What Is The Main Conflict In 'Fear And Trembling'?

The core conflict in 'Fear and Trembling' revolves around Abraham's agonizing choice—whether to obey God's command to sacrifice Isaac or defy divine will to protect his son. Kierkegaard frames this as the ultimate test of faith, where rational morality clashes with religious duty. Abraham's internal struggle isn't just about losing Isaac; it's about surrendering to the absurd, trusting a higher purpose despite all human logic screaming against it. The tension between ethical norms and spiritual surrender creates unbearable psychological weight, making this existential dilemma timeless. What fascinates me is how Kierkegaard paints faith not as comfort but as terrifying leap beyond understanding.

Reading 'Fear and Trembling' feels like watching a high-wire act between philosophy and raw emotion. Kierkegaard dissects Abraham's story to expose the paradox at faith's core—how true believers must sometimes act in ways that seem immoral by human standards. The conflict isn't just Abraham versus God; it's society's expectations versus individual conviction. Normal fathers would call this madness, but Abraham's willingness to kill his son redefines devotion.

The book's brilliance lies in showing how faith demands suspension of ethics. Kierkegaard calls this the 'teleological suspension of the ethical,' where divine purpose overrides moral laws. Modern readers might recoil at this idea, but that's the point—faith isn't safe or sensible. Abraham's silence during his three-day journey to Moriah amplifies the horror; he can't explain himself because faith transcends language. This mirrors how existential choices often isolate us from collective understanding.

Kierkegaard pushes further by contrasting Abraham with tragic heroes like Agamemnon, who sacrifice for communal good. Abraham gains nothing society would recognize—his test is purely between him and the divine. That private, incommunicable dimension makes this conflict so haunting. It asks whether we'd obey a command that seems monstrous, trusting something beyond reason.

Kierkegaard's masterpiece frames faith as a brutal, lonely battle against logic. The central conflict isn't just about Isaac's potential death—it's about Abraham's identity. As a father, he loves his son; as a believer, he must destroy him. This撕裂 (tearing apart) of selfhood resonates deeply in modern life, where we often face impossible choices between competing values.

The philosophical tension escalates through Kierkegaard's pseudonym Johannes de Silentio, who admits he could never make Abraham's leap. That admission cracks open the text's real question: Is such radical faith admirable or monstrous? The book cleverly mirrors this in structure—repeating Abraham's story with slight variations, like a mind obsessively circling an unsolvable problem. Unlike typical religious texts that glorify obedience, 'Fear and Trembling' lays bare faith's terrifying cost: isolation, doubt, and the surrender of everything meaningful by human standards.