Revista Portuguesa de Filosofia

Miguel de Unamuno's Reception and Use of the Kierkegaardian Claim That "Truth Is
Subjectivity"
Author(s): Jan E. Evans
Source: Revista Portuguesa de Filosofia, T. 64, Fasc. 2/4, Horizontes Existenciários da Filosofia
/ Søren Kierkegaard and Philosophy Today (Apr. - Dec., 2008), pp. 1113-1126
Published by: Revista Portuguesa de Filosofia
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 rWfri *■'■'■
I 64 » 2008 I
W^pLI

Miguelde Unamuno'sReceptionand
UseoftheKierkegaardian Claimthat
"Truthis Subjectivity"
JanE. Evans*

Abstract: That "truthis subjectivity" is a claim made by one of Kierkegaard s pseud-

onyms, Johannes Climacus, and not Kierkegaard himself the
Nevertheless, view is
associatedwithKierkegaard and has beenwidelyacceptedas meaningthat"truthis
subjective."This paper firstclarifiesClimacus' claim that "truthis subjectivity"in
Concluding UnscientificPostscript, and thenit exploresUnamuno's reception and
use of the concept.The two main aspects of "truthis subjectivity" that Unamuno
gleansfromClimacusare thatin orderfortruthto matter, it mustbe lived,and that
in orderforthetruthto be lived,it mustbe appropriated in passion. Thereare signifi-
cant differencesbetweenthetwo authorsconcerningtheexistenceof objectivetruth
and theuse ofdoubt,but bothClimacusand Unamunorecognizetheneedfortruth
to be livedpassionatelyfora persontrulyto be a human being.
KeyWords:Belief;Climacus,Johannes;Desire;Faith;Kierkegaard,Seren (1813-1855);
Passion; Pseudonymity; Subjectivity;Truth;Unamuno,Miguelde (1864-1936).
Resumo:A declaracdode que "a verdadee subjectividade"foifeitapor um dos pseudo-
nimos de Kierkegaard, JohannesClimacus,e ndo pelo proprioKierkegaard.Apesar
disso, esta posicdo ternsido associada com Kierkegaarde ternsido amplamente
difundidano sentidode significar que a "verdadee subjectiva".Objectivodo presente
artigoe, por isso, antesde mais,clarificaro sentidoda expressdode Climacusde que
"a verdadee subjectividade"na obra Postscript,para depotsexplorara recepgdoe
o uso que Miguelde Unamunofaz do conceito.Os dois aspectosassociados com a
afirmagdode que a "verdadee subjectividade" que Unamunorecebede Climacussdo
os de que em ordema que a questdoda verdadeseja realmenteimportante e neces-
sdrioque ela seja vivida,e que em ordema que a verdadeseja vivida e necessdrio
que ela seja apropriadacom paixdo. O artigomostra,assim, que existemdiferengas
signifwativas entreos dois autoresa propositoda existenciade uma verdadeobjectiva
e do uso da duvida,mas tambemque tantoClimacuscomo Unamunoreconhecema
necessidadede que a verdadeseja vividaapaixonadamentepara que uma pessoa viva
a plenitudeda sua condigdohumana.
Palavras-Chave:Climacus, Johannes;Crenca; Desejo; Fe; Kierkegaard,Soren (1813-
•1855); Paixdo; Pseudonimia; Subjectividade;Unamuno,Miguel de (1864-1936);
Verdade,

*
(Waco, Texas - usa).
BaylorUniversity

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1114 JANE. Evans

Climacus,a pseudonymof S0ren Kierkegaard, claims that

"truth is subjectivity"in ConcludingUnscientificPostscript, and Miguel
Johannes
de Unamunoembracedthatclaim.Ofall ofthebookscontainedin the
fourteen volumesof the firsteditionof Kierkegaard's collectedwritings,
I believethatPostscript was the mostinfluential in Miguelde Unamunos
thought.We knowthatUnamunofoundKierkegaard through readingcriti-
cismofIbsen'splays,1and thathe orderedall of the 14 volumesofKierke-
gaard'sSamledeVcerker as theywerepublishedfrom1901to 1906.2Each of
thevolumesis stillextantin theCasa Museo Unamunoin Salamancaand
can be examinedforthemarginalnotations containedtherein, somehaving
morecopiousentriesthanothers.Thosemarginal notations,reallyglosseson
theDanish,showthesubstantial extentto whichUnamunoreadtheKierke-
gaardiancorpus.
However, theideas thatClimacusoutlinesin Postscript are theones that
resonatemostwithUnamunoand theyaretheonesthatmaketheirwayinto
Unamunospublishedworks,bothhisphilosophical writings and hisfiction.
Therearenolessthanninedirectquotations from PostscriptinDelsentimiento
trdgicode la vida.In otherplacesI haveexploredUnamuno s understanding
3 HereI
and use of Climacus1 viewof "indirect communication." proposeto
showhowMiguelde Unamunounderstood thedictum"truth is subjectivity,"
and howthatunderstanding ofClimacus'themeis woventhrough hiswork.
Climacussaysfamously that,"Anobjective held
uncertainty, fastthrough
appropriation withthemostpassionateinwardness, is thetruth,the high-
est truththereis foran existing person/'4There are two majorelementsof
Climacus'statement thatare ofgreatest importance to Unamuno. Thefirstis
thenotionthatin orderfortruthto matter, it mustbe lived.Abstract, phil-
osophicalspeculationis useless.The philosopher mustfirstbe an existing
person.The otheris the elementof passion,inwardness.Passion is the
"how"in theappropriation oftruth.Passionleads a personto actionand is

