43 pages • 1 hour read
Søren KierkegaardA modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
The central thesis of Fear and Trembling is that faith is a paradox that requires one to embrace the absurd. The absurd is beyond human comprehension and often requires one to believe in two parts of a paradox simultaneously. It is absurd, for instance, that Abraham should expect to father a great nation by sacrificing his son, and yet that is exactly what he expects. It is absurd to believe a man can turn water into wine, but it is more absurd to expect that wine could also be turned back into water (78). And yet acceptance of the absurd, that what has been lost can be regained, is necessary for faith. That is why the movement of faith happens after the movement of infinite resignation. One must recognize “the impossibility” and embrace it; the knight of faith “believes the absurd” with the full passion of his heart (95). This means that faith cannot be faked, as no one can pretend to believe in the impossible.
Existentialism
View Collection
Fear
View Collection
Good & Evil
View Collection
Philosophy, Logic, & Ethics
View Collection
Psychology
View Collection
Religion & Spirituality
View Collection
Safety & Danger
View Collection
Trust & Doubt
View Collection
Valentine's Day Reads: The Theme of Love
View Collection