Fear and Trembling

First published in 1843 under the pseudonym "Johannes de silentio" (John of Silence), Soren Kierkegaard's richly resonant Fear and Trembling has for generations stood as a pivotal text in the history of moral philosophy, inspiring such artistic and philosophical luminaries as Edvard Munch, W. H. Auden, Walter Benjamin, and existentialist Jean-Paul Sartre. Retelling the biblical story of the binding of Isaac, Kierkegaard expounds on the ordeal of Abraham, who was commanded to sacrifice his son in an exceptional test of faith. Disgusted at the self-certainty of his own age, Kierkegaard investigates the paradox underlying Abraham's decision to allow his duty to God to take precedence over his duties to his family.

Now, in a new era of immense uncertainty and dislocation, renowned Kierkegaard scholar Bruce H. Kirmmse, in his accessible translation and engaging introduction, eloquently brings this classic work to a new generation of readers, demonstrating Kierkegaard's enduring power to illuminate the terrible wonder of faith.

Søren Kierkegaard (1813–1855) was a Danish philosopher and theologian whose work has been widely recognized as foundational both to modern psychology and existentialism. A professor emeritus at Connecticut College, Bruce H. Kirmmse has published several books and numerous articles on Kierkegaard and is general editor of Kierkegaard’s Journals and Notebooks. He lives in Randolph, New Hampshire, and Copenhagen, Denmark. A professor emeritus at Connecticut College, Bruce H. Kirmmse has published several books and numerous articles on Kierkegaard and is general editor of Kierkegaard’s Journals and Notebooks. He lives in Randolph, New Hampshire, and Copenhagen, Denmark.

"Bruce H. Kirmmse has produced an impressive translation. . . . In his substantial and nuanced introduction, Kirmmse has, with a sure hand, shown the way into one of Kierkegaard's most powerful and provocative works, which has long enjoyed the status of a classic in philosophy, theology, and literature. This is not only an accomplishment that commands respect, but is also an occasion for plain delight. Kierkegaard is rejoicing in his grave." --Joakim Garff, author of Soren Kierkegaard: A Biography"Those coming to the work for the very first time can be assured that Bruce H. Kirmmse translates Kierkegaard's Danish as clearly as one might wish, while those returning to it after many readings can be grateful that Kirmmse has enabled a fresh encounter with a modern classic whose challenge endures." --Joel Rasmussen, University of Oxford"Bruce H. Kirmmse's translation of this classic captures the content, mood, and tone of a book that is as lyrical as it is dialectical. With his historian's knowledge of Kierkegaard's life and times, combined with a matchless grasp of the intricacies of Kierkegaard's writing process, Kirmmse delivers an introductory essay that is arguably the best available guidewire to this dauntingly challenging text." --Gordon Marino, author of The Existentialist's Survival Guide"Bruce H. Kirmmse brings a historian's eye--and a craftsman's feel for the challenges of Kierkegaard's syntax--to this translation of Kierkegaard's most troubling and enigmatic text. . . . If Fear and Trembling is an eloquent and richly allusive testimony to a life and a culture in crisis, Kirmmse's translation serves to magnify, for the reader, Kierkegaard's remarkably condensed depiction of this crisis." --Vanessa Parks Rumble, Boston College

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