Christianity without Onto-Theology
Dreyfus develops Kierkegaard’s critique of nihilism in terms of Kierkegaard’s understanding of the nature of selfhood. On Kierkegaard’s account, the essential nature of the self involves an inherent tendency toward contradiction that leads us to despair—a despair we can only escape through an absolute commitment to something outside of ourselves. This chapter explains that aesthetic, ethical, and many forms of religious existence will inevitably break down because they can’t resolve this contradiction. In our current age, we are left with a choice between meaningless distractions to disguise our fundamental despair, or a decision that involves an unconditional commitment that can be manifest in our everyday existence.