Bücher der Reihe Kierkegaard Classic Studies

Reidar Thomte's Kierkegaard's Philosophy of Religion is an excellent read for students beginning their study of one of the greats of nineteenth and twentieth century philosophy. Thomte directly appropriates Kierkegaard's insightful language and discussion of the theological and philosophical issues that stimulated him, all of which are still alive and well today. This approach has the happy result that readers seeking an introduction do not have to be led through technical debates in order to approach Kierkegaard's thought. Thomte is a master of incisive summary; his presentations of crucial distinctions are level-headed and to the point. Kierkegaard's categories such as the stages on life's way (the aesthetic, the ethical, Religiousness A, and Religiousness B), the individual, subjectivity, the Paradox, the varieties of love, faith and knowledge, etc., are provocative and illuminating. Not only is this book a good a starter, it is also a comprehensive review of the principal issues in Kierkegaard's philosophy of religion. (by Robert L. Perkins, Editor, International Kierkegaard Commentary)

Originally published in 1961, this study challenges the stereotype of Kierkegaard as being socially aloof and politically conservative. Bukdahl does a through job of contextualizing Kierkegaard in nineteenth-century Denmark, shedding light on his relationships with his family, various religious groups, and the leading intellectual figures of his time. At the same time, Kierkegaards fundamental interest in the plight of the common man is revealed both from his writings and his social encounters. In addition to crafting a fine translation, Bruce Kirmmse has expanded the usefulness of Bukdahl's work by including a significant biographical introduction, informative notes identifying events and figures referenced in the text, and a guide pointing readers to English translations of all of Kierkegaard's writings.

Kierkegaard's Fear and Trembling: Critical Appraisals was the first anthology of essays on Kierkegaard's classic to be published in English. The authors are a remarkable collection of scholars, some already well known and some standing at the beginning of their scholarly careers. The list of authors includes Louis Jacobs, David A. Pailin, Merold Westphal, Paul Holmer, Edward F. Mooney, John Donnelly, C. Stephen Evans, David J. Wren, Mark C. Taylor, Nancy Jay Crumbine, and Jerry H. Gill. The collection contains comparative, historical, and analytic essays focusing on Kierkegaard's relations to the Akedah, the multiple tensions raised by Abraham's sacrifice of Isaac. These essays abound with penetrating insights into many Kierkegaardian concepts that are important not just in Fear and Trembling but found throughout Kierkegaard's writings, such as paradox, resignation, faith, the absurd, the individual, the poet, the hero, immediacy, the ethical and its suspension, the leap of faith, offence, and silence.