Kierkegaard and P.M. Moller on Immortality
P.M. Moller and His Relation to S.A. Kierkegaard
Although virtually unknown today outside of Danish philosophical circles, Moller (1794-1838) was, during his lifetime, esteemed as one of Denmark’s most loved poets, and beginning in 1831 he held the position of professor of philosophy at the University of Denmark. While at the university Moller taught Moral and Greek Philosophy, and his early philosophical position has been regarded as Hegelian. Kierkegaard began his university studies in 1830, and the young professor made a deep impression upon him.
During 1834-36 two events occurred that transformed Moller’s philosophy and also influenced his relation to Kierkegaard. The first was the death of Moller’s wife in 1834, which caused him to question the adequacy of Hegel’s system. The second was the publication of some articles by Kierkegaard in 1836 in a journal called Copenhagen’s Flying Post. In these articles Kierkegaard attacked Orla Lehmann, the young leader of the liberal student movement. This attack pleased the conservative Moller, and the two developed a deep friendship. Despite the nineteen-year difference in their ages, the two shared similar views regarding Danish politics, a growing distrust of the Hegelian system, and a concern about the state of the Danish clergy. With the death of Moller in 1838, at the age of forty-four, Kierkegaard lost his nearest congenial friend, the person with whom, above all others, he could discuss freely his ideas and receive a sympathetic and intelligent response. After Moller’s death Kierkegaard cherished his memory and faithfully read his Posthumous Works when they were published in 1839-43. Kierkegaard also dedicated his book The Concept of Anxiety (1844) to Moller, with the following tribute:
To the late Professor Poul Martin Moller
The happy lover of Greek culture, the admirer of Homer,
the confidant of Socrates, the interpreter of Aristotle,
Denmark’s joy in “Joy over Denmark,” though “widely
traveled” always “remembered in the Danish summer,”
the object of my profound admiration, my profound loss,
this work is dedicated.
This dedication should illustrate, if not Kierkegaard’s indebtedness to Professor Moller, then at least his unyielding affection.
Moller’s Reflections on Philosophical Systems and Personal Immortality
The work by Moller that beyond all others influenced Kierkegaard was “Thoughts on the Possibility of Proofs of the Immortality of Human Beings With Reference to the Most Recent Literature on the Subject.” H.P. Rhode stresses that it was this work on immortality that was Moller’s most important contribution to philosophy in Denmark, and most notably for the young Kierkegaard, who was “notoriously occupied” with it.
“Deep Sea Drifters II” didn’t stand out because it wasn’t a photograph but because the style of art seemed like something like a nine-year-old’s crayon work. Of course, when I looked closer, the piece...
Discussion of D.Z. Phillips Conception of Immortality In his book 'Death and Immortality', D Z Phillips starts by asking the question: does belief in immortality rest on a mistake? The first two chapters are negative in the sense that they examine traditional philosophical, as well as common sense, conceptions of what immortality means. Phillips argues that philosophical analyses centred on the notion of immortality have generally been constructed around certain essential presuppositions: presuppositions that assume some form of continuation of personal identity after death. One cannot logically deny that, by definition, death entails the end of bodily existence, so one, it seems, is logically drawn to the notion that survival after death entails the survival of some kind of non-bodily identity - the soul. In the last two chapters Phillips disputes this presupposition, claiming that a perfectly valid conception of immortality can be maintained without resorting to any form of dualism.
