Søren Kierkegaard

Søren Aabye Kierkegaard (IPA: {{IPA| ˈsøːr ̩n ˈkɪʁg?gɔːʔʁ}}) (May 5, 1813 – November 11, 1855), a 19th century Danish philosopher and theologian, has achieved general recognition as the first existentialist philosopher, though some new research shows this may be a more difficult connection than previously thought.http://www.stolaf.edu/collections/kierkegaard/newsletter/issue46/46002.htm Philosophically, he bridged the gap that existed between Hegelian philosophy and what was to become Existentialism. Kierkegaard strongly rejected both the Hegelian philosophy of his time, and what he saw as the empty formalities of the Danish church. Much of his work deals with religious problems such as the nature of faith, the institution of the Christian church, and Christian ethics and theology. Because of this, Kierkegaard's work is sometimes characterized as Christian existentialism (as opposed to the existentialism of Jean-Paul Sartre or the proto-existentialism of Friedrich Nietzsche, both being derived from a strongly atheistic foundation). Kierkegaard's work can resist interpretation, since he wrote most of his early work under various pseudonyms, and often these pseudo-authors will comment on the works of the earlier pseudo-authors.

Biography

• Joakim Garff. , Princeton University Press 2005, ISBN 069109165X.