I took The Denial of Death with me on an eight-hour plane ride and couldn’t put it down. I skipped my meals, wrote in all the margins, and worked up a sweat in the process. The book builds on the insights of Sigmund Freud, Otto Rank, and others to argue that the fear of death is a fundamental motivation behind human behavior. Becker suggests that much of human civilization, including our achievements, cultural norms, and societal structures, can be understood as a complex defense mechanism against the knowledge of our mortality.
This book won the Pulitzer for a reason. That’s why we’re reading it in my book club starting on February 20th. If you’d like to tackle this one with a group, join us. You can try out my book club free for 30 days.
This books was recommended in my weekly newsletter on February 14, 2024.
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