FAMOUS AS

Philosopher, Theologian & Religious Author

NATIONALITY
Danish Famous Danish Men
BORN ON
05 May 1813 AD
BIRTHDAY
5th May Famous 5th May Birthdays
CENTURY
19th Century
DIED AT AGE
42
SUN SIGN
Taurus Taurus Men
BORN IN
Copenhagen
DIED ON
11 November 1855 AD
PLACE OF DEATH
Frederiks Hospital
FATHER
Michael Pedersen Kierkegaard
MOTHER
Ane Srensdatter Lund Kierkegaard
SIBLINGS
Peter Christian Kierkegaard
EDUCATION
University of Copenhagen

image: http://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/thumbs/soren-kierkegaard-19.jpg

Image Credit
image: http://www.thefamouspeople.com/images/cite_this.png

Soren Kierkegaard was a famous Danish philosopher, theologian and religious author. He was well
known for his criticism of the philosophies of Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel, Friedrich Wilhelm
Joseph Schelling and Karl Wilhelm Friedrich Schlegel. His philosophical work generally deals with
the issues of living as a single individual and giving priority to concrete human reality over abstract
thinking. His work in theology focuses mainly on Christian ethics and institution of the Church. It also
deals with the difference between the purely objective proofs of Christianity and a subjective
relationship to Jesus Christ. Kierkegaard was also interested in human psychology and his
psychological work explores the emotions and the feelings of individuals when facing situations in
life. His intellectuality was influenced by Socrates and the Socratic Method. Kierkegaards earlier
works were mainly written under various pseudonymous characters, presenting their own distinctive
viewpoints and interacting with each other.

Soren Kierkegaard Childhood & Early Life

Soren Kierkegaard was born on 5th May, 1813 in an affluent family in Copenhagen. His father,
Michael Pedersen Kierkegaard was a stern man with an ardent imagination. His mother, Ane
Sorensdatter Lund Kierkegaard was a quiet, plain lady with no formal education. In 1830, he
attended the School of Civic Virtue, Ostre Borgerdyd Gymnasium. In this school, Kierkegaard
studied history and Latin among other subjects. He went to the University of Copenhagen to study
theology but was reluctant to study historical works and philosophy. He didnt want to be a traditional
philosopher and was also not interested in preaching Christianity. On 8 th May, 1837 he met Regine
Olsen and the two were instantly attracted towards each other. He formally proposed her on
September 8, 1840, but following his delusions about the prospects of marriage, he broke off the
engagement on August 11, 1841. It was said that the two were mad in love but Kierkegaard
considered his melancholy made him unsuitable for marriage. Still there was no clear reason for
the abrupt end of the relationship. Later, Kierkegaard started concentrating in his examinations. On
September 1841, he came up with, On the Concept of Irony with Continual Reference to Socrates,
which the university panel considered thoughtful and noteworthy. This thesis dealt with the irony and
Schelling's 1841 lectures and but was taken as too informal and witty for a serious academic thesis.
Kierkegaard completed his graduation from university on October 20, 1841 with a Magister Artium
which is now known as Ph.D.

Later Life & Works

Kierkegaard used pseudonyms to publish some of his works, whereas in others signed his own as
author. For example, his first book, De omnibus dubitandum est was written in between 1841-42
was written under pseudonym, Johannes Climacus. Unfortunately this book was published only
after his death. On February 20, 1843, Kierkegaard published Either/Or which was written during
his stay in Berlin. His next publication Two Upbuilding Discourses, 1843 was released under his
own name. On October 16, 1843 he published his three books, among which Three Upbuilding
Discourses, 1843 was the only one written under his own name. The other two books namely Fear
and Trembling and Repetition were published under pseudonyms Johannes de Silentio and
Constantin Constantius respectively. The same year, he published another book, Four Upbuilding
Discourses, 1843 published under his own name. The following year in 1844, he published Two
Upbuilding Discourses, 1844, and Three Upbuilding Discourses, 1844 using his own name. The
next book to come out was Philosophical Fragments written under the pseudonym Johannes
Climacus. His next book, The Concept of Anxiety was published under two pseudonyms Vigilius
Haufniensis, with a Preface, by Nicolaus Notabene. In the final book of the year, Four Upbuilding
Discourses, 1844 he used his own name.

In the early 1845, he published two books, Three Discourses on Imagined Occasions, under his
own name and Stages on Life's Way which was edited by Hilarius Bookbinder. Kierkegaard then
took a short break in Berlin. On his return, he published all his discourses from 1843-44 together in a
volume, Eighteen Upbuilding Discourses on May 29, 1845. Following an article from Peder Ludvig
Moller, contributor and editor of The Corsair, who in his article had questioned about the coherency
of the works of Kierkegaard, to which the latter responded heavily. Kierkegaard published two small
articles in his response. The first piece, The Activity of a Traveling Esthetician was focused on
insulting Mollers integrity while in the second piece; Dialectical Result of a Literary Police Action
Kierkegaard criticized about The Corsairs journalistic quality and reputation. This was followed by a
series of mocking attacks by The Corsair on Kierkegaards appearance, voice and habits.
Nevetheless, this didnt have any effect on Kierkegaard who kept his habit of writing under
pseudonyms intact. On February 27, 1846 Kierkegaard published Concluding Unscientific Postscript
to Philosophical Fragments, under his first pseudonym, Johannes Climacus. His next book Two
Ages: A Literary Review, was published under his own name.

After a gap of one year, Kierkegaard started writing again in 1847. Edifying Discourses in Diverse
Spirits was his first work of this period and included, Purity of Heart is to Will One Thing and
Works of Love. After knowing that the people were discussing about his status of Christianity upon
his pseudonyms, he wrote Concluding Unscientific Discourses where he openly admitted to be the
author of the books. In the year 1848, Kierkegaard published Christian Discourses under his own
name and The Crisis and a Crisis in the Life of an Actress under the pseudonym Inter et Inter. The
same year he wrote, The Point of View of My Work as an Author which was an autobiographical
explanation of his use of pseudonyms. Unfortunately, this book couldnt get published during his
lifetime. The next year in 1849, Kierkegaard published the second edition of Either/Or and The Lily
of the Field and the Bird of the Air. Later in the year, he published other books, The Sickness Unto
Death under the pseudonym Anti-Climacus and Three Discourses at the Communion on Fridays
under his own name. In 1850, Kierkegaard came up with Practice in Christianity which was
published under the name Anti-Climacus. In his final years, he took a sustained, straightway attack
on the Danish National Church by the help of newspaper articles published in The Fatherland
(Fdrelandet) and a series of self-published pamphlets called The Moment (Ojeblikket).

Death
Before publishing the tenth issue of The Moment, Kierkegaard collapsed on the street and was
taken to hospital. After staying in hospital for over a month, he died on November 11, 1855 .He was
buried in the Assistens Kirkegrd in the Norrebro section of Copenhagen.
Read more at http://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/soren-kierkegaard-
212.php#jGbEShfx4CjzjtzM.99