Penguin Classics: Fear and Trembling

In Fear and Trembling Kierkegaard, writing under the pseudonym Johannes de silentio, expounds his personal view of religion through a discussion of the scene in Genesis in which Abraham prepares to sacrifice his son at God's command. Believing Abraham's unreserved obedience to be the essential leap of faith needed to make a full commitment to his religion, Kierkegaard himself made great sacrifices in order to dedicate his life entirely to his philosophy and to God. The conviction shown in this religious polemic – that a man can have an exceptional mission in life – informed all Kierkegaard's later writings, and was also hugely influential for both Protestant theology and the existentialist movement.

Alastair Hannay's introduction elucidates Kierkegaard's philosophy and the ways in which it conflicted with more accepted contemporary views. This edition also includes detailed notes to complement this groundbreaking analysis of religion, and new chronology.