Soren Kierkegaard was born in 1813, in Copenhagen, Denmark. Although his life was short -- he died in 1855 -- the body of work which he left behind is extensive. He was a prolific writer, but seemed to be so because of an excess of ideas and theories, rather than simply for the sake of recognition. The primary thrust of his works, or more accurately the ideal to which he bound them, was the rejuvenation of Christianity. He wondered how one could become a Christian in Christendom, and was very worried about the perceived lack of faith which many Christians had adopted. His criticisms of the Romantics are still used as literature classwork in many schools. He is also known as the father of Existentialism by some, having waded briefly into that (then undiscovered) arena in order to further his work with Christianity. The breadth of his work is staggering for someone who lived such a short life, touching on everything from critiques of Hans Christian Andersen to advanced theological discourses. At the time of his death, he had only been abroad three times, each time to Berlin. Perhaps he decided there was more than enough to discover within the mind and the scriptures than upon a foreign shore. Perhaps he was right.