1 Unamuno,
Miguelde - "Ibseny Kierkegaard."In: Obras Completas.Vol. 3. Ed. byM. Garcia
Blanco. Madrid: Escelicer,1968,p. 289.
2 In his Introductionto An Unamuno Source Book (Toronto:
Universityof TorontoPress,
1973), xx,n7, Mario Valdes indicatesthatUnamuno purchasedeach of the volumesof Kierke-
gaard'sSamlede Vcerker publishedby A. B. Drachmannand J. L. Heibergas theywere published
between 1901 and 1906. All of the volumes are markedwithunderliningand notes exceptVol-
umes 5 and 8. Volume 5 containsPrefacesand ThreeDiscourseson ImaginedOccasions. Volume
8 containsTwoAges.
3 See Pathsto Selfhoodin Fiction.Lanham,Md.:
ChapterOne of Unamunoand Kierkegaard:
LexingtonBooks, 2005, pp. 13-34, and "Passion, Paradox and IndirectCommunication:The
Influenceof Postscripton Miguel de Unamuno." In: KierkegaardStudies Yearbook,2005. Edited
by Niels J0rgenCappel0rnand Hermann Deuser. Berlin:Walterde Gruyter, 2005, pp. 137-152.
4 Kierkegaard, S0ren -
ConcludingUnscientificPostscript.Vol. 1. Edited and translatedby
Howard and Edna Hong. Princeton:PrincetonUniversity Press, 1992,p. 203.

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themeanswhereby truthbecomeslived.It is to a passionateexistencethat

Unamunowantstoawakenhisreader.Whilethereis evidencethatUnamuno
appropriates "truthis subjectivity,"
thereare some cleardifferences which
centeron theauthors'viewoftheexistence ofobjective Wewillsee that
truth.
in embracing Climacus'call forpassionwithoutregardto theobjectof the
passion, Unamunos misconstrues Climacus'meaningand promotesa view
thatis notfoundin Climacus,muchlessin Kierkegaard himself.Unamunois
notalonein misconstruing Climacus'meaning.
Twenty-five yearsof Kierkegaard scholarship withwritersas diverseas
RogerPoole5and SylviaWalsh6has shownthe importance of takingthe
pseudonymous character ofKierkegaard's corpusseriously. Thesescholarsas
wellas manyothershaveunderscored thefactthatin "TheFirstand Last
Explanation," whichKierkegaard adds to Postscript underhisownname,he
asksthattheideasand theconclusions ofhispseudonyms notbe attributed
tohim.Kierkegaard himself "Therefore,
requests, ifitshouldoccurtoanyone
to wantto quote a particularpassage fromthe books,it is mywish,my
prayer,thathewilldo methekindness ofcitingtherespective pseudonymous
author'sname,notmine."7
Climacus'claimthat"truth
Nevertheless, is subjectivity"
has causedmany
to identifyKierkegaard as a because
relativist they haveinterpreted"truth
is
as
subjectivity" "truthis Such
subjective." a characterizationofKierkegaard's
thought is unfortunate and wrongheaded forseveralreasons.To begin,it is
important to notethattheDanishis clear.Thoughtheadjectivesubjektive is
used in thetitleof therelevant the
chapter, keypassagereads, Men Uende-
og saaledes er Subjektiviteten
lighedensLidenskab er netop Subjektiviteten
Sandeden.8Thetruth hereis identicalwiththequalitydesignated bythenoun
and
(Subjektiviteten)
"subjectivity" not by theadjective"subjective"(subjek-
tive).More important is the entirecontextof thisrelevantchapterwhich
showsthatClimacus'emphasisis noton theexistence ofmultiple truths but
ratheron therelevance ofthe truthto the Even
exister.9 ifClimacus could be
of
accused promoting a crasssort of "whateveris truefor is
you true," one
shouldnotattribute thatviewto Kierkegaard, givenKierkegaard's plea just

5 Poole,
Roger- Kierkegaard: TheIndirectCommunication.Charlottesville: UniversityPress
of Virginia,1993.
6 Walsh,
Sylvia - Living Poetically:Kierkegaard'sExistentialAesthetics.UniversityPark:
Pennsylvania State Press, 1994.
University
7 Kierkegaard,S0ren - Postscript, cit.,p. 627.
8 Idem - In: Samlede Vcerker.Vol. 7. Kobenhaven:
Afsluttende UvidenskabeligEfterskrift.
Drachmann,Heibergog Lange, 1902,p. 169.
9 On this
point I relyheavilyon a chaptercalled, "Truthand Subjectivity,in: Evans, C.
Stephen - Kierkegaard's"Fragments"and "Postscript":The Religious Philosophyof Johannes
Climacus.AtlanticHighlands,N.J.:HumanitiesPress, 1983,pp. 115-135.

