Comparing Kierkegaard's Fear And Trembling
Kierkegaard’s Fear and Trembling is an ethical-religious text. In this book Kierkegaard introduces us to the mystery of faith illustrated by Abraham’s binding of Isaac in Genesis 22. Now in Genesis 22 faith is demonstrated to us by Abraham not doubting God’s command. Abraham’s decision to listen to God is fear and trembling. Faith is a task not an accomplishment, it is a task because Abraham saw it like that. Moreover, Kierkegaard wants to raise faith. The faith that Kierkegaard presents to us become two separate movements. These two movements of faith are the movement of infinity and the movement of finitude.
In Fear and Trembling, Kierkegaard explains the nature of these movements as knights. The movement of infinity is known as the Knight …show more content…
The term ethics has more than one meaning in Kierkegaard’s work. It is used to signify both: “a limited existential sphere, which is superseded by the higher stage of the religious life; and an aspect of life which is retained even within religious life” (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, “Kierkegaard’s Ethics”). Ethics exemplifies the universal, the fundamental social norms. The social norms are perceived to be the top court of appeal for judging human affairs. Even sacrifice is acceptable in terms of how it serves others. Kierkegaard, nonetheless, recognizes duties to a power higher than social norms. Fear and Trembling gives the notion that Abraham’s sacrifice of his son is not for the sake of social norms, but is the result of a “theological suspension of the ethical”. In order to get to religious faith, an individual must first embrace the ethical; as a “limited existential sphere, which is superseded by the higher stage of religious life.” Furthermore the distinction between good and evil is not upon social norms but upon God. “Therefore it is possible, as Johannes de Silentio argues was the case for Abraham (the father of faith), that God demand a suspension of the ethical (in the sense of the socially prescribed norms),” (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, “Soren Kierkegaard”). Still this is ethical, but now in the sense that the “aspect of life is retained even within religious life,” as ultimately God's definition of the distinction between good and evil outranks any human society's
In Fear and Trembling, Kierkegaard explains the nature of these movements as knights. The movement of infinity is known as the Knight …show more content…
The term ethics has more than one meaning in Kierkegaard’s work. It is used to signify both: “a limited existential sphere, which is superseded by the higher stage of the religious life; and an aspect of life which is retained even within religious life” (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, “Kierkegaard’s Ethics”). Ethics exemplifies the universal, the fundamental social norms. The social norms are perceived to be the top court of appeal for judging human affairs. Even sacrifice is acceptable in terms of how it serves others. Kierkegaard, nonetheless, recognizes duties to a power higher than social norms. Fear and Trembling gives the notion that Abraham’s sacrifice of his son is not for the sake of social norms, but is the result of a “theological suspension of the ethical”. In order to get to religious faith, an individual must first embrace the ethical; as a “limited existential sphere, which is superseded by the higher stage of religious life.” Furthermore the distinction between good and evil is not upon social norms but upon God. “Therefore it is possible, as Johannes de Silentio argues was the case for Abraham (the father of faith), that God demand a suspension of the ethical (in the sense of the socially prescribed norms),” (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, “Soren Kierkegaard”). Still this is ethical, but now in the sense that the “aspect of life is retained even within religious life,” as ultimately God's definition of the distinction between good and evil outranks any human society's