。。。more

Vinay Sutaria ，

I don’t find this book too relevant in the modern day and age。

JP ，

Pretty cool。 Some interesting ideas。 Lots of historical philosophical context。 Cute little aphorisms。 Way too much psychoanalysis。 Way too much Freud。 Not enough Becker。 Could've been half as long。 Even one quarter as long。 Would've been a more impactful read。Didn't answer my questions。 Raised new ones， sort of answered those。 Did not leave me feeling hopeful。 Did leave me feeling poetic。 Didn't leave me feeling confused。 Did leave me exhausted。 Was very glad when it was over。 Also。 Quite outdat Pretty cool。 Some interesting ideas。 Lots of historical philosophical context。 Cute little aphorisms。 Way too much psychoanalysis。 Way too much Freud。 Not enough Becker。 Could've been half as long。 Even one quarter as long。 Would've been a more impactful read。Didn't answer my questions。 Raised new ones， sort of answered those。 Did not leave me feeling hopeful。 Did leave me feeling poetic。 Didn't leave me feeling confused。 Did leave me exhausted。 Was very glad when it was over。 Also。 Quite outdated in terms of sexism and racism and nice things like that。 He says women's sexual organs are the dead and rotting versions of the penis。 Also says that some races are less mentally developed than others。 Yikes。Nice read。 Smart read。 Different read。 Don't think I recommend it。 。。。more

Darren Clever ，

An important book in terms of explaining man's perspective on life， death and living and the duality in which we live - that is and existence wavering between real （the physical body） and the symbolic （culture， society， religion）。 It is very heavy on specialized vocabulary from the world of psychotherapy and Freudism， so it may be a difficult read for those without previous experience with this field。 An important book in terms of explaining man's perspective on life， death and living and the duality in which we live - that is and existence wavering between real （the physical body） and the symbolic （culture， society， religion）。 It is very heavy on specialized vocabulary from the world of psychotherapy and Freudism， so it may be a difficult read for those without previous experience with this field。 。。。more

Francis Kilkenny ，

Ernest Becker’s ‘Denial of Death’ is difficult to rate with today’s sensibilities。 It relies on psychoanalysis to diagnose the human condition and all of its paradoxes。 Central to this diagnosis is the fear of death and the desire for a type of immortality through transference， onto God， a leader or even one’s own genius。 I got many tidbits of wisdom from this book， even though it was hard for me to swallow every argument whole。 I’m distrustful of psychoanalysis in general， as it feels overly th Ernest Becker’s ‘Denial of Death’ is difficult to rate with today’s sensibilities。 It relies on psychoanalysis to diagnose the human condition and all of its paradoxes。 Central to this diagnosis is the fear of death and the desire for a type of immortality through transference， onto God， a leader or even one’s own genius。 I got many tidbits of wisdom from this book， even though it was hard for me to swallow every argument whole。 I’m distrustful of psychoanalysis in general， as it feels overly theoretical and seems to override empirical results in psychology。 Becker does contrast multiple psychoanalytical thinkers， to give a broader view of the approach， but it still suffers from its fundamental reliance on Freud， either in agreement or contrast。 Nevertheless， if the reader pushes through the self-referential and sometimes convoluted language of psychoanalysis， there is much here of use。 I think it speaks to Becker’s power as a writer and thinker that he is able to weave an interesting， and perhaps even useful， tapestry out of flawed thread and cloth。 。。。more

Anuraag ，

Outstanding and breathtakingThis book has opened up my mind to a lot of new insights on meaning， purpose， anxiety， fear and how to live a life inspite of all the terrors it inherently makes one go through

Anjum Rajbhandari ，

This book was waaay out of my league man！！ It was a difficult book to finish and I couldn't grasp the intended concepts most of the time。 I may have to come back to this one when I'm older， wiser。 This book was waaay out of my league man！！ It was a difficult book to finish and I couldn't grasp the intended concepts most of the time。 I may have to come back to this one when I'm older， wiser。 。。。more