How to live one’s life is a question faced by any human being with relatively normal cognitive functioning. Some find beauty in every day life, reveling in something as simple as the gentle shaking of leaves dancing to the whispered song of the wind, or waking up to someone they have decided to spend the rest of their lives with. Others only see the mundane and the tedious, growing bitter and resentful as a relentless existential crisis latches on to the deepest parts of their psyche, casting a grim and ominous shadow over every thought and action. This probing question of how to live is at the forefront of Soren Kierkegaard’s “Either/Or: A Fragment of Life.” The aforementioned views are, indeed, reflected in the fragmented perspectives provided by Kierkegaard’s fictional characters, “A” and “Judge Wilhelm,” who perhaps reflect Kierkegaard’s own divided views. Love and companionship are at the crux of how to live for both A and Wilhelm, despite the glaring contrast between A’s calls for a hedonistic,
“The thing is to understand myself, to see what God really wishes me to do; the thing is to find a truth which is true for me, to find the idea for which I can live and die” (Kierkegaard 95). Søren Kierkegaard was a clear supporter of expressing our own personality. He wanted us to take the time to find our true selves. Even though he acknowledged there were social systems in our society, he still believed we were our own individual human being. The only way to make sense of our life and find our individuality is to embrace our faith in God. Kierkegaard wanted human beings to be able to exercise their freedom. Human beings should not postpone their choices simply because they do not know the universal truth. As humans we cannot postpone our choices because we will never
In Concluding Unscientific Postscript, Kierkegaard differentiates between the subject as the knower, and the world (object) as the known: the only way we know the world is through ourselves. Kierkegaard emphasizes the importance of "how" the subject is related to the truth, and not the "what" (content) of the objective. He asserts that the truth can only exist in the subject, for if it lies in the world, we could never access (know) the truth the way we know ourselves. Kierkegaard explains that we can only discover the truth by turning inward: "passionate inwardness" is essential to finding the truth, as it is the way in which the subject is seeking the truth; the more passion the subject has, the closer she/he comes to the truth. "Passionate inwardness" is fueled by "objective uncertainty": if an individual sees objective proof of her truth, she will become less passionate; however, when she does not find reassurance in the objective, her inward passion will lead her to "the" (her) truth. This paradox relies on the subject believing passionately in the truth that exists in her while believing in a lack of objective support for that truth.
Kierkegaard was a Danish philosopher in the mid 1800s. He is known to be the father of existentialism and was at least 70 years ahead of his time. Kierkegaard set out to attack Kant’s rational ethics and make attacks on the Christianity of our day. He poses the question, how do we understand faith? He states that faith equals the absurd. In “Fear and Trembling”, he uses the story of Abraham and his son Isaac to show an example of faith as the absurd. The story of God asking Abraham to sacrifice his son Isaac signifies a break in the theory that ethics and religion go hand in hand. He shows how the ethical and the religious can be completely different. “I by no means conclude that faith is something inferior but rather that it is the highest, also that it is dishonest of philosophy to give something else in its place and to disparage faith” (Fear and Trembling, 12).
Greece is a country united by its name, but divided by its ways. Although Sparta and Athens were both Greek cities, their societies were different. Sparta was focused on having a perfect military, whereas Athenian daily life revolved learning and knowledge. When Spartan boys were being trained for an army, Athenian boys were being trained for life. Both of these societies revolved around different government, education from when kids to teenagers, the responsibilities each individual had to keep their spot, and how women played a role throughout each city state.
For my final project I chose to compare two works of art from ancient Mesopotamia. A visual work of art and a literary one. The visual work of art I chose was the Statuettes of Worshipers which were created around 2900 to 2350 BCE at the Square Temple at Eshnunna, a city in ancient Mesopotamia. The literary artwork I have chosen is the Epic of Gilgamesh written roughly around 2800 BCE by author or authors unknown. It was set in Uruk, another city in ancient Mesopotamia. Both of these works of art share a common theme; the theme of immortality. It is my hopes that within this paper I can accurately show how each of these works of art express this theme, and how it relates to modern society.
