Kierkegaard's existentialism (draft)

 H01 - Natalie McGarrity

For my midterm, I presented information on Søren Kierkegaard. You learned about his family, history, and beliefs, but I also mentioned that he is considered the father of existentialism. I will use this final blog post to explain what existentialism is, its history, and more. To begin, according to the Oxford dictionary existentialism is “a philosophical theory or approach which emphasizes the existence of the individual person as a free and responsible agent determining their own development through acts of the will.” 

History

Though Kierkegaard’s writings are considered the first to reflect existential thoughts, Sartre was actually the first philosopher to use the term existentialist to describe himself. Existentialism was a movement that encouraged people to take control of their lives and realize their impending death. It asks, what is your purpose and meaning? Kierkegaard focuses on individuality focusing on personal choice and commitment. His main focus was religion, but he rejected the Danish church because they allowed people to call themselves Christians without making them have a full commitment to God. He believed people must take a leap of faith and have a full and irrational relationship with God rather than simply belonging to a church. His beliefs had a strong influence on many other philosophers including Sartre, Camus, Nietzsche, and more. 

Kierkegaard’s writing

Kierkegaard wrote many books including Either/Or (PDF link: https://img1.wsimg.com/blobby/go/36ba381a-9850-4782-a471-dbe0bfa3c3b6/downloads/Either_or%20-%20Søren%20Kierkegaard%20(pdf).pdf?ver=1611846256813) which so dramatically stated: “one can do it or do not do it - you will regret both.” Here, he was referring to his failed engagement to Regina Olsen, but what does this have to do with existentialism? Kierkegaard called off the engagement because he believed you cannot have both marriage and passion. Kierkegaard had to take control of his life to find his own meaning and he did that by breaking off the engagement with Regina. He devoted a lot of his time to his writings which were influenced by his life. One major thing that influenced his writing was his feud with the church as seen in his later writings such as Works of Love (1847), Christian Discourses (1848), and Training in Christianity (1850). He believed that Christianity should be difficult, and the church was trying to make it easy. He used the biblical story of Abraham and his son to show a true leap of faith. Abraham was going to sacrifice his son to God because his faith was so strong and irrational. Kierkegaard believes all faith should be this strong and we must find this faith in ourselves. The School of Life does a great job of describing the life and beliefs of Kierkegaard in their short six-minute video linked below. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D9JCwkx558o 

The beliefs of others

Of course, Kierkegaard is not the only existentialist. According to the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, Nietzsche was also an existentialist who claimed, “God is dead” meaning that the possibility of God was eliminated by the Enlightenment. He believed that life is meaningless, also called nihilism. Nietzsche came to the conclusion that most individuals followed a herd mentality when it comes to religion. People believe what they are told regardless of reality. Kierkegaard came to a similar conclusion when he criticized the Danish church. Sartre was one of the first existentialists to actually call himself an existentialist and his motto was “existence precedes essence” meaning you must find your own reason to exist and give your life meaning because it is not predetermined. For more on the beliefs of Kierkegaard, Nietzsche, Sartre, and more I urge you to read the article linked below-titled Existentialism. 

https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/existentialism/#KieSinInd 

Today

Traditional existentialism which has a focus rooted in religion and finding yourself is used much less today, but it can still be seen in movements such as feminism, race theory, and more. Though existentialism is not what it used to be, we still have much to learn from the existential movement. Especially now that everyone has had time to consider their life’s purpose while waiting for the pandemic to end. 

In the classroom

Children spend a lot of their time in the classroom and it is the teacher’s job to educate them while still giving them room to grow into their own person. Existentialism plays a role in the lives of children as they try to figure out who they are and what their purposes are. This can most clearly be seen in the question, What do you want to be when you grow up? In school, students can make their own discoveries and mistakes. When existentialism is emphasized in the classroom students can learn at their own pace and form their own opinions similar to the workings in a Montessori school where students choose their own assignments based on the teacher’s loose guidelines. These classrooms are a place for self-discovery. For more information on existentialism in the classroom check out the video linked below. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5OHTrQLmSoE 

In religion/atheism

Existentialism is never more present than in religion and the lack thereof. It is seen in Kierkegaard’s existentialism as taking a leap of faith and having a relationship with God, but Nietzsche believed the universe is absurd so God cannot exist. These men questioned God and their own existences which is what makes them existentialists. 

In conclusion, existentialism is finding the reason for being. For a teacher, it may be to inspire the students, for an artist it may be to create a masterpiece that will be seen by hundreds, and so on. Existentialism is finding your purpose - what makes you, you and gives your life meaning. So, what is your purpose?