1 . Quo ed in KI R M M S E (1996), p. 298.
En ahona 29, 1998 1 2 5- 1 3 0
Kie kegaa d as Feuille on W i e
Geo ge Pa ison
King's College, Camb idge
The w i e and d ama is Hen ik He z, who was bo h a con empo a y o
K i e k e g a a d's and knew him socially, once no ed in his jou nal ha «S.K i e k e-
g a a d o en seems o me —al hough only in his humo ous w i ings— o be
no hing o he han a e y alen ed and we l l - ead euille on w i e ... His s yle
is al oge he ha o a euille on w i e , no exac ly o he F ench s yle bu a
m i x u e o Jules Janins and a young, philosophically educa ed Ge m a n . »1
The e m a k is in i sel somewha sligh and does no belong o any sus-
ained discussion o Kie k e g a a d's li e a y signi icance —no is i e en clea
wha He z means by Kie k e g a a d's humo ous w i ings: he pseudonyms, o
only some o hem, and, i so, which? Bu al hough i would be ex e m e l y
ash, oolish e en, o make his passing commen he basis o a new e a d i n g
o Kie k e g a a d's en i e au ho ship, i does illumina e ha au ho ship o m
an unusual angle. No is his illumina ion me ely li e a y. I He z's own in-
e es in Kie k e g a a d p obably did no ex end o he philosophical con en
o his wo ks, his commen is no wi hou implica ions o a con empo a y
philosophical e a d e . Le us see how his migh be so.
Bu i s we ha e o iden i y wha exac ly He z mean by a « euille on
w i e » .
Feuille on li e a u e was (and, one migh say, s ill is) a gen e o jou nalis-
ic w i ing, aspi ing o e lec and, in e lec ing, o mould he poin o iew
o a public ha aspi es o be bo h ashionable and cul u ed. Undoub edly i
would ha e been e g a ded by someone like He z as ope a ing on a lowe le e l
han he kind o c i icism emana ing om he ci cle o w i e s, a is s and in-
ellec uals ga he ed a ound he d ama is , c i ic and ama eu philosophe
J . L . Heibe g, a ci cle wi h which bo h He z and Kie k e g a a d had some as-
s o c i a i o n .
A one le el i immedia ely becomes ob ious ha Kie k e g a a d was a w i e
o a qui e di e en s amp om ha o he ypical euille on w i e . Bu al-
hough his c i ical sophis ica ion and eligious and philosophical passions pu
1 2 6 En ahona 29, 1998 Geo ge Pa ison
2 . I is plausible ha he expe imen al pseudonym L . Rosenpind (o , Rosenblad) associa ed
wi h an ex ensi e g oup o no es o an uncomple ed wo k called «W i ing Sa m p l e »s i-
mul aneously sa i izes Ca s ensen and Rosenho (Ca s ensen was egula ly e e ed o by
his mili a y ank) —one o he no es simply has «Fe u i l l e o n»as a heading. An a icle so-
me imes belie ed o be by Kie k e g a a d and en i led «Li e a y Qu i c k s i l e o an A e m p
a he Highes Madness oge he wi h Lucida In e a l l a did appea » in Ca s ensen's Ny
Po e e u i l l e, al hough i was e y possibly by Kie k e g a a d's hen sec e a y P. W. Ch is ensen.
( See Pa p. IV A, 141.)
3 . HE I B E RG, J. L. (1843), p. 290.
him in ano he class om Ca s ensen and Ro s e n h o , he did sha e many o
hei cul u al ho izo n s2.I Kie k e g a a d is now ca ego ized as belonging o he
wo ld o «high» cul u e and i , e en in his own day, he could be iden i ied as
a pa o he cul u al éli e, he «public» add essed by he euille on w i e s o -
en a ended he same plays, ead he same books, lis ened o he same mu-
sic and looked a he same pain ings as hose who p ided hemsel es on a mo e
c i ical and less dile an e app oach. The di e ence was no so much in wha
was seen (hea d, e c.), bu in h owi was seen.
An example o he in e wea ing o hese wo wo lds in he body o
K i e k e g a a d's au ho ship is p o ided by he ex ended e i ew essay Kie k e g a a d
w o e abou Augus in Eugène Sc ibe's comedy The Fi s Lo e, included in he
w i ings o he aes he e A ha make up Pa I o Ei h e / O . Sc ibe is, i has
o be said, almos uni e sally o go en oday, bu in his own ime he was
Eu ope's mos success ul d ama is . Ca s ensen's Fi g a ono ed ha in one ye a
Sc ibe had ea ned mo e money han all o he F ench d ama is s pu oge h-
e . His plays we e also an impo an ing edien in Heibe g's campaign o in-
oduce a mo e F ancophile one in o De n m a k's hea ical li e: be ween 1823
and 1895, one hund ed and one plays by Sc ibe we e pe o med 2976 imes
a he T h e a e Royal in Copenhagen. Indeed, Heibe g himsel ansla ed a
numbe o hese, including The Fi s Lo e.