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1116 Jan e- Evans

quotedabove.No one shouldassumethattheviewof one of Kierkegaard's

pseudonyms is identicalto hisown.However, Climacushimself is notaffirm-
ingany such crude relativism.
To begin,it is important to recognizethatClimacusdealswithtwosorts
oftruthat thesame time.Theirconfusion has givenriseto misconceptions
aboutClimacus'viewof truth.He talksbothabout"thenatureof truthin
general"and also about"howan individual can be 'in thetruth'."10 The first
has todo withpropositional truth andthesecond with what makes a lifetrue.
The firstis abstract, concerned withbeingin the ideal sense,and the second
has todo withhowone shouldlive,being the in concrete sense. Both aspects
of truthare important to Unamuno.For Climacustruthin theabstractis
alwaysan approximation, evenifit is tiedto whatwe wouldcall empirical
This is so because theobjectof knowledgeis constantly
reality. changing,
and thepersonwho is attempting to acquirethatknowledge is constantly
changing as well.Therefore, whatever truth is arrivedatmustbe heldmodestly,
knowingthatit willalwaysgivewayto greaterinsightand thencorrection.
Byunderscoring thenatureoftruthas an approximation, Climacusstresses
thefactthattheprocessofacquiringtruthis neverfinished.
WhatUnamunotakesfromClimacusis a viewof truththatincludesa
largeemphasison uncertainty and a rejectionoftheviewthathumansever
havethetruth as a finalpossession.Unamunorailsagainstall whothinkthat
theyhavearrived at thetruth. "Paraellosno hayquemantes lagrimas vertidas
en silencio,en el silenciodel misterio,porque esos barbaros se lo creen tener
todoresuelto;paraellosno hayinquietuddel alma,puesse creennacidosen
posesionde la verdadabsoluta."11 WithClimacusUnamunowantsto hold
whatever truththereis modestly, whichis one ofthereasonsthatUnamuno
speaksout againstdogmatism. In the closeststatement we have of what
Unamunowas aboutinall ofhisworkhe says,
Peroes que mi obra - iba a decirmi mision- es quebrantarla fede unos y de otrosy
la feen la negaciony la feen la abstenci6ny esto
la feen la afirmacion,
de los terceros,
por feen la femisma;es combatira todoslos que se resignan,sea al catolicismo,sea
al racionalismo, es hacerque vivantodosinquietosy anhelantes.12
sea al agnosticismo;
Theuse oftheverbquebrantar hereis pointed.Unamunodoesnotsaythat
he wantsto destroyfaith,faithin theaffirmative, faith
faithin thenegative,
or faithin faithitself.Rather,he wantsto disturbones faith
in abstention
Unamunodoes notwantanyoneto be resignedto a particular
in anything.
dogmabecause,forhim,all oflifeis a longingthatshouldneverbe assuaged.
"Y el alma,mi alma al menos,anhelaotracosta:no absorcion,no quietud,

10Ibidem,p. 116.
11Unamuno,
Miguelde - Vidade Don Quijotey Sancho. In: Obrascompletas,cit.vol. 3, p. 226.
12Idem- Del sentimiento
trdgicode la vida. In: Obras completas,cit.,vol. 7, pp. 297-298.

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no paz, no apagamiento, sino eternoacercarsesin llegarnunca,inacabable

anhelo,eternaesperanzaque eternamente se renuevasin acabarsedel todo
nunca."13 Understandably then,he saysthatit is his purposeto awakenhis
readerto theneed forthislonging."Hayque inquietarlos espiritusy enfu-
saren ellos[los projimos]fuertes anhelos,aun a sabiendasde que no hande
alcanzarnuncalo anhelado."14
Ultimately,uncertainty is thefoundation ofUnamunos tragicsenseoflife.
"El escepticismo,la incertidumbre...es el fundamento sobreque la desespe-
raciondel sentimiento vitalha de fundar su esperanza."15 Thisis theconclu-
sion thatUnamuno comes to in Chapter Six of Del sentimiento trdgicode la
the
vida,afterhe has surveyed possibilities thatreason affords for meaning
in lifeand foundreasonbankruptbecause it cannotprovethatone will
survivethislife.To reasonhe juxtaposesthe longingforimmortality that
ones heartdeclaresmustbe thecase but for which there is no basis.
rational
He thenasksforthedespairoftheheartto embracetheskepticism ofreason
likea brother and livefromtheensuing tension. No is
compromise possible
fromhisperspective.
One mightreasonablyask,"Is thiswhatClimacushad in mindwhenhe
maintained thatempiricaltruthis an approximation?" Thereis a veryimpor-
tantdifferencebetweenClimacusandUnamuno.WhenClimacusis discussing
thefactthatevenempiricaltruthmustalwaysbe consideredan approxima-
tionto thetruth, he makesan exception. Thatexceptionto thepresumption
ofapproximation is God,becausefromtheperspective ofGod,frometernity,
truthcan be knowncompletely. "ForGod,presumably becausehe is eternal
and sees fromtheeternalpointofview,truthaboutempiricalactuality may
be perfectandnotmerely approximative."16 This means that Climacus affirms
theexistence ofobjectivetruth, evenifwe as humanscannotknowit.
Thisexceptionrepresents a difference betweenClimacusand Unamuno.
Climacussays,"Existenceitselfis a system- forGod, but it cannotbe a
systemforany existing[existerende] spirit."17Climacusassumesthatthere
is truth,truththatis knownbyGod,evenifthattruthis notavailableto the
exister.Unamunohas no equivalentfoundational sense of objectivetruth
foundin God. Unamunoequivocateson the existenceof God, precisely
becauseHis existencecannotbe provenrationally. Unamunos answerto the
question"Does God exist?"is thathe cannotknow.For Unamunoto want
to believeis belief,whether or notthereis objectively anyGod to believein.