In Sunset Limited, Black conveys Kierkegaard’s philosophy through his own life and words. In the beginning of the play, Black and White argue over the meaning of life—the former loving it, the latter trying to end it. Early on, Black tries to identify with White’s suicidal argument by noting that “Suffering and human destiny are the same thing” (55). Of course, Black’s admittance does not mean he believes in White’s argument, but instead that he understands White’s pain. Likewise, Kierkegaard’s description of life is similar to Black’s reasoning. In his writing, Kierkegaard recounts both the painful way a person is brought into the world and then taken out of it, saying, “[…] and then tell me whether something that begins and ends thus could be intended for enjoyment.” But the undertone of both Black and Kierkegaard’s statements cannot go unquestioned, and White replies, “You’re not making any sense” (55). White fails to understand that everything is common sense for Black, who has not only suffered more than White could ever imagine, but also believes in a force outside White’s wildest dreams. Originally a convict, Black turns his life around after a near-death experience, believing God chose him of all people to talk to. He lives in hopes of delivering God’s message and love to those bereft of it, for what pain can someone experience if God is on the other side? Comparatively, Kierkegaard’s detailed analysis of despair calls the obvious solution faith alone. Somehow, Black evinces Kierkegaard’s belief through becoming a productive member of society. After believing to have heard the Savior in his sleep, Black leaves his former friends and refrains from various forms of pleasure so he can help those less fortunate than himself. I...
In Kierkegaard’s two works “You Shall Love” and “Our Duty to Love the People We See,” we are introduced with a moral responsibility towards others since the start. In “You Shall Love,” we are provided with the second commandment: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself” (17) whereas in the other reading we are provided with a biblical excerpt stating how we cannot claim to love God while hating our brother. It is by providing this biblical references that Kierkegaard reveals how, despite that they are commanded to us by God, we hold a moral responsibility towards our neighbor by serving, loving, and caring for them.
The second reason video games are an issue is that videogames have been linked to a variety of mental and physical ailments. The most common physical health problems tend to be arthritis from barely moving the fingers while using a keyboard or game controller, and a variety of eye problems due to constantly staring at the game screen. The most frequently occurring mental problems range from delusions to schizophrenia and becoming desensitized to violence. Keegan says that "repeated exposure to violent images can make people less sensitive to the effects of violence" (1). All of these ailments, both mental and physical, can and will occur in many people, but this statement only holds true if the player spends much of his or her free time playing video games. The essay “Violence and the Media: A Psychological Analysis,” shows how the number of hours spent watching a television program may be more influential than the nature of the program itself (Javier 4). While this statement refers ...
Martin Heidegger (1889 -- 1976) was, and still is considered to be, along with the likes of Soren Kierkegaard, Edmund Husserl and Jean-Paul Sartre, one of the principal exponents of 20th century Existentialism. An extraordinarily original thinker, a critic of technological society and the leading Ontologist of his time, Heidegger's philosophy became a primary influence upon the thoughts of the younger generations of continental European cultural personalities of his time.
Video games are almost always present in any house that is home to an adolescent child. While video games are popular among people of all ages, adolescent children are usually the most involved. An article was developed by three members of the Psychopathology department at a university in the Netherlands. While addressing the use of video games the statement was made that “Today, in the United States, 91% of children between the ages of 2 and 17 play video games”(Granic, Lobel, Engels). Children may spend countless hours sitting in from of a television screen, participating in the electronic activities. While there are many different genres of video games, perhaps among the most popular are those that contain a high level of violence and hostility. Along with the violent content and commentary, these videogames create a hostile mindset. Video games have the ability to cause negative effects in the way young people think and act socially.
Video games have improved a lot since they were first introduced. They have also made a lot of impacts in our generation by making gamers more social, teaching children through educational video games, and how video games can improve our health. Furthermore, the articles show many different ways that proves that video games aren’t bad for you physically and emotionally. Since video games were introduced they have changed our society.
Yet many people are concerned how this impacts there social skills the everyday face to face contact. When playing video games people limit their self’s to social interaction unless it has to do with the game, a lot of people play online and talk to their friends through a headset. When people have face to face contact they develop skills in learning how to communicate with people and eye to eye contact you don’t get that through a video game. Being in a social environment promotes social skills. A social environment can provide opportunities for one to learn how to behave properly in different situations. When playing video games most of the time the person is alone and confined in room. Meaning there is very little social interaction between the person and the game. When people play video games they play in sessions and they can last a long time even all night. People get so wrapped up in playing these games they blow off their friends and family meaning it’s hard to maintain social relationships.