Introducing Kierkegaard

Soren Kierkegaard is now regarded as the founder of Existentialism and the first modern theologian. Philosophy, in Kierkegaard’s radical view, was of no use unless it permanently changed people’s lives. His distrust of grand abstract schemes, particularly Hegel’s, and his insistence that philosophy is essentially writing also identify him as a forerunner of postmodernist concerns.

Kierkegaard disguised his own authorship by adopting multiple pseudonyms and plural viewpoints often contrary to his beliefs. He was the first great thinker to explore the unexplained sense of anxiety that oppresses modern individuals. He probed deep into the paradoxes of religious belief and challenged a society which falsely claimed to be Christian.

Introducing Kierkegaard is an account of the strange life and ideas of a being tortured by his attempts to change the priorities of Western thought. Dave Robinson offers a clear path through Kierkegaard’s anti-philosophy, and Oscar Zarate illustrates a passionate story with skill and humour.