Dustin Bagby ，

I will admit up front that I don’t have the education in regard to psychoanalysis， psychotherapy， Freud， Rank， and Jung nor have I mined the depths of Kierkegaard’s existential philosophy enough to be able to fully understand and appreciate this book in all that it achieves。 But the main idea of man’s greatest problem being our repression of death rather than our repression of sexuality （contra Freud）， I could totally grasp and get on board with。 I think some of his psychology is outdated at thi I will admit up front that I don’t have the education in regard to psychoanalysis， psychotherapy， Freud， Rank， and Jung nor have I mined the depths of Kierkegaard’s existential philosophy enough to be able to fully understand and appreciate this book in all that it achieves。 But the main idea of man’s greatest problem being our repression of death rather than our repression of sexuality （contra Freud）， I could totally grasp and get on board with。 I think some of his psychology is outdated at this point which becomes most obvious when he speaks of the causes of depression and schizophrenia which the recent work Hidden Valley Road easily debunks。 Despite that there are still gems to be had here。 I appreciated the focus of our "immortality projects”， or what we do to protect ourselves from the knowledge that we will die。 How we seek to make a contribution to the world that will live on beyond our earthly lives and show that we contributed something worthwhile or our life had meaning。 Psychology itself can even end up being another one of these。 Psychology can help us with many problems but cannot give us meaning and purpose in life on it’s own。 Where does one find this “transference object” that is good enough to hold our desperate need for immortality or meaning？ That answer in this book is not clear， nor is it easy。 It’s more analysis and description than prescription but it is thought provoking and helpful if you can muster the energy and attention required to read it！ 。。。more

Filip Đokić ，

Ernest talks about the innate fear of death that man has， supported by data from biology on the origin of sapiens。Man's perception is indirectly controlled by our innate desire for narcissism and self-obsession。 As Freud said， every man strives for the life of the Greek god Narcissus。The concept of the narcissist weaves the way to the notion of heroism that a person obsessed with himself uses as a pattern of the way he chooses to live - which enables a person to access the culture in which he wa Ernest talks about the innate fear of death that man has， supported by data from biology on the origin of sapiens。Man's perception is indirectly controlled by our innate desire for narcissism and self-obsession。 As Freud said， every man strives for the life of the Greek god Narcissus。The concept of the narcissist weaves the way to the notion of heroism that a person obsessed with himself uses as a pattern of the way he chooses to live - which enables a person to access the culture in which he was born and fulfills the moral goals presented and forced。This principle creates the possibility of manipulating an individual who fulfills the ideal of a hero or rebel， an antihero。In the child's search for self-confidence， the child， without using yet undeveloped reason， perceives the world selfishly and gravitates towards his needs。In combination with the basic need for self-confidence and innate narcissism， the child grows into a being with a tendency towards feeling as the object of primary value in cosmos， a causa-sui （father of his own creation）。Ernest argues that the fear of death is both our trigger and the source of anxiety， and singles out two groups of people:1。 Those who let life consume them and suppress the truth about their destiny by feeling "freedom" only when they surrender to the environment and its control。 This group is the least in control of themselves。2。 Those who cannot escape their destinywho are too sensitive to the idea of ​​death。 Such persons are in contact with their powers however unable to use the discovery in order to gain their freedom。Nevertheless one type sticks out， the creative type， genius。 He sees world differently， he accepts no meaning but his own。 His creations give him constant affirmation of his existence and offer creative revolutionary solutions to the society that only sees the world as it is。The way the child grew up reflects on how he will cope with the notion of death。Children who grew up in a "quality" environment inherit the powers of their parents and look at death not so much considerately as it is the case in the opposite childhood。The oral phase is the first phase in a person's life， it happens long before a child gets the idea of ​​death in the 3rd year。This oral phase developed naturally and represents a phase where the baby still has not separated his mother and himself from his consciousness but sees them as one， which leads to the fact that he is not aware of his motor skills and his body as an object over which he has control。At this stage， the baby's mother represents the world。 Then the mother directs her efforts to every pain and tension of the baby， alarmed by her crying。Now the child is a manipulator of his world in omnipotence， he cries and gets what he wants so this phase is characterized as primarily narcissistic。In the anal phase， the child redirects his attention to his body and becomes an object and the baby gains control over it。 He is becoming aware of his limitations in body in contrary to his limitless mind， but not yet， not before Oedipal project。In each phase that comes， the child faces the world and its problems and shapes the world in him or herself with the aspiration of absolute power and control。 In that process it acquires independence as a condition for fulfilling those goals。But as we know this is not how reality works and the so called causa-sui project or If you will Oedipal project is a crashing point of child's realization that he is not powerful， he is not omnipotente， independent， whole in creation， no， he is meaningless and vulnerable which he recognizes seeing his dualism: the body which represents his limitations and the mind that is limitless and his symbolic side that is screaming for meaning that there is much more then his animality， he is not mortal like animals he ought to have a meaning。From this realization he grasps for anything that can give him protection， he builds a persona， enters culture， forms a super ego of his own and bows down。 The society gives him a role a character， a name， an illusion of what he really is。Here he is， a new man， changed man， man of culture， man of service， maybe religious， he doesn't know his needs he knows no true answers， he is a hero， he takes his heroism， a lie about himself and goes after a meaning forgetting what he saw- that he will when the time comes die， he crumbles and Denials his Death。 。。。more

