Fear and Trembling is an extended work analysing the Binding of Isaac as outlined in Genesis 22. In the book Kierkegaard tackles and gives explanations to the moral/ethical dilemmas Abraham faces when he takes his son Isaac up to the peak of Jehovah-jireh.

For Biblical context in Genesis 22 Abraham is commanded by God to take Isaac to the land of Moriah and offer his as a burnt offering on one of the mountains:

He said, “Take your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you. -Genesis 22:2 ESV.

When Abraham reaches the peak he prepares to sacrifice Isaac, at the same time an angel appears and intervenes, saying:

(11) But the angel of the Lord called to him from heaven and said, “Abraham, Abraham!” And he said, “Here I am.” (12) He said, “Do not lay your hand on the boy or do anything to him, for now I know that you fear God, seeing you have not withheld your son, your only son, from me. - Genesis 22:11-12 ESV.

Abraham is commanded to sacrifice a ram instead, he and Isaac then return down the mountain together.

Fear and Trembling is composed of three problemas, describing the framework of faith and what the climax of faith truly is.

Problema 1 - Is there a teolgoical suspension of the ethical?

The first problema talks about the surpassing of ethical explanations when it comes to Abraham’s acts. Kierkegaard outlines the three stages of life: aesthetic, ethical and religious stages. The first stage, aesthetic relates to a persons individual desires and pleasures. The ethical, which is where one relates themselves to others in society and following societal rules and morals. The third and most important stage is the religious one where a person bases themselves off of the divine instead of other people. The main proposition of this chapter is that Abraham’s actions cannot be explained with secular ethics or morals but instead as an act of faith, he transitions from the ethical to religious stage.

The other key distinction hear is that Abraham is not a Knight of Infinite Resignation but instead a Knight of Faith. In the chapter before the first Problema Kierkegaard describes two knights, the one of infinite resignation gives up what he loves out of service for God therefore resigning himself and accepting his actions whereas the Knight of Faith resigns everything but believes how he will get it back by virtue of the absurd. Abraham is the latter in this case.

There are many examples of tragic heroes sacrificing things for the sake of a nation or cause. But the key idea is that their actions can be logically explained, within the domains of the ethical sphere. For a father to love and protect his son is an extremely ethically sound thing to say. But Abraham goes against all of this, disregarding conventional ethical standards due to his faith in God. Abraham is no tragic hero, faith is beyond morals.

Problema 2 - Is there an absolute duty to God?

The second problema discusses the relationship between faith and God. As Abraham’s actions can’t be accepted with the ethical realm then it is described as his religious duty to God. Kierkegaard makes the point that faith consists of a direct relationship with God and it is truly individual for each person. Due to the individuality of faith this leads faith to be a superposition of two extremes: the highest of passions and the deepest of isolations. The relation to the absolute is absolute, instead of it being in relation to the absolute through the universal which means other people. This allows a person to be higher than the absolute with their faith.

Problema 3 - Was it ethically defensible for Abraham to conceal his purpose from Sarah, from Eleazar, from Isaac?

The final problema focuses on Abraham’s relationship between his actions and other people. Under the ethical framework, it is right for Abraham to discuss and tell what he did to his wife Sarah. But as Abraham is a Knight of Faith and his act of faith is beyond ethics he cannot logically explain himself due Sarah. As outlined in the previous problema faith consists of a direct relationship between the person and God therefore Abraham remains silent. His faith is individual and he can’t communicate it to anyone else. This is in contrast to tragic heroes where their actions can be explained in a sound manner and therefore communicated to other people.

Kierkegaard relates this to the story of Agnete and the mermaid. The mermaid loves Agnete but Agnete must return to land and the mermaid makes the move of infinite resignation but not the move of faith. The mermaid conceals his feelings out of guilt but not of faith therefore being the opposite to Abraham. He has no choice but to conceal what he did. It shows that faith can be isolating as well as liberating, each Knight of Faith is unique where every tragic hero has similar traits to them.

Conclusion

In conclusion Kierkegaard states that he cannot truly understand Abraham but only admire him as his faith is a direct relationship between him and God only. By virtue of the absurd Abraham believes that he will get Isaac back despite not being able to explain it to others not even Isaac himself. This sets himself apart from everyone else, above ethical explanations and in absolute relation to the absolute.