The God Delusion is the best non-fiction book of 2006 by the English biologist Richard Dawkins, a professor at New College, Oxford and former holder of Charles Simonyi Chair for Public Science Understanding at the University of Oxford.
In The God Delusion, Dawkins argues that supernatural creators almost certainly do not exist and that belief in a personal god qualifies as fantasy, which he defines as a long-lasting belief held in the face of strong contradictions. evidence. He sympathizes with Robert Pirsig's statement in Lila (1991) that "when one person suffers from delusion it is called madness." When many people suffer from the delusion it is called religion. " With many examples, he explains that one does not need religion to be moral and that the roots of religion and morality can be explained in non-religious terms.
In early December 2006, it reached number four on Non-Fiction's Best Non-Fiction Non-Fiction list after nine weeks on the list. More than three million copies sold. According to Dawkins in a 2016 interview with Matt Dillahunty, the illicit Arabic translation of this book has been downloaded 3 million times in Saudi Arabia. This book has attracted widespread commentary, with many books written in response.
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Dawkins has opposed the creationist explanation of life in his earlier works on evolution. The Theme of The Blind Watchmaker, published in 1986, is that evolution can explain a clear design in nature. In The God Delusion he focuses directly on the various arguments used for and against the belief in the existence of a god (or god).
Dawkins identifies himself repeatedly as an atheist, while also pointing out that, in a sense, he is also agnostic, though "just to the extent that I am agnostic about fairies at the bottom of the garden".
Dawkins has long wanted to write a book that publicly criticizes religion, but the publisher has advised against it. In 2006, the publisher had warmed the idea. Dawkins attributes this change of mind to "four years of Bush" (which "literally says that God has told him to invade Iraq"). At the time, a number of authors, including Sam Harris and Christopher Hitchens, who along with Dawkins labeled "The Unholy Trinity" by Robert Weitzel, had written books that openly attacked religion. According to an Amazon.co.uk retailer in August 2007, the book was the bestseller in the sale of books on religion and spirituality, with Hitchens's God Not Great: How the Poison of Religion Everything came second. This led to a 50% growth in that category over the three years to that date.
Maps The God Delusion
Synopsis
Dawkins dedicated the book to Douglas Adams and quoted the novelist: "Is not it enough to see that the garden is beautiful without having to believe that there is a fairy at the bottom too?" This book contains ten chapters. The first chapters make a case where there is almost no God, while the rest deals with religion and morality.
Dawkins writes that The God Delusion contains four "awareness" messages:
- The atheist can be happy, balanced, moral, and intellectually fulfilled.
- Natural selection and similar scientific theory are superior to the "God hypothesis" - the illusion of intelligent design - in explaining the worlds of life and the cosmos.
- Children should not be labeled by their parent's religion. Terms like "Catholic children" or "Muslim children" should make people cringe.
- Atheists should be proud, not apologetic, because atheism is a proof of a healthy and independent mind.
"God Hypothesis"
Chapter one, "A very religious non-religious", seeks to clarify the difference between what Dawkins terms "Einsteinian religion" and "supernatural religion". He notes that the former includes quasi-mystical and pantheistic references to God in the work of physicists such as Albert Einstein and Stephen Hawking, and describes the pantheism as "sexed up atheism". Dawkins instead considers the theological problems that exist in religions such as Christianity, Islam, and Hinduism. The proposed existence of this interventionist God, whom Dawkins called the "God Hypothesis", became an important theme in this book. He argues that the existence or absence of God is a scientific fact about the universe, which can be found in principle if not in practice.
Dawkins summarizes the main philosophical argument about the existence of God, choosing the argument from design for a longer consideration. Dawkins concludes that evolution through natural selection can explain the real design in nature.
He writes that one of the greatest challenges to human intelligence is to explain "how complex and impossible designs in the universe emerge," and show that there are two competing explanations:
- A hypothesis involving the designer, that is, a complex being to explain the complexity we see.
- The hypothesis, with supporting theory, that explains how, from simple origins and principles, something more complex can arise.
This is the basis of his argument against the existence of God, the main act of Boeing 747, in which he argues that the first attempt is self-denial, and the second approach is the way forward.
At the end of chapter 4 ("Why almost no God"), Dawkins summarizes his argument and states, "The temptation [to attribute the design appearance to the actual design itself] is wrong, because the designer's hypothesis soon creates a larger problem than who designs The whole problem we start with is a matter of explaining statistical instability.There is clearly no solution to postulate something even more impossible. " In addition, chapter 4 asserts that the alternative to the designer hypothesis is not accidental , but natural selection .
