Human Needs

According to Fromm, each person experiences what he called as human dilemma. This condition states that humans do not have the basic instincts needed for survival unlike animals but, have acquired the facility to reason to solve lifes problems. This reason has helped man to survive but has also forced him to solve basic insoluble dichotomies which he referred to as existential dichotomies. Fromm believed that basic human needs such as sex, hunger and safety cannot fully resolve human dilemma. For him, there are other needs, present only in humans that must be satisfied to fully give purpose to ones existence. These human needs are relatedness, transcendence, rootedness, sense of identity and frame of orientation. Relatedness Relatedness is the drive for union with another person or other persons. There are three basic ways in which one can relate to the world: submission, power, and love. Domineering people search for relationships with submissive partners and vice versa. This relationship is called a symbiotic relationship. Although such symbiosis is gratifying for both sides, it does not permit one to grow toward integrity and psychological health. People in this type of relationship are drawn to each other by the need for relatedness and not by love. For Fromm, genuine productive love is defined as union with somebody or something outside oneself under the condition of retaining the separateness and integrity of ones self. In love, two people can satisfy each other and yet remain as separate individuals. Transcendence We are born into this world without our knowledge and consent and we will die, also without our knowledge and consent. But humans have the need for transcendence. Transcendence is the urge to rise above a passive and accidental existence into the realm of purposefulness and freedom. Man may transcend his passive nature by either creating or destroying it. Rootedness Rootedness is the need to establish roots or to feel at home with the world again. This need can also be sought in either a productive or an unproductive way. In the productive way, people can move away from the presence of the mother, stand on his own, and relate to the world around him. However, people can also do it the unproductive way- fixation. In fixation, one cannot move away from the presence of the mother figure, fails to stand alone and ends up depending on others. Sense of Identity

The capacity to be aware of ourselves as a separate entity is called the sense of identity. Fromm believed that because we are torn away from nature, we need to form a concept of ourselves, that is to take responsibility for our own actions. According to him, neurotics tend to attach or associate themselves with powerful people or institutions while healthy people have less need to conform to the herd. Frame of Orientation This final need is essentially a road map, a guide, to help a person organize himself and act purposefully as he tries to live in this world. This road map can be seen as the philosophy being held by each person. For Fromm, the goal or destination of this map is very point in which an individual focuses his energy.

Summary of Fromms Human Needs Relatedness Transcendence Rootedness Sense of Identity Frame of Orientation Negative Components Submission or Domination Destructiveness Fixation Adjustment to a Group Irrational Goals Positive Components Love Creativeness Wholeness Individuality Rational goals