13Ibidem, 260.
p.
14Unamuno,
Miguel de - Vida de Don Quijotey Sancho, cit,p. 155.
15Idem- Del sentimientotrdgico,cit.,p. 172.
16Evans, C. Stephen- Kierkegaard's "Fragments" and "Postscript,"cit.,p. 118.
17Kierkegaard, S0ren - Postscript,cit.,p. 118.

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11 18 Jan E. Evans

"[La fe]no es en su esenciasinocosa de voluntad, no de razon,comocreeres

querer creer,y creer en Dios antetodo y sobretodo es quererque le haya."18
To definebeliefas thedesireto believedoes notsoundso verydifferent from
Climacus,butClimacusis clearabouttheobjectofthedesire.He saysthatthe
personwhoseekstoknowGod subjectively, "Atthatverymoment...has God,
notbyvirtueofanyobjectivedeliberation butbyvirtueoftheinfinite passion
of inwardness/'19 Climacus'emphasisis on thefactthatobjectivetruthfor
humanscannotbe gainedthrough speculationbutratherthrough existence,
buthe does notequivocateabouttheexistenceof objectivetruth.Climacus
says,"thegod[Guden]rescuesfromdelusionthepersonwhoinquietinward-
nessand honestbeforeGod is concernedforhimself; eventhoughhe is ever
so simple,thegod leads himin thesuffering of inwardness to thetruth."20
EventhoughUnamunoand Climacusdiffer on theexistenceofobjective
truth,theyare in agreement withthefactthattruthmustbe lived.Climacus'
foremost concernis therelationship of thetruthto theexister. The reason
forClimacusstarting withthematteroftruthin generalis to showthelimi-
tationsofabstract, Fortruthto be truthit mustaffect
idealisticthought. the
existenceof theknower."Thattheknowingspiritis an existingspirit,and
thateveryhumanbeingis sucha spiritexistingforhimself, I cannotrepeat
oftenenough."21 Unamunorejectsabstractthought inthesamewayand uses
Climacusto makehis point.In Del sentimiento trdgico de la vida Unamuno
quotesa verylongpassagefrom"Actualand EthicalSubjectivity," whichin
partsays,
But abstractiondoes not care about whethera particularexistinghuman being is
immortal,and just thatis the difficulty.It is disinterested, of exis-
but the difficulty
tenceis the existingpersons interest,and the existingpersonis infinitely interested
in existing...Therefore,whenone consideredan abstractthinkerwho is unwillingto
makeclear to himselfand to admittherelationhis abstractthinking has to his being
and existingperson,he makesa comic expression,evenifhe is everso distinguished,
because he is aboutto cease to be a humanbeing.22
From the verybeginningof Del sentimiento trdgicode la vida, when
speakingoftheman "de carney hueso,"Unamunostressesthatintellectual
posturing andeventhepursuitofscientific, empiricaltruth unless
is worthless
onebalancesthatknowledge withmatters thatareimportant totheheart."Si
un filosofono es un hombre,es todomenosun filosofo; es, sobretodo,un
pedante,es decir,un remedode hombre...Y el mas tragicode la filosofia
es el de conciliarlas necesidadesintelectuales
con las necesidadesafectivas

18Unamuno,
Miguel de - Del sentimientotrdgico,cit.,p. 177.
19Kierkegaard, S0ren -
Postscript,cit.,p. 200.
20Ibidem, 615.
p.
21Idem, 189.
p.
22Idem, 302.
p.

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 Miguelde Unamunoand Kierkegaard 1119

y con las volitivas."23

UnamunogivesDescartesas an exampleofa philoso-
pherwho,ifhe hadbeensuccessful inhisattempttodoubteverything, would
havebeen preciselythissortof pseudo-philosopher, one who put aside the
realmanwhocaresabouthis immortality forthesakeofabstraction. Atthe
endofthechapter, "El hombrede carney hueso,"Unamunopointsto models
of menin history who are concernedwithwisdomoftheheartratherthan
abstractknowledge, and he namesKierkegaard as one ofthose.
One ofthemostmisunderstood of
passages Postscript is a famousone in
whichClimacusjuxtaposestwoindividuals. One is a personlivingin Christi-
anitywiththeknowledge ofGodwhoentersa churchand praysin "untruth."
The otheris a pagan who prayswithpassion to an idol. Climacusasks,
"Where, then,is theremoretruth? Theone praysin truthto God althoughhe
is worshiping an idol;theotherpraysin untruth to thetrueGod and is there-
forein truthworshiping an idol."24ManyhaveconcludedthatwhatClimacus
is sayinghereis thatthereis no objectivetruth, thattruthonlydependson
thepassionwithwhichthetruthis held.C. StephenEvans pointsout that
Climacusis notprimarily dealingwithpropositional truthhere;he is asking
onlyabout"livedlife,"aboutwhatsortoflivedlifecan be consideredto be
"true."Evansstates,"Climacusis notasserting theabsurdthesisthatsomeone
can makea falseproposition trueifonlyhe believesit in therightway...He
is sayingthata persondoes notexisttrue-ly byknowingwhatis objectively
true."25Whatis important forClimacusis thata personsexistencebe trans-
formedby thetruth.The truthis realizedonlywhenit is actedupon.That
personwho allowshis existenceto be permeatedby thetruthcan be said
to be "inthetruth." In orderto makehis point,Climacusassumesthatthe
pagans viewis false,but in so doing,he wantsto underscorethefactthat
eventhoughthepagans viewis false,theremaybe some truthin his life.
Climacus'viewthatthereis objectivetruth- bothtruthaboutGod and truth
forGod- is crucialhere.
In an essay of 1906,"<;Quees verdad,"it would seem thatUnamuno
understands theimportofClimacus'claimhere.In ithe excoriates thosewho
wouldabstracttruthintodivisionslikemetaphysical, logical and moraltruth
withimpenetrable definitions. For Unamunotheonlytruththatmattersis
moraltruthand thatis thecase because it is livedtruth.In a challengeto
theofficialCatholicChurchthatis reminiscent ofKierkegaard's attackon the
DanishLutheranChurch,Unamunodeclaresthatthestatement thatSpain
is a Catholiccountry is a lie. Neitherthosewhoare in powernormanywho
attendmassknowwhattheybelieve,andtheevidenceis thattheirlivesarenot

