A Hermeneutic for and from Reading Kierkegaard’s <i>For Self-Examination</i>
This essay provides a close reading of Kierkegaard’s later signed text, <i>For Self-Examination</i>. While many of Kierkegaard’s pseudonymous texts often are selected for their philosophically explicit engagements with Hegelian philosophy, I use Hegel’s dialectic of lordship and bondage...
| Main Author: | |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2020-09-01
|
| Series: | Religions |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/11/10/491 |
| _version_ | 1797552501798469632 |
|---|---|
| author | Nathan Eric Dickman |
| author_facet | Nathan Eric Dickman |
| author_sort | Nathan Eric Dickman |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | This essay provides a close reading of Kierkegaard’s later signed text, <i>For Self-Examination</i>. While many of Kierkegaard’s pseudonymous texts often are selected for their philosophically explicit engagements with Hegelian philosophy, I use Hegel’s dialectic of lordship and bondage to draw out how Kierkegaard circumvents it in this one. I first provide historical context, noting how Kierkegaard turned to earnest works after his public humiliation in the Copenhagen newspaper, undermining his ability to deploy irony effectively. Second, I briefly develop Hegel’s lordship and bondage dialectic as a model for how selfhood is constituted through work and labor. Third, I dwell with a close reading of Kierkegaard’s book both in its composition and in its interpretation, bringing out how it donates grace rather than work (à la Hegel) to the reader’s attempt at self-realization. I conclude by noting one challenge to Kierkegaard’s ideal of addressing the “single individual” from the perspective of intersectional analysis. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T16:01:00Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-ab1dd6cab7af4c588e075065746a7c14 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2077-1444 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T16:01:00Z |
| publishDate | 2020-09-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Religions |
| spelling | doaj.art-ab1dd6cab7af4c588e075065746a7c142023-11-20T15:17:11ZengMDPI AGReligions2077-14442020-09-01111049110.3390/rel11100491A Hermeneutic for and from Reading Kierkegaard’s <i>For Self-Examination</i>Nathan Eric Dickman0Humanities Division, University of the Ozarks, Clarksville, AR 72830, USAThis essay provides a close reading of Kierkegaard’s later signed text, <i>For Self-Examination</i>. While many of Kierkegaard’s pseudonymous texts often are selected for their philosophically explicit engagements with Hegelian philosophy, I use Hegel’s dialectic of lordship and bondage to draw out how Kierkegaard circumvents it in this one. I first provide historical context, noting how Kierkegaard turned to earnest works after his public humiliation in the Copenhagen newspaper, undermining his ability to deploy irony effectively. Second, I briefly develop Hegel’s lordship and bondage dialectic as a model for how selfhood is constituted through work and labor. Third, I dwell with a close reading of Kierkegaard’s book both in its composition and in its interpretation, bringing out how it donates grace rather than work (à la Hegel) to the reader’s attempt at self-realization. I conclude by noting one challenge to Kierkegaard’s ideal of addressing the “single individual” from the perspective of intersectional analysis.https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/11/10/491KierkegaardsubjectivityHegellordship and bondage dialecticself-examinationLutheranism |
| spellingShingle | Nathan Eric Dickman A Hermeneutic for and from Reading Kierkegaard’s <i>For Self-Examination</i> Religions Kierkegaard subjectivity Hegel lordship and bondage dialectic self-examination Lutheranism |
| title | A Hermeneutic for and from Reading Kierkegaard’s <i>For Self-Examination</i> |
| title_full | A Hermeneutic for and from Reading Kierkegaard’s <i>For Self-Examination</i> |
| title_fullStr | A Hermeneutic for and from Reading Kierkegaard’s <i>For Self-Examination</i> |
| title_full_unstemmed | A Hermeneutic for and from Reading Kierkegaard’s <i>For Self-Examination</i> |
| title_short | A Hermeneutic for and from Reading Kierkegaard’s <i>For Self-Examination</i> |
| title_sort | hermeneutic for and from reading kierkegaard s i for self examination i |
| topic | Kierkegaard subjectivity Hegel lordship and bondage dialectic self-examination Lutheranism |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/11/10/491 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT nathanericdickman ahermeneuticforandfromreadingkierkegaardsiforselfexaminationi AT nathanericdickman hermeneuticforandfromreadingkierkegaardsiforselfexaminationi |