Unamuno on suffering and Frankl’s ‘will to meaning’: a philo-logotherapeutic advice to humankind here and beyond and the role of social relations towards mental fitness

Abstract

Abstract Humankind is both historically and existentially exposed to various traumatic and disastrous experiences including the COVID-19 pandemic. The Spanish philosopher Miguel de Unamuno argued that part of humans’ consciousness is the awareness of death and suffering. He argued that the latter is an essential feature of existence. Whereas Viktor Frankl’s logotherapy stresses that humans’ primary motivational force is to find meaning in life particularly in the midst of suffering. This paper attempts to enrich Unamuno and Frankl’s contentions on persons’ nature to suffer and discover meaning. Through this construction, the author believes it could help individuals to properly embrace and adapt to the inevitable sufferings of the world and bolsters mental health like in the current pandemic.