KIERKEGAARD ON THE NARRATOR AND HIS AUTHOR IN HANS CHRISTIAN ANDERSEN'S ONLY A FIDDLER

Kierkegaard's literary debut was a lengthy and scathing review of Hans Christian Andersen's novel Only a Fiddler (1837), titled From the Papers of One Still Living (1838). This article focuses on Kierkegaard's treatment of the narrative mode in Andersen's novel, examining Kierkegaard's scrutiny of the novel's Er-narrator in particular. He deems the disembodied Er-narrator to be inappropriately subjectivized and severely lacking in authority. Kierkegaard's dissection of Andersen's narrator demonstrates his refined understanding of how the narrative mode impacts the reader. Furthermore, Kierkegaard's critique proves well in line with Lubomir Dolezel's understanding of the authentication function in fiction. Lastly, the article briefly examines the narrative mode employed in Kierkegaard's own writings. It is important to note that his work predominantly favours the Ich-form over the Er-form, which is largely missing from his oeuvre. Kierkegaard's review can thus be interpreted as indirectly corroborating the intentionality of Kierkegaard's narrative strategy: a strategy that seems to consist of limiting the narrator's authentication authority.