Al hough Kie k e g a a d makes i clea ha The Fi s Lo eis li le mo e han
a ligh comedy, playing upon he i iali y o i s cha ac e s' emo ional in-
o l emen s, he insis s ha , wi hin he limi s o i s gen e i is a mas e w o k
o i ony and e lec ion, making much ado abou wha is in i sel no hing, a
comedy o pu e e o .
This app aisal o The Fi s Lo ewas, in u n, one o he ea u es o Ei h e / O
ha i i a ed Heibe g when he came o e i ew i in his jou nal In e l l i g e n s b l a d e.
Heibe g w o e ha he au ho o Ei h e / O had ‘made a mas e piece ou o a
p e y li le baga elle and asc ibes o i a endency which is i ually he op-
posi e o wha Sc ibe admi s o3.Fo his pa , Kie k e g a a d was u ious abou
Heibe g's e i ew and illed pages o his jou nal wi h sa cas ic e m a ks abou
he man who was e g a ded as he g ea es au ho i y in Danish le e s, and o m
whom Kie k e g a a d had expec ed a mo e insigh ul judgemen .
Cu i o u s l y, In e l l i g e n s b l a d ealso included a small piece by He z ela ing o
The Peep Sh ow, ha Kie k e g a a d e g a ded i as an impo an pa able abou
he na u e o he mode n public (S V 314, 85) and was only so y ha He z ,
Kie kegaa d as Feuille on W i e En ahona 29, 1998 1 2 7
4 . In KI R M M S E, (1996).
5 . See CR A RY, J. (1990); also ZE R LA N G, M. (1995).
in de ending i agains his de ac o s, had called i a «me e baga elle». (Pa p
VII B 125, 87) This is s iking in iew o Heibe g's use o he sel -same ex-
p ession in e i ewing Ei h e / O , and i is doubly in e es ing in ha He z did
n o himsel use i . He did e e o i as «a small, ligh piece» —bu i was once
again Heibe g who called i a «baga elle»! Kie k e g a a d's slip (se e al yea s a -
e Heibe g's e i ew o Ei h e / O ) is indica i e o how deeply Heibe g's wo d s
had wounded him.
We may seem o be descending in o he absolu e i ia o Kie k e g a a d i a n a ,
bu he example is no unin e es ing in he ligh o He z's own commen s
abou he ypical s yle o he euille on w i e , in wo ds quali ying his p e i-
ously quo ed e m a k abou Kie k e g a a d: «he akes his ime, le ing his pen
un as and loose, makes lies in o elephan s and ice e sa and le s his main
emphasis all on he piquan p esen a ion o he subjec and o en, e en, on
he e y biza eness o he idea4.» The deba e abou The Fi s Lo e and T h e
Peep Sh owillus a es he c i ical consequences o his, since he key issue was
p ecisely ha o p o p o ion, wi h he accusa ion lying backwa ds and o -
w a ds ha one o o he c i ic has los all sense o p o p o ion, making a mas-
e piece ou o a baga elle, an elephan ou o a ly and, o cu a long s o y
s h o , much ado abou no hing. Bu his in u n highligh s a u he ea u e
o c i ical w i ing in he zone o cul u al li e a e sed bo h by he euille on
w i e s and by c i ics o a mo e e l e c i e kind —a ea u e pe haps no acci-
den ally linked o he i le o He z's li le piece (Pe p e k i k a s s e n)— ha e e y-
hing depends on pe spec i e o poin o iew. The aim o he euille on w i e
is, abo e all, o di ec he eade 's gaze in he mids o he e e -changing calei-
doscope o cul u al li e.
In his s udy Techniques o he Ob s e e Jona han C a y has a gued ha he
pe iod in which Kie k e g a a d de eloped ow a ds his ma u e au ho ship was
one ha ma ked he eme gence o «a new kind o obse e ». New op ical ech-
n o l o g y, simul aneously exploi ed in he wo lds o science and indus y, med-
icine and popula en e ainmen , ga e a hi he o unp eceden ed impo a n c e
o he pe cei ing subjec in de e mining how he wo ld looked, a de e l o p-
men e lec ed in he cul u e o spec a o ship ha g ew up in he nine een h
c e n u y, as e idenced by he ise o museums, a cades, zoos and pleasu e pa k s ,
oge he wi h pho og aphy, s e o s c o p y, dio amas and, a he end o he cen-
u y, he cinema5.
