Kierkegaard: A Single Life

by Stephen Backhouse

Overview

An accessible, expert introduction to one of the greatest minds of nineteenth century. Whether you're completely new to him, or if you're already familiar with his work, Kierkegaard: A Single Life presents a fresh understanding of his life and thought.

Kierkegaard was a brilliant and enigmatic loner whose ideas permeated culture, shaped modern Christianity, and influenced people as diverse as Franz Kafka and Martin Luther King Jr. Though few people today have read his work, that lack of familiarity with the real Kierkegaard is changing with this biography by scholar Stephen Backhouse, who clearly presents the man's mind as well as the acute sensitivity behind Kierkegaard's books.

Drawing on biographical material that has newly come to light, Kierkegaard: A Single Life introduces his many guises—the thinker, the lover, the recluse, the writer, the controversialist—in prose as compelling and fluid as a novel and pursues clarity to long-standing questions about him:

• What made this Danish theologian so controversial and influential?
• Why were so many people drawn to his books, even if they didn't understand what they were reading?
• Can his complicated relationship with the Church and religion be untangled?
• Or, for that matter, what about his complicated—at times almost paradoxical—relationship with every sphere of life from politics to poetry?

To be considered everything from a great intellect to a dandy, from a martyr to a "false messiah" is no mean feat, and this biography sheds light on Søren Kierkegaard as he was with empathy and humor.

Included is an appendix presenting an overview of each of Kierkegaard's works, for the scholar and lay reader alike.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780310120193
Publisher:	Zondervan
Publication date:	10/20/2020
Pages:	304
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.38(h) x 0.81(d)

About the Author

Stephen Backhouse (DPhil, Oxford) is the founder and director of Tent Theology, a venture that designs and delivers theology programmes to local churches. He is the Dean of Theology in the Local Church for Westminster Theological Centre and was formerly the Lecturer in Social and Political Theology at St Mellitus College. He is a historian of Christian thought, an expert on the work of Søren Kierkegaard and a recognised authority on the political theology of nations and nationalism. He is the author of many publications, including the award-winning popular biography Kierkegaard: A Single Life (Zondervan, 2016) and the Zondervan Essential Companion to Christian History (Zondervan, 2019). He has lived in the United States, and makes his home in Britain and Canada.

Table of Contents

I. A Controversial Life: The funeral and its aftermath II. Early Life: Birth, childhood and school III. Family Life: Sisters, Brothers, Mother and Father IV. Married Life: The courtship, engagement and abandonment of Regine Olsen V. Writing Life: Publishers, readers and pseudonyms VI. A Life Mocked: The Corsair and the campaign of public ridicule VII. An Offensive Life: The attack upon Christendom VIII. A Life Concluded: The death of Søren Kierkegaard IX. A Life Continued: How Kierkegaard spread to the rest of the world: charlatans, farmers, Nazis, Panthers and Inklings Glossary of Names

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

Starting with the astonishing scenes at Kierkegaard’s funeral, Stephen Backhouse traces the life and impact of this extraordinary, elusive, passionate critic of passionless Christianity. Backhouse’s book is both learned and accessible, so that the issues that Kierkegaard wrestled with walk off the page to challenge us again today, while the man himself haunts us, calling us and hiding from us, as he did his contemporaries. — Dr. Jane Williams, Assistant Dean and Lecturer in Systematic Theology, St Mellitus College

Almost every road in modern Christianity leads back, at some point, to Kierkegaard. Yet few appreciate this fact because we’ve lacked a knowledgeable and accessible guide. Finally, we have one in Stephen Backhouse. I’ve waited my whole life for this book. And so has the church. — Dr. Richard Beck, Associate Professor of Psychology, Abilene Christian University

Stephen Backhouse has written a lively, accessible and expert introduction to an often misunderstood but hugely influential and prophetic thinker. This is an ideal place to start understanding Kierkegaard’s life and thought, which has much to say to the contemporary church and world. — Graham Tomlin, Bishop of Kensington, President St Mellitus College

This is an extraordinarily likeable book about a not-very-likeable, though fascinating, figure. This is not hagiography; Backhouse gives the full measure of Kierkegaard, and loves him in all his weirdness. Backhouse is a great storyteller—witty, imaginative, and with an eye for irony and humor. This book fills a need for an introduction for the educated nonspecialist to Kierkegaard’s life and thought, which are inseparable. How lucky we are that this need has been filled with such flair. — Dr. William T. Cavanaugh, Director, Center for World Catholicism and Intercultural Theology, De Paul University

Stephen Backhouse’s Kierkegaard: A Single Life is an extremely useful book that makes Kierkegaard accessible to those just beginning to know him. Backhouse’s account of Kierkegaard’s life is exemplary but particularly useful is his summary of Kierkegaard’s works. — Stanley Hauerwas, Gilbert T. Rowe Emeritus Professor of Divinity and Law, Duke University

Stephen Backhouse has given us a wonderfully lively and sympathetic portrait of one of the greatest minds of the nineteenth century, sparing us nothing of Kierkegaard’s abrasive, contrarian personality, but also illuminating the extraordinary courage and spiritual depth of the man. We have waited a long time for such an accessible introduction, growing out of deep study of the abundant original sources and bringing them alive with a light and sure touch. — Rowan Williams, Master of Magdalene College and former Archbishop of Canterbury

