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The Denial of Death

Ernest Becker

PhilosophyPsychology
Publish date
1973
Publisher
Free Press Paperbacks
Description
Ernest Becker's The Denial of Death is an interdisciplinary work of psychology and philosophy that examines how the awareness of mortality shapes human behavior and civilization. The book argues that people construct cultural belief systems and personal hero projects primarily as psychological defenses to repress the universal fear of death. Drawing on the ideas of Søren Kierkegaard, Sigmund Freud, and Otto Rank, the text is suited for readers interested in existential philosophy, psychoanalysis, and the psychological foundations of human culture.
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Books cited in The Denial of Death

Suggested by AI, not verified against the full text. Check the original book before using them as a source.

  1. Beyond Psychology

    Otto Rank

    Citation

    Becker heavily relies on Rank's post-Freudian ideas regarding human striving for spiritual immortality.

    High relevanceExplore

  2. The Sickness Unto Death

    Søren Kierkegaard

    Citation

    Becker uses Kierkegaard's analysis of despair to describe character armor and human neurosis.

    High relevanceExplore

  3. Art and Artist

    Otto Rank

    Citation

    Informs Becker's concept of the 'immortality project' and the creative urge to transcend death.

    High relevanceExplore

  4. Life Against Death: The Psychoanalytical Meaning of History

    Norman O. Brown

    Citation

    A primary contemporary influence synthesizing psychoanalysis, bodily repression, and historical human culture.

    High relevanceExplore

  5. Civilization and Its Discontents

    Sigmund Freud

    Citation

    Becker critiques and reinterprets Freud's views on cultural sublimation and instinctual renunciation.

    High relevanceExplore

  6. The Concept of Dread

    Søren Kierkegaard

    Citation

    Provides the existential-theological foundation for Becker's views on anxiety and human finitude.

    High relevanceExplore

  7. The Varieties of Religious Experience

    William James

    Citation

    Referenced concerning the 'twice-born' character and confronting the terror of the world.

    Medium relevanceExplore

  8. The Courage to Be

    Paul Tillich

    Citation

    Referenced in discussions on existential courage, anxiety, and the ontological threat of nonbeing.

    Medium relevanceExplore

  9. Beyond the Pleasure Principle

    Sigmund Freud

    Citation

    Critiqued by Becker regarding Freud's death instinct theory versus universal death anxiety.

    Medium relevanceExplore

  10. Death in Life: Survivors of Hiroshima

    Robert Jay Lifton

    Citation

    Cited for Lifton's insights into symbolic immortality and the psychological trauma of mass death.

    Medium relevanceExplore

  11. Death and Western Thought

    Jacques Choron

    Citation

    Cited for historical context on Western philosophy's enduring preoccupation with mortality.

    Medium relevanceExplore

  12. Escape from Freedom

    Erich Fromm

    Citation

    Discussed in relation to humanity's inclination toward authoritarian submission as a psychological defense.

    Medium relevanceExplore

There may be more citations. We show up to 12 per book to keep the list manageable.

Recommendations

  • The Worm at the Core: On the Role of Death in Life

    Sheldon Solomon, Jeff Greenberg, and Tom Pyszczynski

    AI Recommendation

    Provides extensive empirical psychological evidence validating Becker's terror management hypotheses.

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  • Existential Psychotherapy

    Irvin D. Yalom

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    Explores death anxiety as an ultimate concern in clinical psychology, mirroring Becker's premises.

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  • Being and Time

    Martin Heidegger

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    Philosophically conceptualizes authentic human existence through confrontation with Being-towards-death.

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  • Immortality: The Quest to Live Forever and How It Drives Civilization

    Stephen Cave

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    Categorizes human civilization's cultural systems as explicit strategies to conquer mortality.

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  • Mortal Questions

    Thomas Nagel

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    Philosophical essays addressing the absurdity of human existence and the asymmetry of death.

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