The Dialectic of Sin and Faith in “Being Able to be Oneself”

Abstract

Kierkegaard understands the human self as a process of becoming that is situated in a dialectical relation between sin and faith. The chief task of each human being is to become a true self, instead of assuming a fraudulent identity. This authentic selfhood is grounded in the possibility to be oneself, a condition that is established in faith. Yet this achievement of true selfhood presupposes a state of sin in which the self is regarded as necessarily existing. Thus the aim of this essay is to demonstrate how Kierkegaard argues for a novel modern conception of the self as a dynamic interplay between possibility and necessity, sin and faith, in his attempt to respond to the spiritlessness of his age by vindicating the truth of Christianity.

Keywords

• kierkegaard
• authenticity
• self-knowledge
• paradox
• possibility
• christianity