Bollettino Filosofico
Call for papers
XLI/2026
SØREN KIERKEGAARD AND THE PHILOSOPHIES OF EXISTENCE
Ingrid Basso, Ettore Rocca, Leonardo Rodríguez Duplá, René Rosfort (Eds.)
The birth of modern philosophy is marked by the radical doubt, which calls into question the foundational premise of Western philosophy since Parmenides: the identity of being and thought. A premise that reaches its peak in Hegelian speculation. Then comes the rupture—a rupture that arises within the very framework of the idealist tradition, with the declaration of intent from the late philosophy of Schelling. As Hannah Arendt wrote in 1946, modern philosophy begins with the recognition that the what (the quid) is never capable of explaining the that (the quod); it begins with the terrible shock of a reality empty in itself, with those so-called “limit-situations” (Jaspers) in which reality reveals itself as irreducible to thought: death, guilt, pain, meaning. And man becomes aware of his dependence on the simple fact that he is—that he exists. It is precisely with the opposition between what Schelling called a “positive philosophy” and a “negative philosophy” or pure science of logic, that the word “existence” seems to assume its modern meaning: “Negative philosophy has nothing to do with existence,” while positive philosophy “proceeds from existence […] and possesses it only in its pure ‘that’.”
Kierkegaard’s reflection historically begins here, from the awareness of a definitive and irreparable rupture between being and thought—one that inaugurates a new phase in philosophical reflection.
However, this phase is also marked by the need to recognize the legitimacy and rigor of philosophical thinking itself, without having to renounce the reality of the existent: “To think existence sub specie aeterni and in abstraction is essentially to annul it […]. Since all thinking is eternal, the difficulty is for the existing person. […] It would seem correct to say that there is something that cannot be thought namely, existing. But again there is the difficulty that existence puts it together in this way the one who is thinking is existing” (Concluding Unscientific Postscript). Kierkegaard’s effort thus takes shape as an attempt to think and express existence without watching it vanish, without abolishing it. This marks the uniqueness of his communicative method—“indirect communication”—capable of conveying what pure science is inevitably destined to lose: “But truly to exist, that is, to permeate one’s existence with consciousness, simultaneously to be eternal, far beyond it, as it were, and nevertheless present in it and nevertheless in a process of becoming-that is truly difficult” (Postscript). Hence the use of narrative, capable of revealing meaning without falling into the error of trying to define it. Kierkegaard’s philosophical-poetic reflection on existence, capable of showing a meaning that can redeem being, has proven fundamental for many thinkers of existence who, starting from Kierkegaard’s work, have variously drawn inspiration—only to diverge from it or deepen it—in order to ground their own worldview and philosophical and/or theological construction: Heidegger, Jaspers, Tillich, the existentialists, Wittgenstein, Binswanger, and others, up to the reflections of the 21st century.
Bollettino Filosofico suggests several possible themes, in a non-exhaustive list:
– The possibility of philosophically thinking about existence: methodological issues;
– The possibility of expressing existence: philosophy, poetry, narrative, history;
– Theology and existence beginning with Kierkegaard;
– Ontology of existing;
– Metaphysics and existence;
– Logic and existence;
– Psychiatry and the philosophies of existence;
– Theory and history of existentialism;
– Existentialism and the philosophy of existence;
– Categories of life and the facticity of existence.
Authors interested in publishing their works are invited to send them via email attached in WORD
and PDF format to the Editor of the journal, Prof. Pio Colonnello (pio.colonnello@unical.it) and to
the Editorial Office (bollettinofilosofico@gmail.com).
Please attach both an anonymous version of the contribution titled «Manuscript» and a separate «Cover Page» indicating the full names of the Authors, a brief bio-bibliographical note, the University or Institute of affiliation, and contact details.
Articles may be written in Italian, English, French, German, and Spanish, and should not exceed 60,000 characters; the manuscript should also include an abstract in Italian and English not exceeding 900 characters, and a list of 5 keywords. Any properties of the file that could identify the Author must be removed to ensure anonymity during the review process.
Contributions will be sent to one or more independent reviewers according to the double-blind peer review procedure. Reviewers may request the Author to modify or improve the contribution if accepted for publication. For the initial selection process, there are no guidelines regarding formatting. If the contribution is accepted for publication in Bollettino Filosofico, the Author will be asked to produce a final version that complies with the guidelines downloadable here:
http://www.serena.unina.it/index.php/bolfilos/about/submissions
The deadline for submitting articles is April 30, 2026. The journal issue will be published by December 2026.
For further information, please contact: bollettinofilosofico@gmail.com