Quote by Viktor E. Frankl

I shall never forget how I was roused one night by the groans of a fellow prisoner, who threw himself about in his sleep, obviously having a horrible nightmare. Since I had always been especially sorry for people who suffered from fearful dreams or deliria, I wanted to wake the poor man. Suddenly I drew back the hand which was ready to shake him, frightened at the thing I was about to do. At that moment I became intensely conscious of the fact that no dream, no matter how horrible, could be as bad as the reality of the camp which surrounded us, and to which I was about to recall him.


I shall never forget how I was roused one night by the groan

Summary

This quote reflects the harsh reality and context of the speaker's experience in a concentration camp. The speaker is awakened by another prisoner's nightmare and initially feels sympathetic towards the suffering person. However, upon realizing that the horrors of the camp are far worse than any nightmare, the speaker hesitates to wake the person, understanding that they would be forced back into a nightmarish reality. The quote emphasizes the extreme conditions and psychological impact of living in a concentration camp, where the actual nightmares are more terrible than anything one can experience in a dream.

By Viktor E. Frankl
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