Dawkins does not claim to disprove God with absolute certainty. Instead, he suggests as a general principle that a simpler explanation is better (see Occam's razor) and that omniscient or omnipotent God must be very complex (Dawkins argues that it is logically impossible for God to simultaneously know and omnipotence). Thus he argues that the theory of the universe without God is better than the theory of the universe with God.
Religion and morality
He then turns to the issue of morality, maintaining that we do not need religion to be good. On the contrary, our morality has Darwin's explanation: the altruistic gene, chosen through the process of evolution, gives man a natural empathy. He asked, "are you going to commit murder, rape or robbery if you know that there is no God?" He argues that very few people will answer "yes", undermining the claim that religion is necessary to make us behave morally. To support this view, he examines the history of morality, arguing that there is a continuing moral Zeitgeist in society, generally developing towards liberalism. As it progresses, this moral consensus affects how religious leaders interpret their scriptures. Thus, Dawkins states, morality is not from the Bible, but our moral progress informs which parts of the Bible Christians receive and what they now ignore.
More themes
God Delusion not only defends atheism, but also attacks on religion. Dawkins views religion as a degrading science, promotes fanaticism, pushes homosexuality against homosexuality, and affects society with other negative means. Dawkins regarded religion as a "breaking force" and as a "label for hostility within groups/groups and revenge".
He was very angry about the religious teachings at school, which he regarded as a process of indoctrination. He equated the religious teachings of children by parents and teachers in religious schools into forms of mental persecution. Dawkins considers the label "Muslim child" and "Catholic child" to be as misrepresented as the description of "Marxist child" and "son of Tory", as he wonders how a young man can be considered developed enough to have an independent view of the cosmos and the humanity within it.
The book ends with the question of whether religion, despite its alleged problems, fills a "much-needed gap," provides comfort and inspiration to those who need it. According to Dawkins, this need is much better filled by non-religious means such as philosophy and science. He argues that the atheist world view is the affirmation of life in a religious way, with an unsatisfactory "answer" to the mystery of life, can never be. The appendix provides addresses for those who "need support in religious escape".
Critical reception
This book provokes direct, positive and negative responses, and is published with the support of scientists, such as Nobel Laureate and co-inventor of the DNA structure of James D. Watson, Harvard psychologist Steven Pinker, and popular fiction writer and Penn and Teller illusionists. Metacritic reports that the book has an average score of 59 out of 100. The book was nominated for Best Book at the British Book Awards, where Richard Dawkins is named Author of the Year. However, the book receives mixed criticism from critics, including religious commentators and atheists. In the London Review of Books Terry Eagleton accused Richard Dawkins of not doing proper research into the topic of his work, religion, and subsequently agreed with critics who accused Dawkins of guilty human fouls against them (something Dawkins denied).
The Oxford theologian Alister McGrath (author Dawkins 'Delusion and Dawkins' God) argues that Dawkins does not know Christian theology, and therefore can not engage in intelligence and intelligence. In answer, Dawkins asks: "Do you have to read about leprechology before infidelity in leprechaun?", And - in the paperback edition The God Delusion <- i refer to American biologist PZ Myers, who has satirised line of arguments this is as "The Courtier's Reply". Dawkins argued with McGrath at the Literary Festival 2007 Sunday Times .
Eastern Orthodox Theologian David Bentley Hart says that Dawkins "poured out a few pages of The God Delusion into a discussion of Thomas Aquinas's 'Five Ways' but never thought to use himself from the ministry of some ancient scholars and centuries of thought the middle that might have explained it to him... As a result, he not only mistook the Five Ways for Thomas's comprehensive statement of why we should believe in God, which they certainly did not, but ultimately completely misrepresented the logic of each one of them, and at the most basic level. "
Christian philosopher Keith Ward, in his 2006 book Is Religion Dangerous? , opposing Dawkins's view and others that religion is socially dangerous.
Ethnicist Margaret Somerville, suggested that Dawkins "exaggerates the case against religion", especially his role in human conflict.
Many defenders of Dawkins claim that critics generally misunderstand their true intentions. During the debate on Radio 3 Hong Kong, David Nicholls, author and president of the Atheist Foundation of Australia, reaffirms Dawkins's feeling that religion is an "unnecessary aspect" of global problems. Dawkins argues that "the existence of God is a scientific hypothesis like anything else". He disagreed with Stephen Jay Gould's principle of an unbearable magisteria (Noma). In an interview with Time magazine, Dawkins said:
I think Gart's separate compartment is a purely political tactic to win religious people on the way to a science camp. But that's a very empty idea. There are many places where religion does not stay away from the scientific grass. The belief in flat miracles contradicts not only the facts of science, but also the spirit of science.
