ABSTRACT
This chapter traces a striking sequence of images in The Sickness unto Death, whereby Anti-Climacus portrays increasingly intense states of despair in a self that is becoming deeply closed. The closed self characteristically rejects its givenness, including any dependency, and attempts to withdraw to an autonomous position of self-positing and self-creation. Meanwhile, an analysis of Anti-Climacus’ images shows that progressively closed modes of being nevertheless correspond to increased awareness of dependency, such that a person retreats in equal measure to the degree of exposure. Strikingly, the analysis then reveals that with the escalation of despair and self-enclosure, a person takes essential steps towards the possibility of fundamental change. This dance revealed by images—closed-open, withdrawing-advancing, climbing-descending—sheds light on the vulnerability that resides in the call to become one’s given self; and it does so especially by highlighting the playful exploration the self makes of that very vulnerability. In brief, Anti-Climacus’ picture show ultimately stages the self’s play with the possibility of openness. This chapter, which interprets faith as openness, concludes with a gesture towards the healing possibility of letting go of suffering and accepting help in embarking on new life.
