Abstract

Kierkegaard’s philosophical writings in the area of human freedom have great explanatory powers and strong relevance for philosophical counseling and psychotherapy. This paper will explore those principles that have a bearing on helping people deal with life’s issues. Freedom is an overarching term that encompasses many concepts. All of these concepts, in turn, describe different manifestations of the self. The self is central to Kierkegaard’s philosophy of freedom. He describes the self in dynamic and structural terms and by levels of consciousness. Despair is a key concept in this philosophy; it is a deep level of anxiety that signals whether the self is moving forward in freedom, or withdrawing into unfreedom. A case study will be used to exemplify these concepts within a psychother­peutic milieu.