I is no coincidence in his con ex ha Ca s ensen, one o he mo i n g
spi i s o euille on li e a u e in De n m a k in he ea ly 1840s, should also be
he ounde o De n m a k's bes -known pleasu e pa k, he mould-b e a k i n g
Ti oli Ga dens. He e he public could expe ience o hemsel es he kind o
l e i s u ely spec a o ship ha had p e iously been he p e s e e o English Mi l o d s
on he G and To u . Behind he scenes, howe e , was he c i ic, he one who
no only di ec ed he gaze o he public bu who could ab up ly in oke a shi
1 2 8 En ahona 29, 1998 Geo ge Pa ison
6 . Fo u he de ails, see PATT I S O N, G.(1998).
o iew-poin , u ning mas e pieces back in o baga elles and elephan s back
in o lies. In such a si ua ion he wo ld o cul u e is no longe he wo ld shaped
by classical aes he ic alues in which beau y is u h and u h beau y in e e -
las ing sel -sameness and sel -su iciency. E e y hing has now become ephe-
me al, ola ile, in ini ely adap able and manipulable. I is he wo ld o he ugi-
i e and he ansien , he popula and he ela i e, a wo ld in which i iali y
and ba hos ha e as much claim upon aes he ic alidi y as he good, he ue
and he beau i ul. I is in sho , he wo ld o popula ashionable cul u e.
Wha i is like o li e in such a wo ld is succinc ly cap u ed by Kie k e g a a d
in a jo ing om his ea ly jou nals: «I should like o w i e a no el, in which
he main cha ac e should be a pe son who had acqui ed a pai o glasses, o
which he one glass made e e y hing as small as an ox y - g a s - m i c oscope, he
o he made e e y hing la ge in he same deg ee, [so ha ] he expe ienced e e y-
hing e y e l a i i s i c a l l y.» (Pap. II A, 203) —An expe ience wi h which we ,
one hund ed and i y yea s la e , ha e lea ned o make in o a way o li e.
He z's desc ip ion hus highligh s an impo an aspec o Kie k e g a a d ' s
w o k ha has been almos en i ely neglec ed in he seconda y li e a u e and
o b s c u ed by he image o Kie k e g a a d as a gloomy and soli a y igu e. Fo
K i e k e g a a d did no w i e in some i o y owe , un ouched by he cu en s o
c o n e m p o a y popula cul u e bu he was, on he con a y, engaged wi h ha
c u l u e in a mul i ude o ways, ways i has only been possible o ouch on
h e e6.
This also has, as I sugges ed a he beginning, implica ions o he philo-
sophical eading o Kie k e g a a d. How so?
I is cus oma y o see Kie k e g a a d's place in he his o y o ideas in e ms
o his a ilia ion o wha migh , ollowing Lea is, be called, he G e a
T adi ion, o , pe haps, he «Canon» o Philosophical Classics: Pla o, A is o le,
Augus ine, De s c a es, Kan , Hegel, e c. —o in e ms o his in luence upon
he u he de elopmen o ha T adi ion in Nie zsche, Heidegge and we n-
ie h cen u y exis en ialis philosophy. E en i he a emp o con ex ualize
his wo k by such compa isons culmina es in he judgemen ha he is, a bes ,
a ma ginal con ibu o o he G ea T adi ion (o e en he joke in he pack),
he compa ison i sel se es o gi e he in e p e a ion o his wo k a ce a i n
philosophical digni y.
This app oach is no wi hou me i . Clea ly Kie k e g a a d d i d engage wi h
he G ea T adi ion a a a ie y o le els, b inging his own insigh s and o -
mula ions o he ongoing deba e abou a numbe o undamen al ques ions
in philosophy. Bu , impo a n l y, he ma e ial o his own philosophizing was
no es ic ed o he opoi o classical philosophical ex s bu was d awn no
less equen ly om he epheme al wo ld o popula cul u e, he wo ld e-
lec ed in he pages o he euille on li e a u e. In his espec Kie k e g a a d was
a man o he mode n u ban wo ld in a way ha mo e academic hinke s such
Kie kegaa d as Feuille on W i e En ahona 29, 1998 1 2 9
as Hegel (o , o ha ma e , Feue bach o S auss, whose ideal was ha o
he academy e en when hey no longe belonged o i ) could e e be.
