Either/Or, Part I

Soren Kierkegaard, the nineteenth-century Danish philosopher rediscovered in the twentieth century, is a major influence in contemporary philosophy, religion, and literature. He regarded Either/Or as the beginning of his authorship, although he had published two earlier works on Hans Christian Andersen and irony. The pseudonymous volumes of Either/Or are the writings of a young man (I) and of Judge William (II). The ironical young man's papers include a collection of sardonic aphorisms; essays on Mozart, modern drama, and boredom; and &quote;The Seducer's Diary.&quote; The seeming miscellany is a reflective presentation of aspects of the &quote;either,&quote; the esthetic view of life. Part II is an older friend's &quote;or,&quote; the ethical life of integrated, authentic personhood, elaborated in discussions of personal becoming and of marriage. The resolution of the &quote;either/or&quote; is left to the reader, for there is no Part III until the appearance of Stages on Life's Way. The poetic-reflective creations of a master stylist and imaginative impersonator, the two men write in distinctive ways appropriate to their respective positions.