<i>The Conflict between the Old and the New Soap-Cellars</i> and Kierkegaard’s Relation with Speculative Thought

In this article I offer a historical analysis of Kierkegaard’s early, unpublished theatrical work, The Conflict between the Old and the New Soap-Cellars. In this comedy, it is possible to trace a number of expressions that ridicule the philosophical view of Martensen, which in turn is associated with Hegelianism and speculative thought. However, I wish to argue that, if one pays close attention to some passages in Kierkegaard’s early journals in the 1830s, specifically the so-called journal of Gilleleje, one notes that he actually seems to agree with Martensen on several points. In my view, this would show that, despite Kierkegaard’s hostility towards Martensen in the Soap-Cellars, he was actually sympathetic to some of the latter’s ideas. This analysis would help us to better understand the philosophical position of young Kierkegaard, who, as it turns out, had a more favorable opinion of speculative thinking than is often thought.