23Unamuno,
Miguel de - Del sentimientotrdgico,cit.,p. 118.
24Kierkegaard, S0ren - Postscript,cit.,p. 201.
25Evans, C.
Stephen- Kierkegaard's "Fragments" cit.,p. 126.
and "Postscript,"

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anydifferent as a resultoftheirbeliefs.Climacussayssomething verysimilar,

and Unamunounderlined it."Iftheindividual is notchangedand continually
changedwithinhimself, theintroducing of Christianity intoa country is no
morea religiousactionthantheconquering ofcountries."26 Unamunopoints
outthatmanysaythattheybelievetheteachings oftheHolyMotherChurch,
but are reallyignorantof thoseteachings.He says, "En medicinapuede
curarmela cienciade mimedico,aunqueyono sepa ni haciadondemecae el
higado;peroen religion no puedesalvarmela fede miconfesor. En la vidadel
espiritusolo mi verdad me salva, y miverdad no es la verdad que desconozco,
aunque sea esta la verdad de los demas."27 With as much fervor as Kierke-
gaard, Unamuno statesthatso longas thelie that Spain is a Catholic country
is perpetuated, Spain willnot be Christian.
The spiritof thepassage mentionedabove about the Christianand the
paganis evidentin thisessay.Atthebeginning Unamunostates,"Valemas el
erroren que se creeque no la realidaden que no se cree."28 1 willgo so faras
to saythatUnamunohad thevisionoftheChristian and thepaganin mind
whenhe saysthatthepersonwhocannotconceiveofGod intellectually, but
wholongsforhimtoexistand so ordershislifetoreflect thatdesire,believes
in God muchmorethanthepersonwho givesintellectual assentbutwhose
lifeis completely unchanged.Unamunomaybe describing himself whenhe
says,
El que no pudiendoconcebircon la inteligenciala esencia de Dios, considerandosu
idea una hipotesisque nada explica,y puros sofismaslos que llaman pruebasde su
existencia,desea, sin embargo,en su corazon que Dios existay se acomoda a una
conductapara con El, dando personalidadal Ideal Supremo,creeen Dios muchomas
que aquel otroque esta convencidologicamentede que existeun Dios, peropara nada
lo tieneen cuenta,o solo parajustificarsu cultoa la mentira.29
The conclusionoftheessay,"<^Quees verdad?"wouldseemto conform to
Climacus'viewoftruth.Fortruthto be truth, itrequirespassionand action.
"Y bien,en resumen:^que es verdad?Verdades lo que se creede todocorazon
Y que es creeralgo de todo corazony toda el alma?
y con toda el alma. <<
Obrarconforme a ello."30However, difference
thereis a significant between
Climacuss viewoftruthand Unamunos. Unamunoheredoes notdeal with
thequestionofwhether butinDel sentimiento
or notthereis objectivetruth,
de
trdgico la vidahe does. There Unamuno quotesdirectlyfromthepassagein
Postscriptabout the Christianand paganpraying, thoughhis Spanishmakes

26Kierkegaard, S0ren -
Postscript,cit.,p. 433.
27Unamuno,
Miguel de - "iQue es la verdad?"In: Obras Completas.Vol. 3. Ed. by M. Garcia
Blanco. Madrid: Escelicer,1968, p. 863.
28Ibidem, 855.
p.
29Idem, 859.
p.
30Idem, 864.
p.

