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Kierkegaard's Ethics of Repetition: a Re-Examining of the Ethical in the 1843 Authorship Grant Julin

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Kierkegaard's Ethics of Repetition: a Re-Examining of the Ethical in the 1843 Authorship Grant Julin Duquesne University Duquesne Scholarship Collection Electronic Theses and Dissertations Summer 2011 Kierkegaard's Ethics of Repetition: A Re-examining of the Ethical in the 1843 Authorship Grant Julin Follow this and additional works at: https://dsc.duq.edu/etd Recommended Citation Julin, G. (2011). Kierkegaard's Ethics of Repetition: A Re-examining of the Ethical in the 1843 Authorship (Doctoral dissertation, Duquesne University). Retrieved from https://dsc.duq.edu/etd/717 This Immediate Access is brought to you for free and open access by Duquesne Scholarship Collection. It has been accepted for inclusion in Electronic Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Duquesne Scholarship Collection. For more information, please contact [email protected]. KIERKEGAARD‘S ETHICS OF REPETITION: A RE-EXAMINING OF THE ETHICAL IN THE 1843 AUTHORSHIP A Dissertation Submitted to Submitted to the McAnulty College and Graduate School of Liberal Arts Duquesne University In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy By Grant Julin August 2011 Copyright by Grant Julin 2011 KIERKEGAARD‘S ETHICS OF REPETITION: A REEXAMINING OF THE ETHICAL IN THE 1843 AUTHORSHIP By Grant Julin Approved May 25, 2011 ________________________________ ________________________________ Ronald Polansky, Ph.D. Charles Don Keyes, Ph.D. Professor of Philosophy Professor of Philosophy (Committee Chair) (Committee Member) ________________________________ James Swindal, Ph.D. Associate Professor of Philosophy (Committee Member) ________________________________ ________________________________ Dean Christopher M. Duncan, Ph.D. James Swindal, Ph.D. Dean, McAnulty Graduate School of Chair, Department of Philosophy Liberal Arts Associate Professor of Philosophy ________________________________ Dr. James Swindal, Ph.D. Chair, Department of Philosophy iii Associate Professor of Philosophy ABSTRACT KIERKEGAARD‘S ETHICS OF REPETITION: A REEXAMINING OF THE ETHICAL IN THE 1843 AUTHORSHIP By Grant Julin August 2011 Dissertation supervised by Dr. Ronald Polansky, Ph.D. Conventional interpretations of Kierkegaard‘s ethical theory during his 1843 authorship fall into two general categories: In the first, Kierkegaard‘s understanding of the ethical is reducible to some duty bound, Kantian reading of Judge William in Either/Or II; in the second, Kierkegaard is depicted as an advocate of some form of Divine Command theory through the Abraham story in Fear and Trembling. Both interpretations not only lack textual and scholarly support, but also result in a faulty rendering of Kierkegaard‘s philosophical teachings, namely the idea that the ethical is a derivative ―stage‖ to be surpassed for the religious. Such a reading not only grossly misinterprets Kierkegaard‘s stages—for no ―stage‖ is surpassed, but only enhanced and enriched in its successor—but also overlooks the importance of the ethical in iv Kierkegaard‘s philosophy. The essence and foundation of Kierkegaard‘s teachings is the subject, i.e., the existing individual, and it is only when one transitions into the ethical that the subject is said to truly exist. From this perspective, the ethical is the foundation and core of Kierkegaard‘s philosophy. Unfortunately, the 1843 work that speaks to the question of becoming ethical—Repetition—has gone largely overlooked by scholars of Kierkegaard. While Repetition has gained popularity in recent years as the ―darling of deconstruction,‖ few scholars acknowledge the ethical importance of this work. In this dissertation, I argue that Repetition puts forth a very unique contribution to existential ethical theory and in particular to the problem of ethical subjectivity. Kierkegaard‘s ethics of repetition is based upon what I call ―the repetition movement,‖ a transcendence of self that incorporates elements of Aristotelian metaphysics, as well as Kierkegaard‘s own unique understanding of existential inwardness and movement. v ACKNOWLEDGMENT I would like to thank the following for their tireless effort and assistance in helping me complete this dissertation: Ronald Polansky, James Swindal, Charles Don Keyes, Arthur Remillard, Patricia McVicker, Rosemary Bertocci, Francis Bertocci, Steven G. Neeley, and the St. Francis Writing Circle. vi TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT ................................................................................................................... iv ACKNOWLEDGMENT ................................................................................................ vi LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS .......................................................................................... x Introduction: The Stagecoach ......................................................................................... xi Chapter One: Towards a Kierkegaardian Ethic ................................................................ 