FREE ESSAY ON SOREN KIERKEGAARD

SOREN KIERKEGAARD

In the world of the existentialist there are many questions that need answering. Why do we
exist? What is right and what is wrong? Who decides what is right and what is wrong? 
Throughout his life, existentialist, Soren Kierkegaard tried to answer these and many
other perplexing questions. Kierkegaard was a devout Christian who felt that it should be
the goal of all humans to become a Christian just as he had. 
Human life in general does not really concern the existentialist, however the choices
that the human makes throughout their life, do. "The primary goal of the existentialist
writer is to make all humans aware that they are living individuals who in their freedom
make decisions and are responsible for them." (Oaklander 3) Numerous themes abound in the
existentialist's world that they deal with and discuss in their writings. Examples would
be: primacy of the individual, critique of reason, inauthentic vs. authentic, the
boundary situation, alienation, encounter with nothingness, dread, community, freedom and
commitment.
In his works, Soren Kierkegaard attempted to answer the question of what exactly the goal
of the human person was. His primary question was one of a religious nature. He believed
that it was the goal of all persons to become close with God, accept him and become a
Christian. "Kierkegaard's writings enable the individual to come to grips with his or her
own 'subjectivity'." (Oaklander 2)
"Kierkegaard was one of the first existential thinkers to believe that truth is found
only in one's own individual, not in psychological experience, science, philosophy or the
sciences of the world. These things are just objects with no truth value." (Oaklander 2)
In his book "Fear and Trembling", Kierkegaard deals with three of the eight afore
mentioned themes of existentialism. He discusses the inauthentic versus the authentic and
alienation. The primary focus of the text is the story of Abraham and Isaac. The story is
also Kierkegaard's explanation of why he called off his engagement to his long time love,
Regine Olsen. It is said that upon figuring out what he truly wanted in life, which was
to become a Christian, Kierkegaard realized that it was not possible to become one with
God while trying to maintain a marriage. So, he broke off his engagement to Miss Olsen in
order to achieve his priority of becoming a Christian.
"According to Kierkegaard there are three stages of human existence. The most immature
being the aesthetic stage." (Jansen 1) During this stage humans are dominated by their
desires, be them physical, emotional or intellectual. The goal of these people is simply
to gain pleasure however satisfaction is non-existent. This is when an existentialist
would say that the person is living inauthentically, living without coming to terms with
one's existence. Stage two shows people beginning to be overcome by a sense of right and
wrong. Humans are now facing ethical situations.
"Choices are often ambiguous, though, and sometimes people must choose between equally
evil options, so those in the ethical stage remain as unfulfilled as those in the
aesthetic stage." (Jansen 1)
By the end of this stage the ethical person becomes a person of morality and morality
becomes their chief principle. The third and final stage of Kierkegaard's stages of faith
is the religious stage, which is primarily what "Fear and Trembling" deals with. It is in
this stage that the move to an authentic level of being is made. These people however can
be put into two groups. Group 1, are those bound by guilt, while Group 2 is made up of
those who live in total response to God.
In Kierkegaard's novel, "Fear and Trembling", the story of Abraham and Isaac is used to
illustrate not only the themes of alienation and the inauthentic vs. the authentic, but
in some ways it tells the story of Kierkegaard's life. Throughout the course of the text
Abraham makes the move from stage to stage to stage encountering each of the two afore
mentioned themes. God had promised Abraham that he would be the father of many nations,
all-starting with the birth of a son. Up to and during this point in his life it could be
said that Abraham was an aesthetic. So, just as God had promised a son, Isaac, was born
to Abraham and his wife Sarah. Abraham's life long wish had been granted and he was
content. However, Abraham's happiness was short lived as God now commanded him to
sacrifice his most prized possession, his son. This put Abraham in quite a position. On
one hand was his son, how could he sacrifice his son? And on the other hand was God, his
creator and provider. Abraham would never question his Lord. Abraham now had to make a
decision, a choice, just as the existentialist writers speak of. Ironically, this event
in the life of Abraham coincides with a major life choice Soren Kierkegaard had to make.
Kierkegaard who had been engaged to his love, Regine Olsen, found himself pondering what
it was that he wished to do with his life. His decision: to become a Christian. However
as he looked deeper into his choice, Kierkegaard found that it was not possible to
maintain a marriage and family and still attain his ultimate goal of becoming a
Christian. So, just as Abraham chose to do God's bidding and sacrifice his son, so did
Kierkegaard by ending his engagement to Regine Olsen. At this point, both men could be
found in the ethical stage of faith. Abraham struggles with the possible disobedience of
God's demands and the murder of his son. Not only would he be committing murder, Abraham
would also be giving back in a sense his wish that God had so gratefully provided him
with. What if Isaac didn't become the great ruler that Abraham had foreseen, what if it
was his purpose to be sacrificed to God? In regard's to Kierkegaard's situation, what if
he was never meant to be a Christian or a husband? If these things were not their
destinies, then these men would only be disobeying God. Reluctantly, both men chose to do
as they saw fit, which was ultimately God's bidding. Once his decision had been made,
Abraham entered the religious phase of his journey through faith. "The final movement, a
leap of faith, occurs when he believes in the virtue of the absurd, that his son will be
spared." (Oaklander 22) A connection had now been made between Abraham, Isaac, and God
and it is through this acceptance that Abraham moves from the inauthentic to the
authentic. Just as it was stated before, Abraham made a life altering decision that means
he no longer belongs to the realm of the inauthentic world. It is here that Abraham could
also be put into the second group of believers, those that live in response to God. Again
in the case of Kierkegaard he too makes a life altering decision, to pursue his Christian
faith. "In this case Abraham would have given up his individuality and become the
universal, to do as others do." (Oaklander 23) Unfortunately, unlike Abraham who got his
son back, Regine Olsen was never a part of Soren Kierkegaard's life again. 
The existential theme of alienation can also be found in "Fear and Trembling". "Through
the testing of his faith, Abraham became very aware of himself as an individual and that
he must exist alone." (Oaklander 25) He alienates himself by breaking the moral law and
taking his son to be sacrificed. He also demonstrated his aloneness by not telling anyone
even his wife what God had bid him to do. 
"Abraham did not seek immediate reconciliation with the totality from which he had
fallen, but instead tried to establish domination over the surrounding world." (Taylor
38).
In a similar sense, Kierkegaard looked only to himself, not to anyone else, for the
answer as to what to do. Abraham realized that by doing God's bidding he would be a
murderer and therefore did not go through with it. The resulting pain is in fact proof to
Abraham that his choice although not what God asked of him was the right one.
By giving himself completely to God, Abraham, according to Kierkegaard, had achieved the
goal of all humans: he had become a Christian. Soren Kierkegaard also gave himself
completely to God through his work and teachings. Both of these men made the jump from
the inauthentic to the authentic by living lives that were in total response to God. 
Bibliography
Works Cited
Jansen, G.M.A. "An Existential Approach to Theology." 
Bruce Publishing Company: Milwaukee, WI. 1966.
Oaklander, Nathan L. "Existential Philosophy: An 
Introduction." Prentice Hall: Paramus. 1995
Taylor, Mark-Lloyd. "Anthropology and Authority: Essays on 
Soren Kierkegaard." Rodopi: Atlanta, GA. 2000.