The Quotable Kierkegaard

The most comprehensive and authoritative collection of Kierkegaard quotations ever published

"Why I so much prefer autumn to spring is that in the autumn one looks at heaven--in the spring at the earth."--S ren Kierkegaard

The father of existentialism, S ren Kierkegaard (1813-1855) was a philosopher who could write like an angel. With only a sentence or two, he could plumb the depths of the human spirit. In this collection of some 800 quotations, the reader will find dazzling bon mots next to words of life-changing power. Drawing from the authoritative Princeton editions of Kierkegaard's writings, this book presents a broad selection of his wit and wisdom, as well as a stimulating introduction to his life and work.

Organized by topic, this volume covers notable Kierkegaardian concerns such as anxiety, despair, existence, irony, and the absurd, but also erotic love, the press, busyness, and the comic. Here readers will encounter both well-known quotations ("Life must be understood backward. But then one forgets the other principle, that it must be lived forward") and obscure ones ("Beware false prophets who come to you in wolves' clothing but inwardly are sheep--i.e., the phrasemongers"). Those who spend time in these pages will discover the writer who said, "my grief is my castle," but who also taught that "the best defense against hypocrisy is love."

Illuminating and delightful, this engaging book also provides a substantial portrait of one of the most influential of modern thinkers.

• Gathers some 800 quotations
• Drawn from the authoritative Princeton editions of Kierkegaard's writings
• Includes an introduction, a brief account and timeline of Kierkegaard's life, a guide to further reading, and an index

Author: Søren Kierkegaard
Publisher: Princeton University Press
Published: 10/27/2013
Pages: 304
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 0.69lbs
Size: 7.68h x 4.65w x 0.97d
ISBN: 9780691155302


Review Citation(s):
Choice 03/01/2014
Christian Century 09/17/2014 pg. 41

About the Author
Gordon Marino is professor of philosophy and director of the Hong Kierkegaard Library at St. Olaf College in Minnesota. He is the author of Kierkegaard in the Present Age, the coeditor of The Cambridge Companion to Kierkegaard, and the editor of Basic Writings of Existentialism.