En ahona 29, 1998 7 3- 7 4
Li ing wi h Kie kegaa d
Agnes Helle
New School o Social Resea ch
K i e k e g a a d mean some hing e y simila o he philosophe s and o some
signi ican poe s o he 20 h cen u y as Feue bach mean o hose second
hal o he 19.cen u y. The name o eue bach means « i e c e e k ». The philoso-
phe s o he second hal o he 19 cen u y desi ed o lea e behind bo h he
philosophical adi ion (me aphysics) and he a is ic adi ion (classicism) wi h
a e o l u i o n a y ges u e. Kie k e g a a d himsel was one o hose hinke s, as was
also Ma x, Wa g n e , o Nie zsche. Feue bach's hinking was/symbolically/ no
a wa e all o a b oad i e o be c ossed, bu a c eek. He was no signi ican
as a philosophe , bu jus as a o u n n e . W h o e e c ossed he c eek e c e i e d
bap ism by i e. Bu a e hey ha e c ossed he c eek, he c eek los i s sig-
ni icance o he gian s who c ossed i . The philosophe s and a is s e c e i e d
hei bap ism h ough i e, bu a e w a ds hey had o become hemsel e s .
They wen a beyond Feue bach; ye , hey ha e ne e o go en hei
Feue bachian inspi a ions. S ill, hey cons an ly e p oached Feue bach wi h
ha ing s opped a he beginning and ne e ha ing inished he wo k he i s
b e g u n .
One among hose who c ossed he eue bachian c eek, Kie k e g a a d, be-
came himsel one o he signi ican sou ces o he hinke s and o (some)
poe s om he u n o he cen u y onwa ds. Kie k e g a a d's name means
«c h u c h y a d/ chu c h g a den/». A chu c h y a d is a peace ul ga den, one can si
h e e, con empla e, umia e. Ye i is also a g a e y a d. The mos signi ican
m e m b es o a communi y a e no mally bu ied he e. The e p e s e n a i e
hinke s o 20 h cen u y do no c oss he i e c eek any longe . I hey s ill do
i , hey will abandon «bap ism» by Kie k e g a a d. S ill, his chu c h y a d / g a e-
y a d, jus as a cen u y be o e he i e c eek, exc e ed a ne e ading in luence
e en on hose who ha e le i behind. Philosophe s si he e a e hinking,
hey in e p e also adi ion, he signi ican philosophe s who a e bu ied he e .
Heidegge w i es ha h ee spi i ual e en s exc e ed he g ea es in luence
on his you h. Fi s, he Ge man publica ion o Kie k e g a a d's wo ks, second,
7 4 En ahona 29, 1998 Agnes Helle
he collec ed poe y o Hölde lin, hi d, he publica ion o Nie zsche's (spa-
ious) book The Will o Powe . Lukács —be o e he became inspi ed by Ma x —
was deeply ouched by Kie k e g a a d. He w o e one o his i s essays on
K i e k e g a a d's s o y wi h Regine Olsen and i s philosophical implica ions. F o m
Webe o Wi gens ein, om Ka ka o Ingma Be gman, one can ha dly see
in luen ial au ho s who would ha e ne e been ouched by he esh which
b i ew om he chu c h y a d o Copenhagen.
C o n a y o Feue bach, Kie k e g a a d was one o he g ea es and mos sig-
ni ican hinke s o he p e ious cen u y. None o he mode n hinke s we n
b e yond him. S ill, he s o y o his in luence esembles e y much on ha o
Feue bach. He had no s uden s, no « ollowe s» in a s ic sense. He inspi e d
independen hinke s and no epigons. T h e e was ne e a Kie k e g a a d / s c h o o l ,
e en less a kind o Kie k e g a a dianism. F e q u e n l y, e en his deb o s did
m i n i n i z e his in luence. Heidegge bo owed se e al g ea ideas o m
K i e k e g a a d wi hou admi ing i o , pe haps, wi hou e en ealizing i . A
one poin he said ha Kie k e g a a d was no a philosophe , a he a « e l i g i o u s
au ho ». In ac , Heidegge 's essay «The end o philosophy and he ask o
hinking» was sen as a con ibu ion o a con e ence on Kie k e g a a d in Pa i s ,
1968, which was one o he mos signi ican con e ences in he pos WW2 in
Eu ope. G ea hinke s o ou cen u y, among o he s Sa s e, Ricœu and
Lé inas, paid he e ibu e o Kie k e g a a d and o his legacy.
K i e k e g a a d himsel would be mos happy wi h his de elopmen . Fo him phi-
losophy was iden ical wi h Ca esian me aphysics, and wi h Hegel and
Schelling, he las philosophy wi h he ecollec ion o he me e spec a o . T h e
ask o hinking was hinking exis ence. He p e e ed o speak o he «exis-
ing hinke », o he «exis e » who is hinking exis ence. The exis e can be a
eligious hinke , bu is no necessa ily eligious in a adi ional sense. T h e
w i e speaks abou his houg s. Thinking eligion can be eligous p ac ice,
bu is canno be communica ed. One canno desc ibe (communica e) he Go d -
e l a i o n s h i p. Thinking means o hink he h ee p ac ical a i udes o
men/women, he aes he ical, he e hical and he eligious. Ye , among hem
only he e hical can be communica ed, al hough only indi e c l y, because he
eligious and he aes he ical can be only app oxima ed. I was Kie k e g a a d ' s
deepes con ic ion ha u h is subjec i i y. And i u h is subjec i i y he e
can be no posi i e « eaching», e en less can he e be a sys em, excep o Go d ,
in he di ine hea e . E e y «ism» is he misunde s anding o a pa adox .
K i e k e g a a d's in luence canno be an «ism». The misunde s anding o
K i e k e g a a d is always he unde s anding o a pa adox. Kie k e g a a d belongs
o us, and we o him, wi hou ollowing him. We a e jus li ing wi h him.
This is why, so i seems o me, he in luence o Kie k e g a a d, o a he his in-
spi a ion, is no limi ed in ime. He exp esses, no in he con en o his hink-
i ng —albei o en also in he con en — he pa adoxicali y o he mode n/pos-
mode n philosophical wo ld. His oice will be hea d also in he nex cen u y.
