Fear and Trembling [Paperback]

Soren Kierkegaard (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 26, 2011

Soren Kierkegaard was a Danish philosopher, theologian and religious author interested in human psychology. He is regarded as a leading pioneer of existentialism and one of the greatest philosophers of the 19th Century.

In FEAR AND TREMBLING, Kierkegaard wanted to understand the anxiety that must have been present in Abraham when God commanded him to offer his son as a human sacrifice. Abraham had a choice to complete the task or to forget it. He resigned himself to the loss of his son, acting according to his faith. In other words, one must be willing to give up all his or her earthly possessions in infinite resignation and must also be willing to give up whatever it is that he or she loves more than God. Abraham had passed the test -- his love for God proved greater than anything else in him. And because a good and just Creator would not want a father to kill his son, God intervened at the last moment to prevent the sacrifice.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Great Ideas... is the right name for these slim, elegant paperbacks... They are written with precision, force, and care. -- The Wall Street Journal

Penguin Books hopes to provide an economical remedy for time-pressed readers in search of intellectual sustenance. --USA Today --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

From the Inside Flap

Two works in one volume. Introduction by George Steiner; Translation by Walter Lowrie --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 120 pages
• Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform (April 26, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1461078415
• ISBN-13: 978-1461078418
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (27 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #272,929 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #69 in Books > Politics & Social Sciences > Philosophy > Good & Evil

More About the Author

Soren Aabye Kierkegaard (1813-1855) was a 19th century Danish philosopher and theologian, generally recognized as the first existentialist philosopher.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

47 of 47 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars This is NOT the Penguin Classics edition January 26, 2009

By Scheisseler

Format:Paperback

Fear and Trembling This is not a review of Kierkegaard's work (which is a seminal piece of modern philosophy), but instead of the quality of the Wilder Publications edition. Most of the reviews you will see of this title here on Amazon refer to the Penguin Classic edition, which would undoubtedly have to be a better-produced version of this book. The Wilder edition is a thin, print-on-demand paperback that resembles a pamphlet more than a book. There is no text on the spine (good luck finding this after it's been on your bookshelf for a few months) and there are no credits beyond Kierkegaard's -- that's right, no one takes or is given credit (or blame) for the translation. It's not enough to say I wouldn't have paid the asking price had I seen this in a store -- I WOULD NOT HAVE BOUGHT THIS if I had seen it in a store.

Print-on-demand publishers are responsible for keeping some great work available. Some of them are also responsible for presenting that work in the poorest possible light. Choose this book from a publisher you've heard of.

27 of 28 people found the following review helpful

1.0 out of 5 stars misleading product. January 1, 2010

By Aegis

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

The description of this kindle book promises the whole text. However, the text from which it is derived is an abridgement consisting of only 1/3 of Fear and Trembling. While the material itself is of high quality this editon failed to meet my expectations. Half of the content was simply a summary of Kierkegaard (grealt resembling the wikipedia entry) instead of the actual text. It's not worth paying money for a public domain author when you don't even receive the whole work.

13 of 15 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Everyman/Steiner June 4, 2004

By A Customer

Format:Hardcover

It pleases me that so many readers have reviewed "Fear and Trembling" at amazon.com, yet infuriates me that so few have written anything of substance for those who wish to know whether Everyman's edition is the one to buy. Yes, "Fear and Trembling" is a response to Hegel. Yes, the story of Abraham is central to it. Truly, my hat is off to those who have thought carefully and insightfully about this work; however, most of amazon.com's reader reviews of "F&T" merely restate what one finds in Steiner's introduction--which (surprise, surprise!) is available to every passerby, thanks to Amazon.com's "look inside" option.

Ignore the critical interpretations available here, and skip directly to Steiner's introduction. What you will find there should convince you that this is the translation worth your money. Quite simply, Steiner writes beautifully, with an almost hypnotizing lyrical precision. And while Steiner isn't the translator, the flavor and quality of his prose closely matches that of the translation itself; I have yet to find another translation of "F&T" that I believe compares to Everyman's.

