Kierkegaard & Anxiety

Soren Kierkegaard, "the father of existentialism," has had a significant influence on philosophy and psychology. His melancholy and thoughts on sin, which he seemed to inherit from his father, contributed to his views. Kierkegaard suggests that most people live lives of despair. He analyzes and attempts to revive Christianity, speculating that the freedom Adam felt led him to anxiety and then sin, and that this is the plight of humanity.

History

• Kierkegaard was an intellectual and a profound writer.

  Soren Aabye Kierkegaard was a 19th century Danish philosopher. A prolific and profound writer, he lived during the "golden age" of intellectuals and artists. His works touched on the areas of "philosophy, theology, psychology, literary criticism, devotional literature and fiction," according to the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy.

Identification

• Socrates influenced Kierkegaard's views.

  Kierkegaard's philosophy influenced postmodernism and existential psychology. He modeled his views after Socrates, focusing on the issue of how one exists. He argues that truth is found in subjectivity rather than objectivity, or that truth is found in how one relates to facts rather than in the facts themselves.

  A significant influence on Kierkegaard was his father, who was very religious and considered himself sinful. Like his father, Kierkegaard suffered from melancholy. The focus on sin that he inherited from his father laid the foundation for the works "Fear and Trembling" and "The Concept of Anxiety."

Origin of Anxiety

• Kierkegaard believed individuals should be self-reliant.

  According to Philosophy Pages, Kierkegaard believed that the majority is always wrong concerning what matters in life, especially regarding ethical and religious concerns. He felt that genuine actions should arise from the individual without regard to the opinions of others or being concerned about being accepted by a group. This meant that people needed to be self-reliant and trust in their views. Kierkegaard speculated that being self-reliant and free from others prompts fear and anxiety.

Despair

• Freedom leads to anxiety and despair.

  In his book "The Concept of Dread" Kierkegaard examines this emotional response to human freedom, which he considers appropriate. He states that anxiety is the natural response people feel when they know they are truly free and can do anything they want. He feels that the lives of most people are in the pursuit of pleasure, leading ultimately to lives of despair.

  Sin and anxiety are related for Kierkegaard, as in his assertion that Adam's anxiety about freedom led to his committing sin.

Significance

• Truths should be genuinely believed in.

  Kierkegaard believed that the way to deal with existential anxiety was to sincerely and genuinely believe truths. He had high standards for what is considered genuine and sincere. He thought that how people believe is much more significant than what people believe. For instance, he asserts that a religion such as Christianity needs to be wholly believed in to be useful and not cause anxiety. In this way, Kierkegaard's work attempts to analyze and revitalize Christianity, according to the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy.