Escape from Freedom

Erich Fromm

• Publisher: Open Road Media
• Year: 2013
• eBook ISBN: 9781480402010
• Topic: Philosophy
• Subtopic: Humanism in Philosophy

Why do people choose authoritarianism over freedom? The classic study of the psychological appeal of fascism by the New York Times –bestselling author.

The pursuit of freedom has indelibly marked Western culture since Renaissance humanism and Protestantism began the fight for individualism and self-determination. This freedom, however, can make people feel unmoored, and is often accompanied by feelings of isolation, fear, and the loss of self, all leading to a desire for authoritarianism, conformity, or destructiveness.

It is not only the question of freedom that makes Fromm's debut book a timeless classic. In this examination of the roots of Nazism and fascism in Europe, Fromm also explains how economic and social constraints can also lead to authoritarianism.

By the author of The Sane Society and The Anatomy of Human Destructiveness, this is a fascinating examination of the anxiety that underlies our darkest impulses, an enlightening volume perfect for readers of Eric Hoffer or Hannah Arendt.

This ebook features an illustrated biography of Erich Fromm including rare images and never-before-seen documents from the author's estate.

Index

A | B | C | D | E
F | G | H | I | J
K | L | M | N | P
R | S | T | V | W

Abraham, 288

Actions, 279-80

Activity, 92-93, 170

Adaptation, 13-15, 285

Adler, Alfred, 148-49

Advertising, 127, 129

Alexander, F, 291

Aloneness, 17-19, 28-30. See also Individual’s feeling of powerlessness

Anarchy, 268

Andreas, 51, 55

Anschen, R. N., 21

Aquinas, Thomas, 70-80, 87

Augustine, 70, 87

Authoritarian character, 161-63, 167-68;

– of Luther, 65, 76;

– of Hitler and Nazism, 219 et seq.

Authoritarian philosophy, 171-72

Authority, 26, 66, 81-84, 162-68, 171-76, 211, 214, 252, 268-69

Automation, see Conformity

Balzac, 18, 158, 258

Bartmann, B., 69, 71

Below, von, 51

Benedict, Ruth, 12

Bergson, H., 21

Bernard, L., 31

Biel, 71-72

Bonaventura, 70

Borkenau, E, 87

Brentano, 51

Burckhardt, Jacob, 11, 43-47, 48

Butzer, Martin, 58

Calvin, 49-50, 64, 65, 68, 74, 78, 84, 86-90, 95, 97, 110-11, 114, 116

Calvinism, see Protestantism

Capitalism, effect on medieval society, 54-62, 73;

–effect on modern man, 103 et seq.

Cassirer, E., 46

Character structure, 64, 101-2, 103 et seq., 236, 275-76, 277-79. See also Authoritarian character and Social character

Church, Catholic, 41-42, 69-73, 100, 108-9, 122

Classes, social, 43, 44, 46-48, 49-50, 56-59, 62, 63, 79-82, 94-95, 113, 123-26, 181, 207-10. See also Middle class

Clemenceau, 228

Clemens VI, 29

Conformity, 133-34, 183-204, 240, 242 et seq., 253-54

Conscience, 97-98, 165

Dante, 45

Darwin, 226

Darwinism, 226-27

Death-instinct, 148, 180

Dependency, 142-45, 159, 169, 172-77, 222

Descartes, 253

Destructiveness, 157-58, 177-83

Dewey, John, 3, 4, 21

Dilthey, W., 45, 48

Dollard, J., 1...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title Page
• Contents
• Foreword
• Foreword II
• I     Freedom--A Psychological Problem?
• II   The Emergence of the Individual and the Ambiguity of Freedom
• III Freedom in the Age of the Reformation
• IV The Two Aspects of Freedom for Modern Man
• V    Mechanisms of Escape
• VI Psychology of Nazism
• VII Freedom and Democracy
• Appendix: Character and the Social Process
• Index
• Notes
• A Biography of Erich Fromm
• Copyright