Abstract

This dissertation argues two points. The first is that the figure of the seducer in Kierkegaard is a foundational figure; the second, that the seducer is himself a bearer of truth. Not only is the figure of Don Juan central in Part I of Either/Or, but so is Don Juan central in the other pseudonymous works, albeit only implicitly. Furthermore, taking seriously Kierkegaard's own stated aim that, with the pseudonymy, he sought to "deceive into the truth," I argue that a vital connection exists between seduction and truth. In order to show this, we proceed along two distinct lines of thought, the subjects of Chapters 1 and 2 respectively. Chapter 1 is devoted to an analysis of "The Seducer's Diary" from which we cull the formal features of the phenomenon of seduction. Here we search for such characteristics of the seducer that will then allow us to recognize the figure in other pseudonymous works. Chapter 2 is devoted to an analysis of "The Immediate Erotic Stages," where "Greek" and "Christian" worldviews are portrayed. An important finding here is that the Christian worldview, given its understanding of truth in terms of auditory phenomena, is the fertile ground from which arises the possibility of seduction. Moreover, insofar as the difference between the Greek and Christian worldviews revolves around the issue of temporality, it is also shown that temporality is the specific difference between types of seducers. Accordingly, we formulate a typology of seducers whereby not only is Don Juan a seducer in Kierkegaard, but so are Socrates and Jesus---each offering a particular view of truth. Chapters 3 and 4 tell the story of the connection between seduction and truth proper. Here we are concerned with such questions as doubt, the "interest" of consciousness, and freedom---all considerations of truth, untruth and the utter transformation that constitutes what I term a radical seduction. As Kierkegaard conceives it, seduction is possible because it tempts with truth an individual in the throes of thoroughgoing doubt. This dissertation aims to discover the philosophical basis of the phenomenon of seduction, establish a critical position from which to evaluate Kierkegaard's works, and ascertain that the disjunctive unity underlying the pseudonymy is the very ground upon which the connection between seduction and truth is established