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itmoreofa paraphrasethana translation. "Si de dos hombres- diceKierke-

gaard- rezael uno al verdadero Dios con insinceridad personal,y el otrocon
la pasiontoda de la infinitud reza a un idolo,es el primeroel que en reali-
dad ora a un idolo,mientrasque el segundoora en verdada Dios."31(If of
twomen,Kierkegaard says,one praysto thetrueGod withpersonalinsin-
and
cerity, the other prays withthepassionofinfinity to an idol,itis thefirst
whoprayedin reality to an idoland thesecondwhopraysin truthto God.)32
Whatis interesting is thefactthatUnamunogoeson to correctClimacus,or
perhapssay what he wishedClimacushad said. "Mejores decirque es Dios
verdadero Aquel quiense reza y se anhelade verdad."33
a For Unamunothe
trueGod is theone to whomthepersontrulypraysand theone whomthe
persontrulylongsfor.Does thisGod existobjectively outsidea persons expe-
rienceofhim?
UnamunoindicatesthatGods existenceis dependenton our experience
ofhimwhenhe says,"Ese en que crees,lector, ese es tuDios,el que ha vivido
contigoen tiynaciocontigoy fue nifiocuando erastunino,y fuehaciendose
hombreseguntu te haciashombrey que se te disipacuandote disipas..."34
In otherwords,theGodyoubelieve in dies when youdie. Butthenhe seems
to echo SaintAugustine whenhe says, "Y este Dios, el Dios vivo,tu Dios,
en
nuestroDios,estaen mi,estaen ti,vive nosotros, y nosotrosvivimos, nos
movemosy somosen El. Y esta en nosotros por el hambre que de El tene-
mos,porel anhelo,haciendonosapetecer."35 In thiscase it is God,clearlya
beingoutsidemyself, who createsin me a "Godshapedhollow"thatcauses
thelongingthatcan onlybe filledby himself.It is notunlikeUnamunoto
consciouslyspeakinparadoxicaltermsaboutthoseconceptsthataredifficult
tograsp.He doesnotwanttocomedownon one sideofthisissueofwhether
or notthereis objectivetruthor whether God exists.He wantsto livein the
tensionofthedifficulties ofknowing, as he indicatesin thelastparagraphs of
thischapter,
ExisteDios? Esa personaeternalyeternizadoraque da sentido- y no afiadirehumano,
<<
porqueno hayotro- al Universo,<<
es algo sustancialfuerade nuestraconsciencia,fuera
de nuestroanhelo?He aqui algo insoluble,y vale mas que asi lo sea. Bastelea la raz6n

31Unamuno,
Miguel de - Del sentimientotrdgico,cit.,p. 214.
32The
Hong translationin English has the passage, "If someone who lives in the midst of
Christianityenters,withknowledgeof the true idea of God, the house of God, the house of the
trueGod, and praysbut praysin untruth,and if someone lives in an idolatrousland but prays
-
withall the passion of infinity,althoughhis eyes are restingupon the image of an idol where,
then, is there more truth? The one prays in truthto God although he is worshipingan idol;
the other prays in untruthto the true God and is thereforein truthworshipingan idol."
Kierkegaard, S0ren - Postscript,cit.,p. 201.
33Unamuno,
Miguel de - Del sentimientotrdgico,cit.,p. 214.
34Ibidem, 215.
p.
35Idem, 214.
p.

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el no poderprobarla imposibilidadde su existencia.Creeren Dios es anhelarque le

hayay es, ademas,conducirsecomo si le hubiera;es vivirde ese anheloy hacerde el
nuestrointimoresortede action.36
So to believein God is to longforhimto exist.Thatis enoughto makehim
thesourceofouractions.
WhileUnamunos ultimate plea is fortheexisting personto longforGods
existenceand liveas thoughGod exists,he leavesthequestionofGod'sexis-
tence,"insoluble." GoingbacktothepassageabouttheChristian andthepagan,
Climacusdoesnotsaythatthepersonpraying in thepassionofinfinity tothe
idol is prayingto thetrueGod,as Unamunotranslates thepassage.Rather,
Climacusasks,"Whereis theremoretruth?" The pointis havingthe"right"
belief in the true God is worthless ifthat beliefis notlived.Andhis pointis
notthat the pagans beliefs are true, but that the pagan himselfhas "more
in
truth" his life. In order to arrive at objectivetruth,one mustcome at it
subjectively. But Climacus does assume thatthereis objectivetruthto be
knownwhenhe says,"Just important thetruth,
as as and ofthetwotheeven
moreimportant one,is themode in which thetruth is accepted."37
Thelastelementof"truth is subjectivity"thatmustbe exploredifone is to
understand Unamunos reception ofClimacus'viewis theelementofpassion.
For Climacuspassionis thelinkbetweenabstractspeculationand trueexis-
tence.One mayspeculateaboutmultiplepossibilities, butthosepossibilities
hold no truthforthe individualuntilthe individualstopsthe speculative
processand takesa step,a leap, thatputsone intoaction.Climacussays,
"reflection can be stoppedonlyby a leap."38It is passionthatimpelsand
empowers existerto chooseand to act on thatchoice.Unamunounder-
the
linedthefollowing inPostscript thatconcludestheparagraph abouttheneces-
sity of the leap. "Yetit is assumed that reflectioncan stopitself
objectively,
whereasitis justtheotherwayaround;reflection cannotbe stoppedobjecti-
vely,andwhenitis stoppedsubjectively itdoesnotstopofitsownaccord,but
it is thesubjectwho stopsit."39In orderforthetruthto be appropriated in
inwardness, theindividualstopsthespeculationand takestheleap,thestep
thatleadsto action.
It wouldseemthatUnamunoembracessucha viewofpassionateaction
in the "^Que es verdad?"essay as quotedabove. He maintainstherethat
truthis whattheheartbelievesand putsintoaction,actionin accordance
withthebelief.Further, in theessayentitled"El sepulcrode Don Quijote,"
thatUnamunoplacedat thebeginning ofthesecondeditionofVidade Don

36Idem,
pp. 218-219.
37Kierkegaard, S0ren -
Postscript,cit.,p. 247.
38Ibidem, 115.
p.
39Idem.