12 of 14 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Ridiculous, absurd, and tragic November 19, 2011

By Vincent Poirier

Format:Paperback

Atheists need to read this book. Empathy is a good thing and we need to understand the suffering of those who chose faith as a way of dealing with the world, however misguided they happen to be.

Philosophers reflect the times in which they live. In the 19th century, technology and industry were progressing but so was large-scale warfare. As our lot improved, we gradually became aware of how bad things were. Through physics and engineering, man was conquering his world and so philosophers believed they too would soon understanding everything.

Kierkegaard correctly condemns the hubris of those philosophers who seek to "go beyond faith". His existentialism stands in stark contrast to the posturing of Hegel and the ramblings of Marx. Kierkegaard screams out man's pain and seeks refuge in Christian faith. But Kierkegaard is no mere fire and brimstone preacher. He is honest enough to see the core problem in Christianity and brave enough to attack it head on. In a word, faith is absurd.

Abraham is the father of faith to the three monotheistic myths, and according to Kierkegaard faith was born at a precise moment in the biblical story of Abraham. Faith was born when Abraham accepted god's command to sacrifice his son Isaac on an altar with a knife. He accepted this command, knew he would plunge the knife into his son despite the unbearable suffering this would cause him, and knew as well that everything would work out. Kierkegaard is crystal clear on this point: Abraham knew he would kill his son and he knew things would work out. That is faith and that is absurd and Kierkegaard revels dumbfounded in this fact.

He then justifies Abraham's act with his concept of a "teleological suspension of the ethical".... But what does that mean if not that ends (teleogical) justify the means (our actions don't have to be ethical)?

Kierkegaard's conclusion is absurd because it is a contradiction. Reality doesn't contradict itself but that doesn't mean we can understand all of it.

We are always trying to get organized, to put our affairs, our thoughts, our lives in some sort of order and we are never ever done. There's always something left unfinished. That is a good thing. Life is absurd because it is meaningless, but it is meaningless because it is >>the question itself<< "what does life mean?" that is silly.

So why give five stars to a book I fundamentally disagree with? First it is a tremendous work of art, standing on a par with Munch's The Scream. Second Kierkegaard is honest and courageous; no one wanted to hear what he had to say but he said poetically and eloquently. Third, his book is clear and impossible to misunderstand, yet it isn't patronizing. He just happens to be wrong, that's all, but the book's value is found in the passion with which Kierkegaard expresses himself.

Soren Kierkegaard was in love with and engaged to Regine Olsen. Emulating Abraham, he sacrificed his love on the altar of his faith and gave up Regine. He had faith and knew things would work out but he broke both her heart and his. She found someone else; he died alone. Tragic.

Vincent Poirier, Tokyo Read more ›

10 of 13 people found the following review helpful

1.0 out of 5 stars This edition is of very poor quality. March 16, 2009

By Flem Snopes

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is only for the Wilder Publications edition of Fear and Trembling and does not refer to the content of the book at all. I have not finished reading Fear and Trembling yet, but there are some interesting ideas about faith but also, I think, some theological and philosophical errors, but perhaps I will comment on those once I've read the text a few times.

My main reason for writing this review regards the quality of this specific printing. IT IS UNBELIEVABLY BAD! There are blank pages within the text....the whole text is there, presumably, but the blank pages are distracting. Typos abound to the point of compromising clarity. Punctuation is incorrect and sometimes completely absent. There are open parentheses not followed by closed parentheses. There are open quotation marks not followed by closed quotation marks. The paper quality is poor. The print quality is poor. It looks like it was printed on cheap printer paper with a cheap printer, folded, stapled and then glued to a thin waxy cover that has no printing on the spine. It looks more like a pamphlet than a book.

So, by all means, buy and read Fear and Trembling, but do not buy this Wilder Publications version. Amazon should not even be selling this poor a quality printing at any price.