This, o cou se, aises an immedia e p oblem o ou in e p e a ion o
K i e k e g a a d. Many o he mani old connec ions be ween his au ho ship and
he wo ld o he euille on w i e s ha e, in he na u e o he case, a n i s h e d
in o obscu i y. A c i ical discussion o Hegel's ca ego y o ansi ion, conduc ed
wi h he help o A is o le and T endelenbu g, will necessa ily ha e a e l a i e l y
imeless quali y ha a deba e abou whe he a one-ac comedy ske ch (no
e en included in s anda d edi ions o i s au ho 's selec ed wo ks) is o is no
«a baga elle» can ne e hope o a ain. We (o he philosophe s amongs us)
s ill ha e a con ex in which o unde s and he o me , whe eas he la e will
be accesible only o a cul u al a cheologis o ex emely na ow in e es s. W h a
is epheme al anishes wi h he passing o i s day, and he day o he popula
c u l u e o he 1840s has well and uly passed.
This in oduces a a - eaching dis o ion in o ou eading o Kie k e g a a d .
Only a small mino i y o Kie k e g a a d eade s (e en o Da n i s h - e a d i n g
K i e k e g a a d eade s) will be commi ed o he labou o e c o n s uc ing he
in e ac ions be ween his w i ing and he wo ld o he hen popula cul u e .
Bu i is impo an , e y impo an , o all philosophically in e es ed e a d e s
o Kie k e g a a d o e c o g n i ze ha hose connec ions a e he e. Fo Kie k e g a a d ' s
c i ique o he G ea T adi ion is no me ely in e nal. I is a c i ique o he
whole academic s yle. As Kie k e g a a d's mos es eemed ole model, So c a e s ,
sough o philosophize in he ma ke -place, so he himsel sough o p ac ice
bo h philosophy and Ch is ian es imony in he mids o he con empo a y
e q u i alen o he o um — he «public» domain add essed by popula jou -
nalism. No is his simply he mani es a ion o a pe sonal p e e ence o he
populis o e he schola ly app oach o philosophy. Ra he , i is oo ed in a
sense ha he adi ion i sel has en e ed in o a c i ical and po en ially e -
minal phase in he si ua ion o mode ni y, a si ua ion o which he ise o po-
pula cul u e, an essen ial and pa adigma ic phenomenon o mode n u ban-
i y, is a powe ully exp e s s i e symp om.
I we wish o p omo e philosophy à la Kie k e g a d, hen, we should be wa y
o a emp ing o jus i y his wo k by ele a ing him in o he anks o he
«Classics». Kie k e g a a d is no jus a deba ing pa ne o Hegel and Co. He
is also one o he i s o ha e ale ed us o he ac ha i is he e p e s e n a-
ions o alue in popula cul u e ha ha e he mos immedia e impac on
ou pe cep ion o wha makes o a wo hwhile li e, and ha such pe c e p-
ions shape e en he p ejudices o philosophe s, o philosophe s oo pa i c-
ipa e in his cul u e which is he all-pe ading medium o mode n li e. T h e e
is he e o e an impo an c i ical ask o be pe o med in lea ning o dis in-
guish be ween wha is ‘a me e baga elle’ and wha o e s genuine insigh and,
wi hin he e e -shi ing ho izons o he epheme al, da ing o expe imen wi h
p e s p e c i e and poin o iew in o de o sus ain, o pe haps o egain, he
sense o sel ha he e y p e alence o he popula pu s a isk.

1 3 0 En ahona 29, 1998 Geo ge Pa ison
Bi b l i o g a p h y
CR A RY, J. (1990), Techniques o he Ob s e e . On Vision and Mo d e ni y in hge
Nine een h Ce n u y, Camb idge, Mass., MIT P e s s .
HE I B E RG, J. L. (1843), «Li e æ Vin e sæd» in In e l l i g e n s b l a d e II. 24.
— (1861), P osaiske Sk i e , Copenhagen, Re i zel. Vol. 4.
HE RT Z, H. (1842), «E Pa O d om K i iken o e Dy eha scenen “Pe s p e c i k a s s e n”
in In elligensblade I. 8.
KI R M M S E, B uce H. (1996), S ø en Kie k e g a a d T u e , Copenhagen, Re i ze l .
PATT I S O N, G. (1998), Poo Pa is! Kie k e g a a d's C i ique o he Spec acula Ci y, Be l i n :
Wal e de G u y e .
ZE R LA N G , M. (1995), The Ci y Spec acula o he Nien een h Ce n u y, Copenhagen,
Cen e o U bani e og Æs e ik, A bejdspapi 9.