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Quijotey Sancho,he makesa sweepingstatement thatseemsto holdtruefor

many of his and
protagonists, thereforewe can take seriouslyas a founda-
tionalstatement fromtheauthor.It says/'Procura viviren continuovertigo
pasional,dominadoporuna pasioncualquiera.Solo los apasionadosllevan
a cabo obrasverdaderamente duraderas."40The contexthereis thestoryof
Don Quijote,and Unamunorevereshimbecauseofhispassion.Don Quijotes
passionis themodelforUnamunosprotagonists. AttheendofthePrologue
to San ManuelBueno,mdrtir, UnamunoequatesDon Manuel,thepriestpro-
tagonist, and Don Quijote."Y no quieroaqui comentarya mas el martirio
de Don Quijoteni de Don ManuelBueno,martirios quijotescoslos dos"41
For UnamunobothDon Quijoteand Don ManuelBueno live"inthetruth"
becausetheyhaveappropriated theirtruthin thepassionofinwardness that
leads to action.Theyboth"carryout worksthatare trulyenduring." Don
Quijoterightsthewrongsthathe perceives, eventhoughothersdo notper-
ceivetheminthesameway.Don Manuel,thepriest,giveshislifein serviceto
hisparishioners withabsolutepassion,eventhoughhe cannotbelieve.
As we saw earlier,Unamunosees as his work,his mission,the taskof
wakinghis readerto passionateexistence.In partUnamunowas callingfor
his readerto care passionatelyabout immortality, whichfollowslogically
fromanotherquote fromPostscript whichUnamunounderlined."But the
expression fortheutmostexertion ofsubjectivityis theinfinitely
passionate
interest in itseternalhappiness."42ForUnamunothequestionofimmortality
is thekeyquestionforall ofus, and it is theone thatwe shouldcare most
passionately about.Whilehe says of himself, "No quieromorirme, no; no
quiero,ni quieroquererlo;quierovivirsiempre,siempre,siempre, y viviryo,
estepobreyo que me soyy me sientoserahoray aqui,y porestome tortura
el problemade la duracionde mi alma,de la mia propia,"43 he challenges
othersby saying,"Solo los debilesse resignana la muertefinaly susti-
tuyencon otroel anhelode inmortalidad personal.En los fuertesel ansia de
perpetuidad sobrepujaa la duda de lograrla,y su rebosede vida se vierteal
masalia de la muerte."44
Thedesireforperpetuity is thepassionthatovercomes doubt,butitshould
be notedthatUnamunos senseof "overcoming doubt"is veryunlikethatof
Climacus.Unamunowantsto retainskepticism and doubtjust as passion-
ately as he declaresthatone must, with the heart,longforimmortality. He
calls formaintaining thetensionbetweenreasonand feeling, thehead and

40Unamuno,Miguel de - Vidade Don Quijotey Sancho, cit.,p. 58.

41Idem- San Manuel Bueno, mdrtir. In: Obras completas,cit.,vol. 2., p. 1123.
42Kierkegaard, Soren - Postscript,cit.,p. 53.
43Unamuno,
Miguel de - Del sentimientotrdgico,cit.,p. 136.
44Ibidem, 139.
p.

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theheart.He says thatit is notthe Cartesiandoubtthathe is advocating,

butanother, passionatedoubt."Estaotraduda es una duda de pasion,es el
eternoconflicto entrela razonyel sentimiento,la cienciayla vida,la logicay
la biotica."45
Furthermore, he buildshisentiretragicsenseoflifeon thatpas-
sionatedoubt."Es el conflictomismo,es la mismaapasionadaincertidumbre
lo que unificamiactiony me haceviviry obrar."46
ClimacuswoulddescribewhatUnamunois advocatingas "oppositepas-
sions"and notthesortof"leap"he is demanding. For Climacus,theleap in
passionprecludesspeculative doubt.He saysinPhilosophical Fragments,
Beliefis theoppositeof doubt.Beliefand doubtare nottwo kindsof knowledgethat
can be definedin continuitywitheach other,forneitherof themis a cognitiveact,
and theyare oppositepassions.Beliefis a sense forcomingintoexistence,and doubt
is a protestagainstanyconclusionthatwantsto go beyondimmediatesensationand
immediateknowledge.47
Thereare important to notehere.EventhoughUnamunocalls
differences
forpassionateaction,he retainstherightto doubtand notcometo anycon-
clusion.Thoughhe says thatfaithin immortality is irrational, he wantsto
retainreason."Razony feson dos enemigosque no puedensostenerse el uno
sinel otro."48 He wantsthestruggle betweenfaithand reasonto be thebasis
ofspiritual life."La paz entreestasdos potenciasse haceimposible, yhayque
vivirde su Guerra.Y hacerde estade la Guerramisma,conditionde nuestra
vidaespiritual."49 ClimacuswouldrejectUnamunos viewas one thatwould,
in fact,keep the individualfromliving"in the truth," because speculation
wouldnotreallyhavebeenstopped.
Climacuswouldalso rejectUnamunosinjunction to "seekto livein con-
tinuous,passionatevertigo,dominatedby whateverpassion."As has been
notedbefore,Climacusdoes notadvocatewhatothershaveattributed to him
in thetellingofthestoryoftheChristian and thepagan.He is notsayingthat
whatever"truth" thatis heldpassionately is objectivelytrue.For Climacus,
and even moreclearlyforKierkegaard, thereis an objectivetruth,and it
mattersgreatlywhichpassionsyou acquire.Climacus'pointin sayingthat
"truth is subjectivity"is thatsubjectivetruthwilllead ultimately to objective
truth. Kierkegaard himself comments on Climacus' work,
InalltheusualtalkthatJohannesClimacus ismere etc.,ithasbeencom-
subjectivity,
overlooked
pletely thatinaddition
toallhisother concretions
hepoints outinoneof

