Three dialectics, the holy trinity, the ego the id and the super-ego. What is the fascination with the number three? In the last class discussion we mostly talked about the importance of Kierkegaard’s three dialectics; the Aesthetic, the Ethical, and the Christian. Though he doesn’t necessarily say it, he puts a heavy emphasis on the fact that the Christian dialectic is the most gratifying. Although god can not be understood objectively, the passionate faith of god, the never-ending struggle of faith in god is what drives a man through life according to Kierkegaard. At least that was how I interpreted it. That a man would be happiest through his passion in life. A true Christian is very different to Kierkegaard, for he says that it is easier to become a true Christian when not already a Christian. Many can claim to be christian’s yet not truly have faith in the idol, therefore not truly be a christian. It is the passionate exertion of faith, the true worship of an idol that makes someone a Christian. This leads me to wonder how Kierkegaard would feel about someone’s faith in other idols. Such as Krishna or Buddha. Would this person be a Christian to Kierkegaard? Perhaps i’m misinterpreting the writings, but to me it seems that the honest passion of faith is what truly matters to him.
The Aesthetic life, the Dionysian pleasures of art, beauty, wine, and women would soon bore a man. For an aesthetic, there is no good or evil, no morality, for he lives only to please himself in the moment. One could live an aesthetic life in ignorance for many years (perhaps a lifetime) and be happy, if they never realized the lack of meaning. Once he looks back on his life and realizes it was meaningless, however, he would seek a different road, the road of the ethical. An ethical life is rational. It follows an objective morality. There is purpose in an ethical lifestyle, and many would be content for a lifetime. But the ethical too is flawed. Though it has meaning, the ethical life is lacking the awareness of sin. Once a person glimpses the fact that they are living in sin, they must move on to a better dialectic. The revelation that you are a sinner, that you are guilty (as Camus would suggest) throws a person in to despair. What can you do with this knowledge of sin, with this despair? One can repent, and passionately give their life to God. You may kneel to god’s infinite power, and you must simultaneously fear him while trusting in his benevolence. The relationship with god however is not objective for that cannot be proven. What matters more is the direct relationship a person has with god. It is not reading about the holy trinity and believing it as fact, for the holy trinity is a paradox. God cannot be man and more than man at the same time. Instead it is how one interprets the concept of the Holy Trinity and the concept of God. The passion one exerts to the faith in it.
I know we haven’t quite read Nietzsche yet, but as I was partaking in my seemingly aesthetic lifestyle, I was discussing with my friend the concept of Ubermensch. During our conversation I asked him if the Ubermensch (overhuman) could actually exist. He replied by saying that I missed the point entirely. The Ubermensch is something for people to strive for. It is a never-ending attempt to become a better man than one is at the current moment. To me this is strikingly similar to Kierkegaard’s passion for God. Through passionate faith in god, one strives to become a better person. One would follow the morals of God and attempt to repent for his sins. His life would change for the better.
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