Ted Egan ，

Spends so much time chronicling the differences in Kant and Nietzsche and Kierkegaard and Freud that I couldn't really suss what Becker's actual intent was half the time。 For being written in the 70's this dude has cultural views that are better suited for 50 years prior。 Nothing revelatory， weird religious conclusion， idk why I even stuck around to finish the book tbh。 Spends so much time chronicling the differences in Kant and Nietzsche and Kierkegaard and Freud that I couldn't really suss what Becker's actual intent was half the time。 For being written in the 70's this dude has cultural views that are better suited for 50 years prior。 Nothing revelatory， weird religious conclusion， idk why I even stuck around to finish the book tbh。 。。。more

Jose ，

The book tries to explain in philosophical terms， but using psychoanalytical theories， the ultimate drive as Lacan like to put it， our death drive。On one hand his ultimate conclusion in simple terms can be explain as "。。。man quest for meaning requires surrender of greater being or greater purpose。。。"， which really doesn't address a lot of concerns regarding our anxiety towards death。 I like that he also used Kierkegard as a resource towards his conclusion， as God was the tool our danish philosop The book tries to explain in philosophical terms， but using psychoanalytical theories， the ultimate drive as Lacan like to put it， our death drive。On one hand his ultimate conclusion in simple terms can be explain as "。。。man quest for meaning requires surrender of greater being or greater purpose。。。"， which really doesn't address a lot of concerns regarding our anxiety towards death。 I like that he also used Kierkegard as a resource towards his conclusion， as God was the tool our danish philosopher wanted us to use， to escape this "sickness" produce from the death anxiety。Now， I don't agree with that。 As Camus pointed out， just shutting our eyes in life and giving our existence to god or higher purpose， is a form of philosophical suicide。 Like Camus mentioned in his work， we should simply embrace the absurdity of life， enjoy it without the need of giving it a greater meaning。 。。。more

Keijo ，

This book is often read amongst antinatalist and pessimist circles and its first few chapters， which focus on the meaninglessness of existence and how most of our actions are subconsciously motivated by our fear of death， are indeed quite brilliant。However， the book quickly goes from that to attempting to explain all of human nature through an extremely obsolete lens of psychoanalysis， which at times is so ridiculous that it almost seems like a parody。 Moreover， there is not a single iota of dou This book is often read amongst antinatalist and pessimist circles and its first few chapters， which focus on the meaninglessness of existence and how most of our actions are subconsciously motivated by our fear of death， are indeed quite brilliant。However， the book quickly goes from that to attempting to explain all of human nature through an extremely obsolete lens of psychoanalysis， which at times is so ridiculous that it almost seems like a parody。 Moreover， there is not a single iota of doubt in the author about the views espoused， regardless of how unlikely they are from a modern neuroscience viewpoint （which was advanced enough by the 70s， when this book was released， to rule out most of its absurd proclamations）。 Similarly， the author clearly has a huge hard-on for Kierkegaard， who he keeps praising throughout the book， never finding a single thing wrong with his philosophy。Of course， this is not surprising considering the book manages to get even worse from there on， its latter part consisting of a feeble defence and justification of religious thinking as a way to cope with the tragedy of man's existence （which is largely what Kierkegaard's philosophy is also about）。 The author essentially proclaims that man， after having discovered that everything is completely illusory and worthless， should nevertheless proceed breeding more slaves to this meaningless life as long as they can be brainwashed to believe that it is worthwhile through religious thinking。This shows an utter cowardice and inability to follow a line of questioning where it leads you， regardless of how disturbing that may be—which is what a true philosophical pessimist does。 In this， the ending of the book reminds me of the last episode of the first season of True Detective， where Rust Cohle completely betrays every single belief he has previously held in order to become just another cowardly and delusional optimist who cowers behind magical thinking。 。。。more