This book is a fascinating read about a fascinating person. Stephen has skillfully created a glimpse into the life and work of a perplexing and brilliant character. — Luke Norsworthy, Podcaster and Pastor. Organization- Newsworthy with Norsworthy Podcast and Westover Hills Church

Drawing on the wealth of new biographical material that has become available in the last twenty years, Backhouse's life of Kierkegaard sets the Danish thinker in his time and place and does so with confidence and verve. Few books about this most subtle and elusive of figures could be described as page-turners, but Backhouse combines a fast-moving style with a strong grasp of the big issues that makes this a compelling read. For those who have not yet read Kierkegaard himself, this will leave them wanting to do so - which must be the best outcome for any work of this kind. — George Pattison, Professor of Divinity, University of Glasgow

Kierkegaard believed that to understand an historical figure, one must be able imaginatively to become the person’s contemporary. In this gripping biography, Stephen Backhouse helps us become contemporaries of Kierkegaard himself. In these pages the Danish thinker comes alive. This book gives us an extraordinary portrait of an extraordinary human being. — C. Stephen Evans, University Professor of Philosophy and Humanities, Baylor University

Editorial Reviews

08/29/2016
Backhouse (The Compact Guide to Christian History) summarizes Kierkegaard's life and thought for the lay reader in a work that can be "read on holiday." The first part of the book is biography; the second provides synopses of Kierkegaard's works. Backhouse's strategy of splitting life from work creates a problem: Kierkegaard, at least in Backhouse's telling (though he does find some who praise and defend his subject), is a self-absorbed, insensitive, and annoying subject. By the time readers arrive at deeply sympathetic sections—the effects of Kierkegaard's twisted spine, the cruelty he was subjected to by his rivals—they may already loathe him. The book never attempts to understand how such a repugnant personality could produce such stunning, faith-based thought. That said, this primer on the life and career of Kierkegaard will be a fine introduction to those who know little about the controversial philosopher. Though the accounts of Kierkegaard the person seem only to disparage, the sections that discuss his writings and posthumous influence are worth the price of the book. (Aug.)

Publishers Weekly

'Kierkegaard believed that to understand a historical figure, one must be able, imaginatively, to become the person's contemporary. In this gripping biography, Stephen Backhouse helps us become contemporaries of Kierkegaard himself. In these pages the Danish thinker comes alive. This book gives us an extraordinary portrait of an extraordinary human being.'

C. Stephen Evans

'This book is a fascinating read about a fascinating person. Stephen has skillfully created a glimpse into the life and work of a perplexing and brilliant character.'

Luke Norsworthy

'Stephen Backhouse's Kierkegaard: A Single Life is an extremely useful book that makes Kierkegaard accessible to those just beginning to know him. Backhouse's account of Kierkegaard's life is exemplary but particularly useful is his summary of Kierkegaard's works.'

Gilbert T. Rowe Emeritus Professor of Divinity and Stanley Hauerwas

'Starting with the astonishing scenes at Kierkegaard's funeral, Stephen Backhouse traces the life and impact of this extraordinary, elusive, passionate critic of passionless Christianity. Backhouse's book is both learned and accessible, so that the issues that Kierkegaard wrestled with walk off the page to challenge us again today, while the man himself haunts us, calling us and hiding from us, as he did his contemporaries.'

Dr. Jane Williams

'This is an extraordinarily likeable book about a not-very-likeable, though fascinating, figure. This is not hagiography; Backhouse gives the full measure of Kierkegaard and loves him in all his weirdness. Backhouse is a great storyteller—witty, imaginative, and with an eye for irony and humor. This book fills a need for an introduction for the educated nonspecialist to Kierkegaard's life and thought, which are inseparable. How lucky we are that this need has been filled with such flair.'

Dr. William T. Cavanaugh

'Drawing on the wealth of new biographical material that has become available in the last twenty years, Backhouse's life of Kierkegaard sets the Danish thinker in his time and place and does so with confidence and verve. Few books about this most subtle and elusive of figures could be described as page-turners, but Backhouse combines a fast-moving style with a strong grasp of the big issues that makes this a compelling read. For those who have not yet read Kierkegaard himself, this will leave them wanting to do so—which must be the best outcome for any work of this kind.'

George Pattison

'Stephen Backhouse has written a lively, accessible, and expert introduction to an often misunderstood but hugely influential and prophetic thinker. This is an ideal place to start understanding Kierkegaard's life and thought, which has much to say to the contemporary church and world.'

Graham Tomlin

'Stephen Backhouse has given us a wonderfully lively and sympathetic portrait of one of the greatest minds of the nineteenth century, sparing us nothing of Kierkegaard's abrasive, contrarian personality, but also illuminating the extraordinary courage and spiritual depth of the man. We have waited a long time for such an accessible introduction, growing out of deep study of the abundant original sources and bringing them alive with a light and sure touch.'

Master of Magdalene College and former Archbishop Rowan Williams

'Almost every road in modern Christianity leads back, at some point, to Kierkegaard. Yet few appreciate this fact because we've lacked a knowledgeable and accessible guide. Finally, we have one in Stephen Backhouse. I've waited my whole life for this book. And so has the church.'

Dr. Richard Beck