Trauma and Hope
What distinguishes the suicidal despair of a trauma victim like Primo Levi from Viktor Frankl, who retained a sense of hope? Both were Holocaust survivors. Both concede there’s something wrong with “the world.” But is this, as Frankl claims, merely a temporary anomaly in the stability of opposing forces of good and evil or life and death drives? Or is it, as Levi claims, symptomatic of a moral de-evolution comparable to the end stage of a terminal illness destroying humanity from the inside out? In view of the Holocaust, and 75 million other atrocities committed in the last century, is hope for humanity naïve? The practical significance for psychotherapy, then, lies in the extent to which what we call pathology – including “normal neuroses” – may be symptomatic of this foundational problem.
Our aim here is to rely on our own therapeutic professions of authenticity, empathy, and positive regard to enter into Levi’s world, and others like him, and see through their eyes. In doing so, the character of our own faith and hope will be put to the test as we discover to what extent Levi’s claim is true. As we shall see, this does not entail succumbing to Levi’s despair. Testifying to a life-threatening disease is one thing; believing it is terminal is another. And a door to hope opens as we realize that none of us can avoid a faith commitment, and the character of that commitment determines our prospects for hope: Awakening to a “cold-indifferent” world is not awakening to a value-neutral reality, but to a reality permeated by objectively values. And, as we begin to realize deceit presupposes the truth it distorts, and evil presupposes the good it turns away from, so too a moral de-evolution presupposes a moral evolution that can transform the human heart. The realization that faith evolves by insight can enable therapists to go beyond empathizing with trauma victims like Levi by showing them there is a reason for hope.
To read the full article, click here: Trauma and Hope