Quotes from Erich Fromm, "Escape from Freedom"

Spontaneity: If one asks what makes for the attraction small children have for most people I believe that, aside from sentimental and conventional reasons, the answer must be that it is this very quality of spontaneity. It appeals profoundly to everyone who is not so dead himself that he has lost the ability to perceive it. (Escape from Freedom, Erich Fromm. P260).

Most of us can observe at least moments of our own spontaneity which are at the same time moments of genuine happiness. (Escape from Freedom, Erich Fromm. P260).

Why is spontaneous activity the answer to the problem of freedom? We have said that negative freedom by itself makes the individual an isolated being, whose relationship to the world is distant and distrustful and whose self is weak and constantly threatened. Spontaneous activity is the one way in which man can overcome the terror of aloneness without sacrificing the integrity of his self; for in the spontaneous realization of the self man unites himself anew with the world—with man, nature, and himself. (Escape from Freedom, Erich Fromm. P260-261).

The basic dichotomy that is inherent in freedom—the birth of individuality and the pain of aloneness—is dissolved on a higher plane by man’s spontaneous action. In all spontaneous activity the individual embraces the world. Not only does his individual self remain intact; it becomes stronger and more solidified. (Escape from Freedom, Erich Fromm. P.261).

The inability to act spontaneously, to express what one genuinely feels and thinks, and the resulting necessity to present a pseudo self to others and oneself, are the root of the feeling of inferiority and weakness. Whether we or not we are aware of it, there is nothing of which we are more ashamed than of not being ourselves, and there is nothing that gives us greater pride and happiness than to think, to feel and say what is ours. This implies that what matters is the activity as such, the process and not the result. In our culture the emphasis is just the reverse. (Escape from Freedom, Erich Fromm. P.262).

The experience of living in the present moment: We produce not for a concrete satisfaction but for the abstract purpose of selling our commodity; we feel that we can acquire everything material or immaterial by buying it, and thus things become ours independently of any creative effort of our own in relation to them. In the same way we regard our personal qualities and the result of our efforts as commodities that can be sold for money, prestige, and power. The emphasis thus shifts from the present satisfaction of creative activity to the value of the finished product. Thereby man misses the only satisfaction that can give him real happiness—the experience of the activity of the present moment—and chases after a phantom that leaves him disappointed as soon as he believes he has caught it—the illusory happiness called success. (Escape from Freedom, Erich Fromm. P.262).

Individual initiative and capitalism: “Individual initiative was one of the great stimuli both of the economic system and also of personal development under liberal capitalism. But there are two qualifications: it developed only selected qualities of man, his will and rationality, while leaving him otherwise subordinate to economic goals. It was a principle that functioned best in a highly individualized and competitive phase of capitalism which had room for countless independent economic units. Today this space has narrowed down. Only a small number can exercise individual initiative.” (Escape from Freedom, Erich Fromm. P.275).

Inner authority: “Were it only that people worked because of external necessities, much friction between what they ought to do and what they would like to do would arise and lessen their efficiency. However, by the dynamic adaptation of character to social requirements, human energy instead of causing friction is shaped into such forms as to become an incentive to act according to the particular economic necessities. Thus modern man, instead of having to be forced to work as hard as he does, is driven by the inner compulsion to work […] instead of obeying overt authorities, he has built up an inner authority—conscience and duty—which operates more effectively in controlling him than any external authority could ever do. ” (Escape from Freedom, Erich Fromm. P.284).

Quotes from Erich Fromm, The Sane Society

Life: “The aim of life is to live it intensely, to be fully born, to be fully awake. […] To be able to love life, and yet to accept death without terror; to tolerate uncertainty about the most important questions with which life confronts us—and yet to have faith in our thought and feeling, inasmuch as they are truly yours. To be able to be alone, and at the same time one with a loved person, with every brother on this earth, with all that is alive; to follow the voice of our conscience, the voice that calls us to ourselves, yet not to indulge in self hate when the voice of conscience was not loud person is the person who lives by love, reason and faith, who respects life, his own and that of his fellow man.” (Erich Fromm, The Sane Society (p. 204)).


Alienation: “The alienated person feels inferior whenever he suspects himself of not being in line. Since his sense of worth is based on approval as the reward for conformity, he feels naturally threatened in his sense of self and in his self-esteem by any feeling, thought or action which could be suspected of being a deviation. Yet, inasmuch as he is human and not an automaton, he cannot help deviating, hence he must feel afraid of disapproval all the time.” (Erich Fromm, The Sane Society (p. 204))


Freedom/Conformity: “Authority in the middle of the twentieth century has changed its character; it is not overt authority, but anonymous, invisible, alienated authority. Nobody makes a demand, neither a person, nor an idea, nor a moral law. Yet we all conform as much or more than people in an intensely authoritarian society would.” (Erich Fromm, The Sane Society (p. 152)).

“The mechanism through which the anonymous authority operates is conformity. I ought to do what everybody does, hence, I must conform, not be different, not “stick out”;[…] I must not ask whether I am right or wrong, but whether I am adjusted, whether I am not “peculiar,” not different. The only thing which is permanent in me is just this readiness for change. Nobody has power over me, except the herd of which I am a part, yet to which I am subjected.” (Erich Fromm, The Sane Society (p. 155)).

“There is no overt authority which intimidates us, but we are governed by the fear of the anonymous authority of conformity.” (Erich Fromm, The Sane Society (p. 102)).

“Behind the intense passion for status and conformity is this very need, and it is sometimes even stronger than the need for physical survival.” (Erich Fromm, The Sane Society (p. 63)).