Astrophysicist Martin Rees stated that Dawkins' attack on mainstream religion did not help. Regarding Rees' claim in his book Our Cosmic Habitat that "such questions are out of science, but they are the province of philosophers and theologians," Dawkins asked "what expert the theologian can bring to profound cosmological questions that scientists can not? "Elsewhere, Dawkins has written that" there is all the difference in the world between the belief that one is ready to defend by quoting evidence and logic, and beliefs supported by nothing more than tradition, authority or revelation. "
Debate
On October 3, 2007, John Lennox, Professor of Mathematics at Oxford University, publicly debated Richard Dawkins at the University of Alabama in Birmingham about Dawkins's views as expressed in The God Delusion, and his validity over and against the Christian faith. "The God Delusion Debate" marks Dawkins's first visit to Old South and the first important discussion on this issue in the "Bible Belt". The show was sold out, and the Wall Street Journal called it "a revelation: in Alabama, a civil argument about the existence of God." Dawkins debated Lennox for the second time at the Oxford University Natural History Museum in October 2008. The debate is entitled "Has Science Buried God?", Where Dawkins said that, although he would not accept it, a case of a respectable enough could be made for "gods deistic, a god of physicists, the god of a man like Paul Davies, who drafted the laws of physics, the god of mathematics, the god who collected the cosmos in the first place and then sat back and watched everything happen "but not to theistic gods.
Reviews and responses
- Alvin Plantinga: The Dawkins Confusion
- Anthony Kenny: Knowledge of Beliefs and Beliefs
- Thomas Nagel: Religious Fear
- Michael Ruse: Chicago Journal Review
- Richard Swinburne: Responses to Richard Dawkins
- Alister McGrath and Joanna Collicutt McGrath: The Dawkins Delusion?
- H. Allen Orr: Mission to Convert
- Terry Eagleton: London Review of Books , Lunging, Flailing, Mispunching
- Antony Flew: The God Delusion Review - Dawkins' Response
- Murrough O'Brien from The Independent: Our Teapot the Art of Heaven - Dawkins replied: Do you have to read about leprechology before they do not believe it?
- Marilynne Robinson: The God Delusion Review, Harper's Magazine 2006
- Simon Watson: "Richard Dawkins' The God Delusion and Atheist Fundamentalism," in Anthropoetics: The Journal of Generative Anthropology (Spring 2010)
- William Lane Craig: "Dawkins' Delusion", web articles quoted from Contrary to Christianity Criticism
Sales
In January 2010, the English version The God Delusion has sold over 2 million copies. In September 2014, it increased to 3 million copies. It ranked second on Amazon.com's best-selling list in November 2006. It remained on the list for 51 weeks until September 30, 2007. The German version, titled Der Gotteswahn , has sold over 260,000 copies at 28 January 2010. The God Delusion has been translated into 35 languages.
Responding to the book
Critics have reacted strongly to the Dawkins argument, and many books have been written in response to The God Delusion . For example:
- The Devil's Delusion , by David Berlinski
- Angels of Darwin , by John Cornwell
- God's Undertaker: Is the Science of Burying God? , by John Lennox (Oxford: Lion, 2009)
- The Dawkins Delusion? , by Alister McGrath and Joanna Collicutt McGrath
Legal reactions in Turkey
In Turkey, where the book has sold at least 6,000 copies, a prosecutor launched an investigation into whether The God Delusion was an "attack on sacred values", after a complaint in November 2007. If proven, the Publisher and Turkish translator Erol Karaaslan will face imprisonment for inciting religious hatred and insulting religious values. In April 2008, the court acquitted the defendant. In disregarding the need to confiscate the books, the presiding judge stated that prohibiting them "would fundamentally limit the freedom of thought".
The Dawkins website, richarddawkins.net, was banned in Turkey later that year after complaints from Adnan Oktar (Harun Yahya) followers of alleged defamation. In July 2011, the ban was lifted.
Issue
English
List of editions in English:
- (In English) The God Delusion , hardcover edition, Bantam Press, 2006.
- The God Delusion , paperback edition (with new introduction by Richard Dawkins), Black Swan, 2007.
- The God Delusion , 10th anniversary edition (with new introductions by Richard Dawkins and cover by Daniel Dennett), Black Swan, 2016.
Translation
This book has been officially translated into different languages, such as Spanish, German, Italian, and Turkish. Dawkins also promotes the translation of unofficial books in languages ​​like Arabic and Bengali. There are also Telugu and Tamil translations of the book.
Incomplete international edition list:
- (in Greek) ? ???? ???? ???????? , translated by Maria Giatroudaki, Panagiotis Delivorias, Alekos Mamalis, Nikos Ntaikos, Kostas Simos, Vasilis Sakellariou, 2007 (ISBN 978-960-6717-07-9).
- (in Portuguese) Deus, um DelÃÆ'rio , translated by LÃÆ'gia Rodrigues, Maria JoÃÆ'Â £ o Camilo, LanÃÆ'§amento, 2007 (ISBN 978-972- 46- 1758-9).
