Repetition and PhilosophicalCrumbs

“The love of repetition is in truth the only happy love.” So says Constantine Constantius on the first page of Kierkegaard’s Repetition. Life itself, according to Kierkegaard’s pseudonymous narrator, is a repetition, and in the course of this witty, playful work Constantius explores the nature of love and happiness, the passing of time and the importance of moving forward (and backward). The ironically entitled Philosophical Crumbs pursues the investigation of faith and love and their tense relationship with reason. Written only a year apart, these two short works are a perfect introduction to Kierkegaard’s philosophy: playful and profound, they explore notions of love and time, selfhood and Christianity, and pave the way for his later major works. These are the first English translations to convey both the philosophical precision of the originals and their literary quality. Edward F. Mooney’s Introduction deftly guides the reader through Kierkegaard’s key arguments and concepts, while helpful notes identify references and allusions and clarify difficulties in the texts. ‘The love of repetition is in truth the only happy love’ So says Constantine Constantius on the first page of Kierkegaard’s Repetition. Life itself, according to Kierkegaard’s pseudonymous narrator, is a repetition, and in the course of this witty, playful work Constantius explores the nature of love and happiness, the passing of time and the importance of moving forward (and backward). The ironically entitled Philosophical Crumbs pursues the investigation of faith and love and their tense relationship with reason. Written only a year apart, these two works complement each other and give the reader a unique insight into the breadth and substance of Kierkegaard’s thought. The first reads like a novel and the second like a Platonic dialogue, but both engage, in different ways, the same challenging issues. These are the first translations to convey the literary quality and philosophical precision of the originals. They were not intended, however, for philosophers, but for anyone who feels drawn to the question of the ultimate truth of human existence and the source of human happiness.