1 1.1 The Problem: Nihilism and Kierkegaardian Violence ........................................ 1 1.2 A Re-Reading of Kierkegaard‘s ―Stages‖ .......................................................... 6 1.3 How to Read Kierkegaard‘s Pseudonymous Authorship .................................. 16 1.4 ―The Ethical‖ in Kierkegaard .......................................................................... 20 1.5 Either/Or ......................................................................................................... 23 a. ―The Esthetic Validity of Marriage‖ ................................................................... 26 b. The Balance Between the Esthetic and the Ethical In the Development of Personality ............................................................................................................. 34 1.6 Fear and Trembling (Is Not About Ethics) ...................................................... 42 a. The Ethical in Fear and Trembling ...................................................................... 43 1.7 Conclusions: Gaining Oneself ......................................................................... 53 Chapter 2: Kierkegaard‘s Ethics of Repetition ............................................................... 56 2.1 Repetitions ...................................................................................................... 56 2.2 First Monologue: The Case for Repetition ....................................................... 58 2.3 Experiment One – The Story of the Young Man .............................................. 64 2.4 The Second Monologue: Repetition and Kinesis .............................................. 68 2.5 Experiment Two – Constantin‘s Trip To Berlin ............................................... 72 2.6 Letters from the Young Man ........................................................................... 81 a. The First Letter ................................................................................................... 82 vii b. The Second Letter: First Paean to Job ................................................................. 84 c. The Third Letter: Consciousness Raised to the Second Power............................. 87 d. The Fourth Letter: Confidence and Boldness ...................................................... 89 e. The Fifth Letter: Job‘s Unwavering Certitude ..................................................... 90 f. The Sixth Letter: Tenacity in the Face of Uncertainty .......................................... 92 g. The Seventh Letter: ―I Clip Myself‖ ................................................................... 93 h. The Young Man‘s Final Letter: The Climax?...................................................... 94 2.7 The Mad Professor Reveals Himself ................................................................ 97 2.8 What is Repetition? ......................................................................................... 98 2.9 Repetition in Either/Or II vs. Repetition in Repetition ................................... 103 2.10 Receiving Oneself Back: The Wisdom of Job‘s Repetition ............................ 106 2.11 Is Job‘s Repetition Active or Passive? ........................................................... 109 Chapter 3: Becoming Ethical ....................................................................................... 113 3.1 Filling in the Gaps ......................................................................................... 113 3.2 The Rupture .................................................................................................. 115 a. Abraham, Job, and Paul .................................................................................... 116 b. The Young Man and Constantin ....................................................................... 120 3.3 Love, Temporality, and Free Will .................................................................. 125 b. The Second Stage: Freedom‘s Task in Sagacity ................................................ 134 c. The Third Stage: Repetition as Concerned Freedom.......................................... 136 3.4 The Way: Ethics and Irony ............................................................................ 141 3.5 Earnestness: Ethical Seriousness and Concern ............................................... 150 3.6 Ethical Repetitions ........................................................................................ 156 3.7 Deeper Repetitions: The God-Man Relationship ............................................ 162 3.8 Is Kierkegaard a Religious Thinker? .............................................................
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