Soren Kierkegaard was a Danish philosopher. He belonged to a family of seven children. All but him and an older brother died. He convinced himself that he wouldn’t live long either. The brevity of life hit him and led him to be convinced that every moment matters. He lived his life with this nagging sense of urgency. His literary production in the short span of his life as an author can only be described as prodigious. He saw himself as a religious rather than a philosophical writer and wanted people to be convinced of what they professed to believe. His writings tend to this end.
This book is divided into eight chapters, each of which deals with an aspect of life addressed by Kierkegaard. Quotations from his famous works are found throughout the book, giving the reader a personal insight into Kierkegaard’s vision on the various topics.
The first chapter, entitled “How to wake up”, reminds us that we are responsible for our lives. Kierkegaard feels that most people sleepwalk through life because they are afraid to face reality. Existential questions such as the “why” of life are rarely asked. It seems that the purpose of life is to escape boredom. The second chapter, “How to see through things”, invites us to look beyond the surface of our life and see what is really important as opposed to what is peripheral. Kierkegaard warns us against becoming actors in the drama of our lives, unable to distinguish the real from the reel.
Chapter three, “How to avoid living in the past” presents Kierkegaard’s solution as “living arbitrarily.” What he means is to enjoy the present without letting the past bother us. The quest to try to revive the past is futile. Instead, each moment should be lived well. Use the illustration from a novel reading to make your point. Can you get pleasure from reading a random chapter? The ability to do so would reflect one’s ability to live arbitrarily.
The chapter “How to cultivate dissatisfaction” can make us a bit uncomfortable because we often associate dissatisfaction with negativity. Kierkegaard is tired of people who are too content to live complacently. What you want are people who are willing to challenge themselves and others to live authentically. Chapter Five, “On Overthinking,” contains a warning against excessive rationalization that leads to inaction. emphasizes the role of silence in experiencing God and responding to suffering. It tells us that it is no use raising a tone and crying when we suffer. Nobody likes complainers. He presents the biblical figure, Job, as an example.
“How to deal with despair” is a chapter dedicated to addressing this topic. For Kierkegaard, God is the solution. For Him everything is possible. There is no rational way out. Laughter is an aid in dealing with despair. It makes life bearable. The last chapter, “How to think about death”, has as its axis the ‘how’ of living. Kierkegaard urges you to live with a sense of urgency as life will come to an end. Keeping death in the back of our mind will help us live better. The conclusion of the book contains the author’s critical evaluation of Kierkegaard’s philosophy.
The flow of the authors seems a bit confusing, although the excerpts are well chosen. The message you are trying to convey does not stand out vividly. This book is not for beginners in philosophy. It will be useful for those interested in a more in-depth study of Kierkegaard. The section titled ‘Task’ is designed as a project. It encourages a broader and deeper reading, reflecting, comparing and critically evaluating. A couple of pages for personal notes give the book a workbook style.