- (in Swedish) Illusionen om Gud , translated by Margareta EklÃÆ'¶f, Stockholm: Leopard, 2007 (ISBNÃ, 9789173431767).
- (in Finnish) Jumalharha , translated by Kimmo PietilÃÆ'¤inen, Helsinki: Terra Cognita, 2007 (ISBN 9789525697001).
- (in Turkish) Tanri Yanilgisi , translated by Tnc Bilgin, Kuzey Yayinlari, 2007 (ISBNÃ, 9944315117).
- (in Croatian) Iluzija o Bogu , translated by? arko Vodineli ?, Zagreb: Izvori, 2007 (ISBNÃ, 0-618-68000-4).
- (in German) Der Gotteswahn , translated by Sebastian Vogel, Ullstein Taschenbuch, 2008 (ISBN 3548372325).
- (in French) Pour en finir avec Dieu , translated by Marie-France Desjeux-Lefort, 2008 (ISBNÃ, 9782221108932).
- (in Italian) L'illusione di Dio: Le ragioni per non credere Copertina flessibile , translated by L. Serra, Oscar saggi, 2008 (ISBN 8804581646).
- (in Russian) ??? ??? ??????? , 2008 (ISBN 978-5-389-00334-7).
- (in Tamil) ?????? ??? ???? ????????, translated by G. V. K. Aasaan, Dravidar Kazhagam, 2009 (ISBNÃ, 9788189788056).
- (In Spanish) El Espejismo De Dios , translated by Natalia PÃÆ'Â © rez-GaldÃÆ'³s, DivulgaciÃÆ'³n, 2013 (ISBNÃ, 8467031972).
- (in Latvian) Dieva del? zija , translated by Aldis Lauzis, Riga: Jumava, 2014 (ISBNÃ, 9789934115202).
- (Slovak) Bo? ÃÆ' blud , translated by Jana LenzovÃÆ'¡, Bratislava: Citadella, 2016 (ISBN 978-80-89628-66-7)
Interview
- "Spaghetti flying monster", interview with Steve Paulson, Salon.com , October 13, 2006
- "God vs Science", discussion with Francis Collins, TIME , November 13, 2006
- " God Delusion ", interview with George Stroumboulopoulos , The Hour , 5 May 2007
- "God... in other words", interview with Ruth Gledhill, The Times , 10 May 2007 Richard Dawkins: Argument for Atheism ", interview with Terry Gross, Fresh Air, March 7, 2008
See also
References
Further reading
Chronological publication order (longest first)
- Joan Bakewell: "Judgment Day", The Guardian, September 23, 2006
- Stephen D. Unwin: "Dawkins needs to show doubts", The Guardian , September 29, 2006
- Crispin Tickell: "Heaven can wait", Financial Times (requires subscription). September 30, 2006
- Paul Riddell: "Did People Really Create God?", The Scotsman , October 6, 2006
- Mary Midgley: "review", New Scientist (requires subscription). October 7, 2006
- Troy Jollimore: "Better Life Without God?", San Francisco Chronicle , October 15, 2006
- PZ Myers: "Bad Religion", Bibit Magazine , October 22, 2006
- Jim Holt: "Beyond belief", The New York Times , October 22, 2006
- Terry Eagleton: "Lunging, Flailing, Mispunching", London Review of Books , Vol.28, No.20,19 October 2006
- Marilynne Robinson: "The God Delusion", Harper's Magazine , November 2006
- Eric W. Lin: "Dawkins Tells God Not Dead, But He Should", Harvard Crimson , November 1, 2006
- James Wood: "Celestial Teapot", The New Republic , December 2006
- Michael Fitzpatrick: "Delusional Dawkins", Thorns , December 18, 2006
- Bill Muehlenberg: "Overview of God Delusion": Part 1, Part 2, on the CultureWatch Australian commentator blog
- Robert Stewart: "The detailed summary and review of The God Delusion", The Journal of Evolutionary Philosophy . 2006
- H. Allen Orr: "A Mission to Convert", The New York Review of Books , January 11, 2007
- Steven Weinberg: "A deadly certainty",
Literary Supplement (requires subscription), January 17, 2007 - Alister McGrath: The Dawkins Delusion , February 15, 2007
- Scott Hahn: Answering New Atheism: Unpacking the Dawkins Case Against God , Emmaus Road Publishing, 2008. ISBNÃ, 978-1-931018-48-7
External links
- Newsnight Book Club - Extract from The God Delusion
- Richard Dawkins was interviewed by Laurie Taylor in New Humanist magazine
- God Delusion (movie) on YouTube
- The God Delusion Debate (Dawkins - Lennox) (10/03/2007)
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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