Soren Kierkegaards Three Stages of Life - Assignment Example

Humanities 100 Soren Kierkegaard s that there exists primarily three stages of life: the aesthetic forms the first stage, followed by the ethical while the religious forms the last stage. According to Kierkegaard, the aesthetic life view is often characterized by hedonism, nihilism and subjectivism. As such, the aesthetic stage of life seeks to get personal pleasure. However, it lacks any ultimate meaning or integrating narrative. Additionally, Kierkegaard divides the aesthetic stage into reflective or immediate forms. The aesthetic view is criticized from an ethical viewpoint. This stage is viewed to be escapist and self-serving in nature. In fact, it is a drastic and despairing way of escaping form responsibility and commitment. As such, it basically fails to acknowledge an individual’s communal existence and social debt. Additionally, Kierkegaard argues that the aesthetic state replaces actual and real affairs or states with fantasies making it a self-deceiving state. Thus, Kierkegaard is very critical of the aesthetic life. The aesthetic state is also characterized by a continuous flight from boredom. This makes boredom to be a significant obstacle to the aesthete. Since the aesthete stage is characterized by pleasures, it is vital for an individual to look for ways to maximize the pleasures. However, with continuous repetition, the pleasures tend to lose their interest and intensity. Subsequently, the appeal and look for pleasure fades leading to a gradual creeping of boredom. Actually, aesthetes fear boredom as much as they fear pain. This makes it a huge obstacle to the aesthetic life. Boredom leads to a reduction in the anticipation and want for pleasure. To deal with boredom, the individual has to rotate his/her pleasures. By rotating the pleasures, the individual turns the boring into interesting pleasures. The moral life and the aesthetic life both offer different life views. Whereas the aesthetic life view is focused on the self, the moral life focuses on the society. The moral life is a reflection of the societal norms. Therefore, the moral life is aimed at helping others whereas the aesthete life view is self-serving. Additionally, Judge William argues that an individual’s ability to make a decision or choice is the main difference between an ethicist and an aesthete. As such, the difference between the two states boils down to recognizing or acknowledging good and evil or basically ignoring them. An aesthete ignores what is good or evil and instead focuses on pleasure while an ethicist acknowledges good and evil. Judge William states that the ethical life is more meaningful and enjoyable than the aesthetic life. He does this via his defense of marriage. He states that marriage infact perpetuates love instead of doing away with or compromising first love. An aesthetic feels that if he/ she makes a choice and commits to a marriage, he will lose the pleasures he/she experienced in first love. Judge William disagrees with this opinion and points out that marriage encompass first love instead of generally usurping it. Furthermore, marriage allows an individual to experience and enjoy first love over and over again. Thus, marital love when compared to first love, is more satisfying and beautiful (Kierkegaard 434). 2 Kierkegaard stated that it is often who we are that prevents us from becoming who we want to be. From this, Kierkegaard means that most individuals do not comprehend themselves completely. Individuals focus too much on what they think they are instead of focusing on what they can be or what they want to be. As such, they never appreciate or acknowledge how much they would be if they gave themselves a chance and made the right decision or choice. Unlike animals that are hardwired by instinct to react, humans possess the ability to respond to decisions instead of reacting to them. This is the law of freedom (response and responsibility). Thus, human beings possess the freedom to make and decide their own choices. However, responsibility comes with that choice. A person’s choices are everything. They make up his/ her reality, and essence. Nevertheless, some people fear choices and thus follow the crowd. In light of this, Kierkegaard states that we must separate ourselves from the crowd since until individuals choose themselves, they are not really living well. Choosing is not enough until one must choose oneself. It is up to each and every individual to give meaning to their life. Hence, individuals give meaning to their own lives through the choices they make. Failure to choose oneself in a decisive sense will allow other people to determine the individual’s choice since he/she would be following a crowd. As such, the ability not to make a choice is a choice itself since the individual has delegated his choices to be made by others. Thus, each and every individual or person has to live life by picking a set of guiding moral principles to stand by and subsequently finding himself/ herself a suitable place in the social order (Flynn 40). 3 Nietzsche in his analysis made stark and clear differences between master and slave morality. First, the concept of slave morality commences with the absolute rejection of master morality. As such, slave morality cannot and does not stand on its own. On the other hand, master morality does not concern itself with external forces. The bad aspect in master morality is considered to be an afterthought that is generally aimed at bringing out more clearly the significance of the noble aspect. Whereas master morality consider independent and robust individuals to be good, the slave morality consider them to be evil. Further, the nobles viewed themselves as being happy. Meanwhile, the slave morality tended to distort everything so as to depict the nobles in bad light as much as possible. Ubermensch is a German term which can be translated to mean superman or a higher being who can create new values which are based or advanced by love of life and this world. Nietzsche used the character Zarathustra as an Ubermensch. On the other hand, the last man tends to refer to the antithesis of the superman. The last man takes no risks, and is always tired of this life. He only seeks security and comfort. In regard to this, Jesus was more than a human being. Thus, he was an Ubermensch or a superman simply because not only did he create new values, he was also a risk taker (Young 2014). Nietzsche believed that morals are a product of nature. For instance, taking an example from the animal kingdom, animals are not locked in an eternal war against each other, instead, they exhibit some human morality such as cooperation. Animals try to share resources and subsequently care for and love their offspirngs. Thus, morality is a product of nature. Eternal recurrence according to Nietzsche is the belief that time is infinite with a finite events which will continue to recur infinitely again and again. Eventually, things will recur in a similar order. This notion was vital for him since he believed that the world or the universe has no final state. If it had, it would have been reached a long time ago. Therefore, he advocates for people to gain or get their freedom from morality. As such, all values must be reevaluated. This was significant since it directed most of his works and beliefs. 4 David Staunton is the principal character in the 1972 book The Manticore. He is an alcoholic who seeks help so as to find his true self. Various characters aid him in this complex sojourn. Judy was David’s first girlfriend and she was central and supportive to David’s. Dr. Johanna von Haller was David’s Jungian analyst based in Zurich. She helps David greatly. She thus guides him through the often complex and intricate phases of analysis thereby helping him to discover himself. Liesl on the other hand is a millionaire’s daughter who aids Magnus Eisengrim Perom his magic shows. She attempts to shock David so as to comprehend the concept of collective consciousness. This was vital to his development and self-discovery. Boy Staunton was David’s father. He is significant to the novel since David idolizes him. However, he has no insight about himself. Leola Staunton was David’s mother. She is represented as being a weak woman or mother. Netty according to David was a good housekeeper who loved her work. According to her, man must work unless he/she is unwell. The cave experience was vital since David experienced primal fear which he had never experienced before. By liesl taking him into the cave, he made him experience something new hence he becomes himself. Works cited Davies, Robertson. The manticore. Viking Press, 1972. Print Flynn, Thomas. Existentialism: a very short introduction. Oxford University Press, 2006. Print Kierkegaard, Søren. Either/ Or. New York: Penguin, 2004. Print. Young, Julian. The death of God and the meaning of life. Routledge, 2014. Print Read More