[.ca] Existentialism From Dostoyevsky To Sartre (ISBN 0452009308)

re-writing history:
In 1975 Wk expanded the Kierkegaard section of his "Existentialism From D to S", adding three selections. The 'Truth is Subjectivity' section he includes is rather facinating. Wk claims in his intro to the K writings that the only section he (Wk) edited is the 'On his Mission' section, and adds that in the other sections the three dots "are punctuation marks which the author (K) sometimes used in place of dashes." (D to S p.83) But a close reading of the 'Truth is Subjectivity' section (it is from the CuP) shows not only editing by Wk, but strongly indicates that Wk made these cuts with the intention of creating a straw-man. I was suspicious of the dots for a while, and found proof that they were cuts when I was reading "From Plato to Nietzsche, Kaufmann/Baird, 1997 ed." It includes cuts from K's Concluding unscientific Postscript that show that "From D to S" is butchered. One example of a Wk style cut: "A young girl may enjoy all of the sweetmness of love on the basis of what is merely a weak hope that she is beloved, because she rests everything on this weak hope; but many a wedded matron more that once subjected to the strongest expressions of love, has indeed had proofs, but strangely enough has not enjoyed 'Quod erat demonstrandum'...\oD to S ends here, enter Plato to N\c...The Socratic ignorance was thus the expression, firmly maintained with the passion of inwardness, of the relation of the eternal truth to an existing person, and therefore it must remain a paradox as long as he exists. Yet it is possible that there is more truth in the Socratic ignorance than in the objective truth of the entire system that flirts with the times and adapts itself to assistant professors...\oD to S starts again here\c... Objectively the emphasis is on 'what' is said." (D to S, p.116 & P to N, p.1061) Getting exposed by your heirs for such behavior might sound like the ultimate folly, but it is not. Wk outdoes his heirs by pre-exposing his editing himself, . In 1959 Wk published a collection of essays called "From Shakespeare to Existentialism". For the K essay in "From S to E" Wk creates two psuedonyms, Brother Brash and Brother Brief. In addition to his preoccupation with k's "deformity", Brother Brash makes awkward attempts at demolishing K's 'Truth is Subjectivity' doctrine. In the process of this he quotes from 'CuP' in a way that tips the reader to the cuts WK later made in his "From D to S". Perhaps Wk had not read his own book. And I don't blame him. This cut that Wk attempts to explain to us in "From S to E" was removed by him from his "D to S". It starts just past the socratic ignorance cut above (D to S, p.116) Thus spoke Brother Brash: "As K's argument progresses, the confusion mounts. To show that subjectivity is truth he distinguishes what is said from how it is said, and then proceeds:" \osquare brackets WK's\c At its maximum, this how is the passion of the infinite, and the passion of the infinite is the very truth.\oSurely, this is wrong and begs the question.\c But the passion of the infinite is precisely subjectivity, and thus subjectivity is the truth. From the objective point of view, there is no infinite decision, and thus it is objectively correct that the distinction between good and evil is canceled., along with the principle of contradiction, \owhy?\c and thereby also the infinite distinction between truth and falsehood.\owhy\c Only in subjectivity is there decision, whereas wanting to become objective is untruth.\owhy?\c The passion for the infinite, not its content, is the deciding factor, for its content is precisely itself. \o???\c In this way the subjective how and subjectivity are the truth." (S to E, p. 197)

hell's yes:
what is up with that daft cunny from Saskatoon? (see below) Spilt hairs much? This is so great, check it out. It will califry your impersions of things and stuff.

Kaufmann and Existentialism:
I read this book for an Existentialism graduate course. It is extremely entertaining (from a literary frame) and does an incredible job displaying the diverse appearances of existentialism from a wide source of writers. It's not too heavy for non-philosophy types and still does each author in it justice.

A fantastic introduction to existentialism...:
... from an under-rated and original thinker in his own right. Along with William Barrett's 'Irrational Man,' this is the best introduction one can find to that much-maligned, much-misunderstood yet ever-popular chimera of 20th C. philosophy: existentialism. Kaufmann is as objective as one can be, when offering a critique of thinkers and thoughts. HE IS ALSO VERY LUCID. HE WRITES CLEARLY. This is a qualaty you will not find often when perusing most high-minded 20th C. texts. He doesn't talk down to his audience and presumes a level of cultural literacy, but he steadfastly refuses to fall prey to that most insidious and seductive of academic flaws: jargon juggling. He capably traces the roots of existentialism in various literary works and shows how the sensibilities expressed in exstlsm. are repeatedly expressed throughout western culture. People are divided on both the subject and the book, but that is natural: par example... Students of hermenuetics and disciples of heidegger feel that Kaufmann is biased against ole Martin, or that he spends too little time on him. And devotees of Sartre feel likewise. Many think he's too kind to Nietzsche. I disagree with all of the above. I think he treats each thinker succinctly and fairly, rooting them in their context and then looking at what they had to say. Existentialism. This is a word one hears often. It is Misused every day by pretentious half-wits of all variety. Here, in one clear volume, you have a fine key for the door. A great starting place. PS Kaufmann's book on philosophy and tragedy is the finest I have ever read. Used ones abound for under 8 dollars in here.

A Good Genral Introduction:
"Existentialism from Dostoevsky to Sartre" is in my opinion an excellent introduction to the thoughts and works of the Existentialists. It contains excerpts from the 19th Century Germans, as well as the 20th Century French, and a handful of others as well. I was glad to see literary works included, especially the Introduction to Dostoevsky's "Notes From the Underground," which I consider to be one of the greatest novellas ever written (read the whole thing, the second part is much different from the first, but is no less enjoyable) and Sartre's short story "The Wall." I was also glad to see Camus' "The Myth of Sissyphus" included, and as the last piece especially. It is, of course, absolutely pertinent for anyone interested in the subject matter to consult each of the writers included in this anthology more in depth. However, this work serves as an excellent introduction