45Idem, 173.
p.
46Idem, 62.
p.
47
Kierkegaard, S0ren - Philosophical Fragments.Edited and translatedby Howard and
Edna Hong. Princeton:PrincetonUniversityPress, 1985, p. 84. One should note thatthe Danish
termfor"belief here,Tro,can also be translatedas "faith."
48Unamuno,
Miguel de - Del sentimientotrdgico,cit.,p. 175.
49Ibidem, 172.
p.

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thelast sectionsthattheremarkablethingis thatthereis a "How"withthecharacter-

isticthatwhenthe"How"is scrupulously renderedthe"What"is also given,and thisis
theHow of"faith".50
The "what"thatis also givenis notpartofUnamunos viewoftruth, and
thissortofKierkegaardian "faith"thatis grounded ina Godwhois there,and
notjustlongedfor,is notsharedbyUnamuno.
To conclude,thereis muchin Climacus'viewthat"truthis subjectivity"
thatis attractive to Unamuno.We have seen fromhis morephilosophical
workslike"^Que es verdad?", Del sentimiento trdgico de la vida and La vida
de Don Quijotey Sancho that Unamuno two
appropriates important elements
ofClimacus'view:1) in order for truthto be truth it must be livedand 2) the
necessary movement from abstractionto action is found in passion.
In a further study it would be fascinating and beneficial to tracehow
theseconceptsare workedout in thecharactersof Unamunosfiction.Just
one examplemustsuffice fornow.FromClimacus'storyoftheChristian and
thepaganUnamunogleansthatthetrueGod is theone thatis worshipped
in truth.Don Manuelof San ManuelBueno,mdrtir has been mentioned as
the
having passion that Unamuno sees as necessary. He is also theone who
livesoutthetruththathe longsto believebutcan't.Is Unamunoheregiving
fleshto theidea that,fromhis pointof view,Don Manuelis living"in the
truth" becausehe is actingpassionately, sacrificially,eventhoughhe cannot
believeinGod?Don ManueldoeswhatUnamunoadvocatesinDelsentimiento
trdgicode la vida.He leavestoone sidetheinsolublematter ofGod'sexistence
and he actsas thoughGodexistedwithhisparishioners. He is tortured byhis
unbelief,but he is living in thestrugglethat Unamuno demands.
ClimacuswouldsaythatDon Manuel'slife,likethepagan's,is filledwith
sometruth.He has a passionwhichshapeshis actions.But Climacuswould
also saythatDon Manuelhas chosenpassionatedoubtratherthanpassionate
belief.He has notstoppedthespeculation, has notreallymadethedecision
thatrequirestheleap. Further, Don Manuel'sassertionthat"Todaslas reli-
gionessonverdaderas,"51 is notsomething withwhichClimacuswouldagree,
much less Kierkegaard."Truthis subjectivity" was nevermeantto mean
"truthis subjective." Rather,Climacusacknowledges thatthereis objective
truth, but his concernis thattheexistingindividualcan onlyarriveat that
objectivetruthsubjectively. Kierkegaard wouldsayofDon Manuelthatfaith
is notjust embracinguncertainty. Rather,faithresolvesuncertainty. If you
havethepassionofinwardness, youhaveencountered God. Because there is
a God,passioncan connectus to him.

50Kierkegaard, S0ren - Soren Kierkegaard's

Journalsand Papers. Edited and translatedby
Howard and Edna Hong. Vol. 4. Bloomington:Indiana UniversityPress, 1967-1978,4550.
51Unamuno,
Miguel de - San Manuel Bueno, mdrtir,cit.,p. 1142.

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Unamunosappropriation of Climacus'thoughtcan be summedup in a

passageUnamunounderlined inPostscript
whichhe quotesinDelsentimiento
trdgicode la vida. Unamuno uses thequoteto underscore thebankruptcyof
rationalism and thevitalityofpassion."Suicideis theonlyexistence-conse-
quenceofpurethinking... Wedo notpraisesuicide,butcertainly thepassion.
Now,howevera thinker is a creatureworthseeing,who at certaintimesof
thedayis singularly ingeniousbutotherwise has nothingin commonwitha
humanbeing."52BothClimacusand Unamunorecognizetheneedfortruth
tobe livedpassionately fora persontrulytobe a humanbeing.

52Kierkegaard,S0ren -
cit.,p. 308; Unamuno,Miguelde - Del sentimientotrdgico,
Postscript,
cit.,p. 178.

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