Kierkegaard, Communication, and Virtue: Authorship as Edification

170 Pages·2013·7.102 MB·English

by  Mark A. Tietjen

KierKegaard, CommuniCation,
and Virtue
indiana SerieS in the PhiloSoPhy of religion
merold Westphal, Editor
K ier K ega ar d,
Commu niC ation,
and Virtue
Authorship as Edification
mark a. tietjen
indiana university Press
Bloomington and indianapolis
This book is a publication of
indiana university Press
601 north morton Street
Bloomington, indiana 47404–3797 USA
iupress.indiana.edu
Telephone orders 800-842-6796
Fax orders 812-855-7931
© 2013 by mark a. tietjen
all rights reserved
no part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form or
by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying
and recording, or by any information storage and retrieval
system, without permission in writing from the publisher. The
association of american university Presses’ resolution on
Permissions constitutes the only exception to this prohibition.
The paper used in this publication meets the minimum
requirements of the american national Standard for information
Sciences—Permanence of Paper for Printed library materials,
ANSI Z39.48–1992.
manufactured in the united States of america
library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication data
tietjen, mark a.
Kierkegaard, communication, and virtue :
authorship as edification / mark a. tietjen.
pages cm. — (indiana series in the philosophy of religion)
includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-253-00854-1 (cloth : alk. paper) — ISBN 978-
0-253-00862-6 (pbk. : alk. paper) — ISBN 978-0-253-00871-
8 (ebook) 1. Kierkegaard, Søren, 1813-1855. i. title.
B4377.t54 2013
198’.9—dc23
2013002203
1 2 3 4 5 18 17 16 15 14 13
Contents
acknowledgments vii
Sigla ix
introduction: Philosophy and edification 1
Part I. Jest and/or Earnestness
1 Blunt reading 17
2 alternatives to différance 33
3 Communicating Capability 49
Part II. Suspicion or Trust
4 deconstructing The Point of View 61
5 trusting The Point of View 75
Part III. Faith and Virtue
6 The Pseudonymous dialectic of faith, i 89
7 The Pseudonymous dialectic of faith, ii 101
Conclusions: Kierkegaard, Virtue, and edification 117
notes 135
index 151

acknowledgments
t
his book is a result of the confluence of many lives commonly pursuing the joys of
learning and friendship. i should first thank James loder, who introduced me to the
thought of Kierkegaard and whose powerful influence on several generations of stu-
dents and ministers at Princeton Theological Seminary continues to this day. my inter-
est in Kierkegaard led me to Baylor university, in large part because of its 2012 vision
that would attract two Kierkegaard scholars, robert roberts and Stephen evans. Their
knowledge and especially their wisdom have been essential to my maturation as a phi-
losopher and as a person. i am grateful also to margaret Watkins, michael foley, and
John davenport, who made available to me their expertise. in 2005 and in 2010 i was
privileged to receive summer fellowships from the hong Kierkegaard library at St.
olaf College, and much of the work in this book was begun while at St. olaf, with the
kind and generous support of gordon marino and Cynthia lund. Thanks also go to
my colleagues in the Philosophy Program at the university of West georgia and to
george Kieh, from whom i received a College of arts and Sciences faculty research
grant that enabled further research.
There are many others—graduate student colleagues at Baylor, commentators at
conferences, West georgia undergraduates—whose interaction has in different ways
contributed to the development of the ideas in this book. i am grateful in particular to
my good friend Zach manis, who has over the years read earlier versions of chapters
of the book and always offered thoughtful feedback. roberts Perkins, editor of the
international Kierkegaard Commentary series from which some of the material in this
book is reprinted, has served as a kind of mentor to me, as he has to so many young
Kierkegaard scholars. Sylvia Walsh improved this manuscript first by pointing me to
Kierkegaard’s lectures on communication and second, along with merold Westphal,
by reviewing this manuscript for indiana. along with merold, both dee mortensen
and Sarah Jacobi of indiana university Press have in a most competent and patient way
guided me in the process of taking a manuscript and making a book.
The broader story of my journey to Kierkegaard is the story of my life, and those
positive influences are far too many to enumerate. let me briefly acknowledge my
entire family, especially my parents, tom and alice, whose lives and words have edi-
fied me all along the way, and my wife, amy, who, like so many spouses, endured
much trouble and inconvenience to see me flourish. She has been most supportive and
gracious.
finally, i would like to express gratitude to the editors and publishers who have
granted permission to reprint in revised forms and portions the following articles and
book chapters:
vii
viii | Acknowledgments
“to Believe or not to Believe: toward a hermeneutic of trust,” in International
Kierkegaard Commentary, vol. 22: The Point of View, ed. robert l. Perkins (macon,
ga: mercer university Press, 2010), 78–103.
“Kierkegaard and the Classical Virtue tradition,” Faith and Philosophy 27:2 (april
2010): 153–73.
“indirect Communication, and the Special Case of Christian Communication,”
in Kierkegaard and Christianity (acta Kierkegaardiana, vol. 3), ed. andrew Burgess,
abraham Khan, roman Králik, Peter Šajda, and Jamie turnbull (toronto: university
of toronto Press, 2008), 218–28.
“What The Book on Adler Can teach about the author and the authorship,” in
International Kierkegaard Commentary, vol. 24: The Book on Adler, ed. robert l. Per-
kins (macon, ga: mercer university Press, 2008), 97–120.
Sigla
an Armed Neutrality. See PV.
Ba The Book on Adler. edited and translated by howard V. hong and edna h.
hong. Princeton: Princeton university Press, 1998.
Ca The Concept of Anxiety. edited and translated by reidar Thomte. Princeton:
Princeton university Press, 1980.
Cd Christian Discourses and The Crisis and a Crisis in the Life of an Actress. edited
and translated by howard V. hong and edna h. hong. Princeton: Princeton
university Press, 1997.
Ci The Concept of Irony with Continual Reference to Socrates. edited and trans-
lated by howard V. hong and edna h. hong. Princeton: Princeton university
Press, 1989.
Cor The Corsair Affair. edited and translated by howard V. hong and edna h.
hong. Princeton: Princeton university Press, 1982.
CuP Concluding Unscientific Postscript to “Philosophical Fragments.” edited and
translated by howard V. hong and edna h. hong. Princeton: Princeton uni-
versity Press, 1992.
eo Either/Or (2 vols.). edited and translated by howard V. hong and edna h.
hong. Princeton: Princeton university Press, 1987.
eud Eighteen Upbuilding Discourses. edited and translated by howard V. hong and
edna h. hong. Princeton: Princeton university Press, 1990.
fSe For Self-Examination; Judge for Yourself! edited and translated by howard V.
hong and edna h. hong. Princeton: Princeton university Press, 1990.
ft Fear and Trembling. edited by C. Stephen evans and Sylvia Walsh. translated
by Sylvia Walsh. Cambridge: Cambridge university Press, 2006.
Jfy Judge for Yourself! See fSe.
JP Søren Kierkegaard’s Journals and Papers (7 vols.). edited and translated by
howard V. hong and edna h. hong. Bloomington: indiana university Press,
1967–78.
omWa On My Work as an Author. See PV.
ix