Will to live

The will to live (German: Wille zum Leben) is a concept developed by the German philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer, representing an irrational "blind incessant impulse without knowledge" that drives instinctive behaviors, causing an endless insatiable striving in human existence.

This is contrasted with the concept of the will to survive under life threatening conditions used in psychology since Schopenhauer’s notion of the will to live is more broadly understood as the “animal[istic] force to endure, reproduce and flourish.”

There are significant correlations between the will to live and existential, psychological, social, and physical sources of distress. Many, who overcome near-death experiences with no explanation, have described the will to live as a direct component of their survival. The difference between the wish to die versus the wish to live is also a unique risk factor for suicide.

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