Harshit Shukla ，

Let me get this straight， this is NOT an easy book。 It covers an encyclopaedia of topics that otherwise would've taken several books of cover comprehensively。 The points where this book excel is to try to keep a coherent picture of topics to be presented in a linear way， where a chapter blends into another。The most interesting chapter I found personally was -The psychoanalyst Kierkegaard and The Nexus of Unfreedom。The book introduces to a very important and interesting concept called Transferenc Let me get this straight， this is NOT an easy book。 It covers an encyclopaedia of topics that otherwise would've taken several books of cover comprehensively。 The points where this book excel is to try to keep a coherent picture of topics to be presented in a linear way， where a chapter blends into another。The most interesting chapter I found personally was -The psychoanalyst Kierkegaard and The Nexus of Unfreedom。The book introduces to a very important and interesting concept called Transference， which I found very apt as described in the book。 Maybe the limits of my personal psychoanalysis does not allow me to appreciate much of what has been said by many authors。The book has heavy bias towards Otto Rank and Freud， and also covers the stories behind the authors and their theories， shortfalls and overcomings。 This is where the book， starting at Chapter 6， loses my attention， since it revolves too much around Freud and his area of influenced， which by no means is to be ignored， but personally not to my liking。The Part-2 is the meat of the book and the density of content in this book， through and through is astounding。 I got to learn much from this book for the first reading， and have more questions now than I got the answers for。 Would return for another reading。 This book is a revelation in many ways。An excellent but not light read！ Highly recommended。 。。。more

Chiyoka ，

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Reading this book was like washed in the waves of ocean。 My understanding of the author’s idea comes into my clear views and goes away quickly to confusion one after another。 Throughout the Part one of the book， it made me think about how I am myself perceive my life and mortality and death。 At the same time， I felt I’m utterly lost in the description of all those ideas and writings and theories of famous phycologists。 Some parts of books feels like merely the repetition of others。 Some of the p Reading this book was like washed in the waves of ocean。 My understanding of the author’s idea comes into my clear views and goes away quickly to confusion one after another。 Throughout the Part one of the book， it made me think about how I am myself perceive my life and mortality and death。 At the same time， I felt I’m utterly lost in the description of all those ideas and writings and theories of famous phycologists。 Some parts of books feels like merely the repetition of others。 Some of the part two of the book made a lot sense to me。 I understood and realized more and more about author’s view of human way of get rid of or repress the fear of death。 The romantic solution of chapter eight was one thing I could see it in my life the most。 How people behave in it their romantic relationships and the way they replace God to their partner actually made sense of their behaviors。 Though I think most of the part， it was focused on men and their behaviors and women are simply ignored and left out。 As a women it got me think about the credibility of his theory。 I have some disagreements in part two and found some of his augment of mental illness problematic。 It’s certain that it is a bit difficult to really grasp the point of author’s augment if you have zero knowledge about phycology。 It’s obvious that the tremendous study and research must have done to support his subject and theory， and the most importantly the author made brave argument and dived into the subjects people often never dares to touch。 。。。more

Alyce ，

This is a very intense book。 Oddly confronting， I would say。 The read felt like a total snoozefest but after reading what I’ve highlighted， a few incredibly-written quotes have surprisingly struck my thinking。 “It is fateful and ironic how the lie we need in order to live dooms us to a life that is never really ours。。。every human being is … equally unfree， that is， we … create out of freedom， a prison…”Becker argues that the default human behaviour is to control our anxiety to deny the terror of This is a very intense book。 Oddly confronting， I would say。 The read felt like a total snoozefest but after reading what I’ve highlighted， a few incredibly-written quotes have surprisingly struck my thinking。 “It is fateful and ironic how the lie we need in order to live dooms us to a life that is never really ours。。。every human being is … equally unfree， that is， we … create out of freedom， a prison…”Becker argues that the default human behaviour is to control our anxiety to deny the terror of death。 And the way we do that is through the pursuit of “causa sui” （also called the immortality project） which we try to create or become part of something we feel that will outlast our time on earth ie。 something that would give our lives meaning or purpose。 He explains that when someone has a mental illness， their “causa sui” is failing。 Particularly， “causa sui” and religion can cause major conflicts in belief systems which result in the social injustice that we experience today with wars， genocide， discrimination， etc。 Hugely philosophical 。。。more

Steff En ，

4。25 great introspection， murky solution

Gaurav Singh ，

Read this book at your own risk; it might destroy all your illusions， even the ones that are essential to your survival。

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=The Denial of Death

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=The Denial of Death&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,The Denial of Death&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0