Eighteen Teachings Book

Author: Wu Qiong
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-06-01
Features: Nietzsche is unrestrained, Kierkegaard is reserved; Nietzsche admires the power of life, Kierkegaard cherishes its fragility; Nietzsche indulges in an aesthetic life, Kierkegaard plunges into the depths of God; Nietzsche fears and hates women, Kierkegaard is both ashamed and appreciative of them; Nietzsche calls for cruelty, Kierkegaard praises sacrifice; Nietzsche's style is unrestrained, sometimes bordering on the manic, Kierkegaard's style is somber, sometimes ironic with simplicity and tenderness; Despite both being irrational thinkers, the meaning of irrationality is entirely different in the two: the former despises Socrates, the latter admires him, which is proof. In summary, both Nietzsche and Kierkegaard saw the coming of "nihilism" and "ism" and tried to resist it, but woven from entirely different individual temperaments, they developed entirely different philosophies., the tension in their thoughts is decisive for the transformation of Western modern thought and the advancement of modernity. Why does the Chinese intellectual community favor Nietzsche over Kierkegaard? Does this reflect a certain structural temperament in Chinese thought? In the genealogy of Chinese thinkers, it is said that one can find someone with a temperament similar to Nietzsche—Zhuangzi—but so far, no one has been found with a temperament like Kierkegaard. If so, Kierkegaard's thought could nourish the vitality of Chinese thought. It can be imagined that if Mr. Wang Guowei had read Kierkegaard back then, his On the Words of Human Life would have been written differently., Kierkegaard's thought is a lament for the fragility of the existence of every individual in the present moment. The Chinese intellectual community knows only Nietzsche and not Kierkegaard, not only leading to a fragmented understanding of the structure of modern thought but, more importantly, a poor understanding of the existential nature of one's own life. In my view, engaging with Kierkegaard is more about renewing one's understanding of the self.