Bir Çocuğun Tren İstasyonunda Irksal Profillenmesi

Seneler önce, Almanya’yı terk edip, Amerika´ya gitmeye karar vermiştim. Gitmeden önce yaklaşık 15 yaşında olan çok sevdiğim bir çocuk beni görmeye geldi. Evine geri dönerken başına bir şey gelmesin diye tren yoluna onu ben götürdüm. Orada polis tarafından durdurulduk. Böyle bir şey benim başıma o gün ilk ve son defa geldi. Ama Alman polislerinin ilgisini çeken zaten ben değildim. Çünkü ben bir bayanım. Onların ilgisini çeken o küçük erkek çocuğuydu. Aynen benim gibi Almanya’da doğmuş ve yetişmiş; oranın çocuğu. Bütün ‘suçu’ beni görmeye gelip, annesinin evine geri dönmesi. Bir de öbür çocuklara benzemiyormuş. Onun için onun Almanya’da yaşama hakkının olduğunu ispat etmesi gerekiyormuş. Ne yazık ki Almanya’da “Irksal ve Cinsi Profilleme” çok genel bir prosedürmüş. Irkçılık da oradaki günlük hayatın bir parçası durumunda.

Bu olay olalı 17 seneden daha fazla bir zaman oldu ama beni hala düşündürüyor. Çünkü o zamandan bu zamana kadar, Almanya’da bu konuda fazla bir şey değişmedi. Bir de uzun zaman Amerikan Birleşik Devletleri’nde okuduktan, ırkçılık üzerine araştırmalar yaptıktan sonra, bu gibi olayları daha da iyi anlıyorum. Almanya’da yaşayan özellikle erkek çocuklarını bu tür olayların olumsuz şekilde nasıl etkilediğini daha da iyi biliyorum.

Kast ettiğim çocuk bugün Almanya’da yüksek bir itibarı olan, sevilen ve Almanya’nın günlük yaşamın önemli bir parçası olan bir kişidir. Onu arada bir görüyorum ve bu olay aklıma geliyor. Ama bu olayı ona hiç hatırlatmak istemiyorum ve onun da olayı hatılamadığını umuyorum; beni etkileyip, kalbimi kırdığı gibi onun da kalbini kırmadığını ümit ediyorum. Ama içten biliyorum ki bu mümkün değil. O bu olayı unutmuş olamaz. Onun dışlandığını farketmemesi, küçücük bir çocuk da olsa kalbinin kırılmaması mümkün değil.

Ama hayatın tabii ki öyle de olsa böyle de olsa devam etmesi gerekiyor. Sevdiğimiz bir çocuğun toplumdan ayrılıp seçilmesi ve onun doğduğu ve büyüdüğü devlette damarlarında ‘Alman kanı’ taşımıyor diye orada yaşama hakkının olup olmadığını ispat etmesinin gerekmesi, ne kadar acı verse de…

Kendime uzun zamandan beri şu soruyu soruyorum: böyle bir ırkçılığı bırakamayan, bizi hala yabancı olarak gören bir memleketin ve bir toplumun parçası gerçekten olmak istiyormuyuz? Böyle bir toplum bizim gibi çocukları hakkediyor mu ki?

Gespräch mit einem Kind—Kategorie Sonderschule

Vor ein paar Monaten habe ich mich mit einem Kind auf Englisch unterhalten. Das Kind war 9-10 Jahre alt und hat sehr gut Englisch gesprochen. Sein Deutsch war natürlich auch einwandfrei. Ich habe mir sagen lassen, dass es sogar eine weitere Sprache spricht. Englisch war anscheinend „nur“ die 3. Sprache von dem Kind. Dann habe ich mir sagen lassen, dass dieses Kind zu der „Kategorie Sonderschule“ gehört.

Wir scheinen einfach keine Ruhe zu finden, bis wir Menschen in ihre „zugehörige Boxen“ einsortiert haben… Türke, Deutsche, Sonderschüler, Gymnasiast, homosexuell, Christ, katholisch, Muslim, intelligent, dumm… wir scheinen immer über jemand richten zu müssen. 

Das Wesentliche entgeht uns aber oft… wie traurig…

Loss of Scooter: Love, Death, Religion, and the Lack of "Heaven"

When I had to put down my beloved cat Scooter in 2009, a piece of my heart broke. I experienced a pain which I have no words for describing. In order to ease the suffering somewhat, I reached out to many people and inquired about what their religions had to say about death. I hoped to find an explanation to where my cat went, as it was too unbearable to not know. I would have loved to believe what my many friends told me: that my cat was running around in cat heaven and that one day I may see him again, hold him in my arms, touch and smell his soft fur. In spite of my desperation however, none of the “options” that I was provided resonated with me.

I was not looking for a temporary crutch of some sort. All I wanted was, to know the “truth”; an explanation that I can wrap my mind around so that the loss of Scooter did not hurt as much. At one point of this spiritual journey, I reached the point where I was ready to face my own version of the truth: I made peace with the fact that I—a human—will never find out or “understand” where he went. That is also the moment when I finally made my peace with death, and subsequently also life, altogether. I not only learned to accept, but also to welcome and embrace uncertainty.  

Today, I accept death as one of the most natural parts of life; it is authentic and real. Without a doubt, more natural than the lives that humans are living on this earth. I believe that death is endless peace and nothingness; not more, not less. 

I would not have wanted to come to any other conclusion, no matter how painful the discovery initially was.