The Schopenhauer cure by Irvin Yalom: analysis and themes

Schopenhauer Cure

Group Therapy in the Face of Death

The notion of one's impending death is rightly seen as one of the most terrifying and universal of human experiences. Whether contemplation is the mere split second in an accident or the horror of a child considering growing old for the first time. So certainly, the knowledge that one has a defined expiration date, until which, he must spend his time learning to cope with that inevitability, is unthinkable. Nonetheless, there is a clear air of hopefulness and dignity which permeates Dr. Julius Herzfeld's final year, in which he leads of a group of distinctly divergent personality complexes in regular sessions where they team together to work out life solutions for one another. This proves, in a unique way that is lived out with each individual group member, to be an absolutely crucial support system for Julius.

Irvin Yalom's 2005 narrative, the Schopenhauer Cure: A Novel, provides one of the more unique and challenging glimpses at death in the context of life. Julius is in the unique and terrifying disposition of counseling individuals through their own troubled lives while preparing for the end of his. While it represents a last opportunity to leave a stamp of valid meaning in his passing, Julius must also attempt to balance the feelings of despair and preparation which pull at him. So too must the members of the group who become variously attached to him.

A most interesting case within the context of this emotionally charged scenario is Stuart, the detached pediatrician whose disposition comes not from his insensitivity but from a bizarre social impenetrability. Stuart's experience within the group is therefore one prone to some of the more interesting interactions in the narrative. Particularly, this is so because one of Stuart's nature would distinctly gain far more from a group experience than from one-on-one counseling where, arguably, somebody such as Phillip or Bonnie could benefit in a one-on-one context.

Interestingly, the stoical Stuart provides of the moments of greatest breakthrough for Julius, who in the immediate days following the revelation of his approaching death, would be mired in despair. The therapy group would provide distraction here from, and would offer the opportunity for affirmation while otherwise remanded to a very dark personal place. Thus, when Stuart made one of his first breakthroughs with group at this exact juncture, it would be a mode to asylum for Julius. The doctor would observe that "Stuart, a short, pudgy pediatrician who perpetually seemed distracted, as though he were in a rush to get to his next patient, seemed pressured and asked for time from the group. This was a most unusual occurrence; in Stuart's year in the group he had rarely asked for help." (39) for the qualities of emotional detachment which had brought him there, his wife had now threatened to leave him if significant changes in his life did not soon occur. Stuart's willingness finally to insert himself into the group with some vulnerability would demonstrate a legitimate step for which he would receive ample support from the group. The functionality of this process would be rewarding to Julius, who took it is with some comfort which had been scarce in the prior two weeks.

Still, Stuart's case remains a difficult one throughout the process, with his strong professional and intellectual capabilities often undermined or sullied by his disengagement. This causes some resentment from others in the group and results in Stuart associating many of the women in the group with his wife, who responds similarly to the sense that he stands passively aside and witnesses human interaction without ever fully partaking. From the perspective of Julius, this is a mixed-bag, with the group causing confrontations with Stuart that often force him to mediate through his emotions. On the other hand, as Julius characterized it, "Stuart was the informal historian of the group: he was blessed with such a retentive memory that Julius could always call on him for an account of past or present group event. He tried not to overuse Stuart, who was in the group to learn how to engage others, not to be a record of events." (136) Inevitably though, this role causes others such as Bonnie and Rebecca to express frustration with Stuart. In an instance here where he is asked to recall the events thus far in a session, he incites the accusations which are attendant to the individual insecurities of group members and respondent to his own apparent distance from events.