Q0093
“Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last…” — Viktor Frankl (Man's Search for Meaning)
Verified English quotation. Primary source: Man's Search for Meaning. Theme: freedom.
English
Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms — to choose one's attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one's own way.
Source and attribution
The archive attributes this English wording to Man's Search for Meaning and files it under Logotherapy. That locator distinguishes the passage from loose internet attributions: readers can return to the named work or section to check translation, surrounding argument, and edition-specific wording.
About Viktor Frankl
Viktor Frankl (1905–1997) founded logotherapy, arguing that the search for meaning is a primary human motivation, shaped by his experiences in Nazi concentration camps.
Interpretation
Frankl writes this as a psychiatrist who had survived the camps, so the claim is clinical rather than inspirational. Everything external — family, property, health, even the ability to work — was in fact taken from the prisoners he describes. What he reports remaining is not optimism but the position one takes toward conditions one did not choose. He calls it the last of the freedoms in a precise sense: it is the one that cannot be removed by any further loss, because its exercise requires nothing external.
Why it matters
The claim is narrower than it is usually quoted as being: attitude is not a substitute for action, and Frankl does not suggest that suffering is worthwhile. It marks the point where choice still exists after everything else has been removed.
Concepts in this quote
- Freedom
- Freedom is among the most searched and most contested themes in philosophy: what it is to choose, to be responsible, and to live without illegitimate constraint.
- Meaning
- Meaning appears in this archive as a live philosophical concern—not a slogan. These verified English passages show how thinkers treat meaning as a problem of judgment, practice, or explanation.
How to cite this quotation
APA: Viktor Frankl. (n.d.). Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms — to choose one's attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one's own way. In Philosophy Blind Box. https://www.philosophydef.com/quotes/q0093
MLA: Viktor Frankl. “Everything can be taken from a man but….” Philosophy Blind Box, https://www.philosophydef.com/quotes/q0093.
Chicago: Viktor Frankl. “Everything can be taken from a man but….” Philosophy Blind Box. Accessed 2026. https://www.philosophydef.com/quotes/q0093.
Frequently asked questions
What is the source of the quotation “Everything can be taken from a man but…”?
The passage is attributed to Viktor Frankl, Man's Search for Meaning. The archive attributes this English wording to Man's Search for Meaning and files it under Logotherapy. That locator distinguishes the passage from loose internet attributions: readers can return to the named work or section to check translation, surrounding argument, and edition-specific wording.
What does Viktor Frankl mean by freedom?
Philosophers distinguish several ideas under the single word freedom. Negative freedom emphasizes non-interference; positive freedom emphasizes the capacity to act according to reasons, virtue, or authentic desire. This passage enters that discussion through freedom, meaning.