Faith, Freedom, and the Journey of Selfhood: A Kierkegaardian Reading of Paul and Norman in A River Runs Through It by Norman Maclean

Abstract

This study examines how moral inwardness and existential choice shape the narrative world of Norman Maclean’s A River Runs Through It. Drawing on Kierkegaard’s conceptual framework of the aesthetic, ethical, and religious stages of existence (Kierkegaard, 1843/1987,1968), the research argues that the novella presents selfhood as a dynamic process constituted through reflective deliberation, ethical responsibility, and faith-informed engagement. The divergent trajectories of two central figures one oriented toward immediacy, sensation, and aesthetic gratification, the other guided by sustained ethical reflection and religious attentiveness—foreground the tension between impulse and inward commitment. Recreational pursuits, familial interactions, and contemplative engagement with nature operate as sites where freedom, moral responsibility, and selfhood intersect, revealing both the limits of external influence and the necessity of personal inward resolve. Episodes of aesthetic indulgence, ethical deliberation, and spiritual awareness illustrate the progressive movement through Kierkegaard’s stages, highlighting the precariousness of selfhood when inward reflection is absent and the transformative potential when ethical and religious inwardness is cultivated. The analysis demonstrates that Maclean’s narrative not only dramatizes the emergence of authentic selfhood but also illuminates the relational and existential dimensions of moral development, showing that selfhood is realized through deliberate choice, ongoing inward engagement, and a sustained negotiation between personal desire, ethical responsibility, and spiritual faith.