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Alterity in the
Writings of Søren Kierkegaard by LEO STAN
In the past decade, Søren Kierkegaard's name appeared (whether critically or
apologetically) in connection with the postmodern or phenomenological attempts
at coming to terms with the intricate philosophical issue of otherness.
However, when looked upon panoramically, the interpretations of Kierkegaard on
this trope are neither consistent with one another, nor faithful to
Kierkegaard's authorship as a whole. Hence, the need for a holistic, albeit
particularizing, account of the complexity of Søren Kierkegaard's heterology,
which the present volume attempts to frontally address. Specifically, this
study unearths and expands on three Kierkegaardian senses of otherness: the
infinite alterity of God, the paradoxical alterity of Christ, and the relative
alterity of the human other. After thematizing in detail each component of this
heterological triad, close attention will be paid to their interrelation. The
principal claim is that, as informed (explicitly or implicitly) by the
fundamentals of the Christian religion, Kierkegaardian alterity can be properly
understood solely within a soteriological framework and only starting from the
inward existence of every singular person. Given that, on Kierkegaard's
evaluation, the human self is always, already, and primarily other-related,
the argument aims to show that this otherness is construed through an open
appropriation of the Christian teaching on God, human creatureliness, sin and
the consequent need for redemption through the God-man. The book's approach can
thus be placed at the intersection of ethics, theology, and philosophical
psychology. The author also engages in a critical manner with the extant
scholarship on the topic, hoping to bring into the debate a novel and
comprehensive analysis of alterity in light of the central significance of
sinfulness and its cardinal effects on one's stance towards God, Christ, and
others. Therefore, the major indictments against Kierkegaard, especially those
concerning his understanding of the individual's rapports with the human other,
will be addressed in this very perspective.
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Forthcoming publications
Leo Stan - Alterity in the Writings of Søren Kierkegaard 