Dialectical Thinking about Love I. The Arguments of a Dialectical Thinking about Love

Kierkegaard’s thinking on love is fundamentally dialectical. Instead of opposing the different declensions of love (ἔρως, φίλια, στόργη, ἀγάπη), he seeks to articulate them closely and makes the beloved, friend, parent or child, a neighbor to be loved. This dialectical approach can be described not only as cathartic (since human loves are purified by ἀγάπη), but also as agonistic (since the life of the lover is a constant inner struggle).