Ernest Becker

File:Becker lecture 1960.png

Becker lecture 1960

Ernest Becker (September 27, 1924 – March 6, 1974) was an American cultural anthropologist and interdisciplinary thinker and writer. He is best known for his 1974 Pulitzer Prize-winning book, The Denial of Death, which postulates that human civilization is ultimately an elaborate, symbolic defense mechanism against the knowledge of our mortality.

Early Life and Education

Ernest Becker was born in Springfield, Massachusetts. He served in the United States Army during World War II, after which he attended Syracuse University, earning a bachelor's degree in 1949. He later received his Ph.D. in cultural anthropology from Cornell University in 1960.

Academic Career

Becker's academic career included teaching positions at Syracuse University, University of California, Berkeley, San Francisco State University, and the University of British Columbia. His interdisciplinary approach combined elements of psychology, sociology, philosophy, and anthropology.

Major Works

The Denial of Death

The Denial of Death is Becker's most famous work, published in 1973. The book explores the concept that human behavior is largely motivated by an unconscious fear of mortality. Becker argues that much of human activity is designed to avoid the inevitability of death, leading to the creation of cultural and religious systems that provide meaning and purpose.

Escape from Evil

Published posthumously in 1975, Escape from Evil extends the ideas presented in The Denial of Death. Becker examines how the fear of death influences human behavior and societal structures, including the development of morality and religion.

Legacy

Ernest Becker's work has had a significant impact on various fields, including psychology, sociology, and philosophy. His ideas have influenced the development of terror management theory, which explores how humans cope with the awareness of their mortality.

Related Pages

• Cultural anthropology
• The Denial of Death
• Terror management theory
• Psychology
• Sociology
• Philosophy