Born in Frankfurt, Germany in 1900, Erich Fromm's early
influences came from scholarly Jews: Herman Cohen, known as a neo-Kantian, was a very
liberal thinker; Rabbi Nehemia Nobel, a famous Talmudist who was also knowledgeable of
much psychoanalytical literature; and Rabbi Salman Baruch Rabinkow, a student of Jewish
mysticism with a strong sympathy for socialism. From these men, Fromm chose a vocation
as a rabbi, but World War I deterred him from it. He wrote that he was obsessed with
the question of how war was possible, and desirous of a wish to understand human mass
behavior.
Moving from his religious background, Fromm
became profoundly influenced by the psychonanlytical theories of Sigmund Freud and
social theories of Karl Marx. In addition, his experiences at the University of
Frankfurt and the Frankfurt Psychoanalytical Institute exerted influence upon
him.
Erich Fromm sought to bring together psychoanalysis
and an appreciation of the influence of social structure. He
wrote,
I
wanted to understand the laws that govern the life of the individual man, and the laws
of society--that is, of men in their social existence. I tried to see the lasting truth
in Freud's concepts as against those assumptions which were in need of revision. I
tried to do the same with Marx's theory, and finally I tried to arrive at a synthesis
which followed from the understanding and criticism of both thinkers. (quoted by Funk,
1999)
Fromm's great work,
The Art of Loving, however, disturbed orthodox Freudians because of
its inclusion of religion. Also, it is an exploration of love as a social theory,
asking "Is love an art?" He goes on to examine the theory of love, then discusses love
and its disintegration in modern Western society. In the final chapter, the practice of
love is examined. Written from a humanistic perspective, Erich Fromm's works manifests
much religious influence, as well, attesting to the early affects of his Jewish
scholars.
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