Need some suggestions for Atheist Readings
Offline My teacher from my religious studies class last semester emailed me today, asking for help selecting an atheist reading for her class next semester.
"Can I ask for some help? I'm putting the finishing touches on my syllabus for RELS 289i, "What is Religion?" and I'd like one short reading on atheism. Can y'all recommend something wonderful that's in the neighborhood of 30 pages long (less is OK) that argues for why atheism is a good idea? Bonus for me if you can suggest a reading that argues that atheism is not only intellectually right but also morally or ethically superior."
I was wondering if anyone had good suggestions. It doesn't have to be one reading of 30 pages, but a collection of readings that total about 30 pages. I'm sure I could find something adequate out of the Four Horsemen (Hitchens, Harris, Dennett, Dawkins) but I wanted to open the question up and get some outside input as well. I've also considered Russell's "Why I am not a Christian" and maybe even just assigning transcripts of debates that they have been a part of, such as the Intelligence Squared one.
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Atheism is merely a position, specifically the "off" position.
I am not sure what you are looking for but here are some books I have read.
2000 Years of Disbelief-James A Haught (sp) Deals more with the history of skepticism, not all quoted in the book are atheists, but all would value questioning.
"Infidel" Ayaan Ali Hersi
"Letter To A Christian Nation" Sam Harris
"Portable Atheist" Hitchens
"God, The Failed Hypothesis" (forgot author's name)
"Atheism, The Case Against God" .............??????
Need to read
"Climbing Mt Improbable" Dawkins
"The Greatest Show On Earth" Dawkins
If you are looking for comparitive material on the history of religion and it's roots Rook might be a better brain to pick as far as that is concerned.
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Well, for the about 30 page parameter, I second “The Portable Atheist” by Hitchens. It is a collection of essays by various atheists.
Past that, look at Michael Shermer's “Why People Believe Weird Things”. Especially part 3 which has three chapters on science and creationism. He also has a couple of other books that you might find a useful chapter or two from:
How We Believe: The Search for God in an Age of Science
Why Darwin Matters: The Case Against Intelligent Design
Past that, you are going to have to get into longer books and, as above, pull specific chapters.
Anything by Dawkins is good. Also, keep an eye out for Bart Ehrman. Specifically “Misquoting Jesus: The Story Behind Who Changed the Bible and Why” and “Jesus, Interrupted: Revealing the Hidden Contradictions in the Bible (And Why We Don't Know About Them)”.
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The Portable Atheist is 528 pages!
This assignment is a no-brainer. Choose "Letter To a Christian Nation." It's 93 pages but printed on very small paper. It's similar to about 25 pages if the book was printed on 8.5 x 11 paper.
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http://www.positiveatheism.org/hist/quotes/twain.htm
These two quotes speak most to me, but also seem to satisfy your instructor's guidelines as to morality:
A God who could make good children as easily a bad, yet preferred to make bad ones; who could have made every one of them happy, yet never made a single happy one; who made them prize their bitter life, yet stingily cut it short; who gave his angels eternal happiness unearned, yet required his other children to earn it; who gave is angels painless lives, yet cursed his other children with biting miseries and maladies of mind and body; who mouths justice, and invented hell -- mouths mercy, and invented hell -- mouths Golden Rules and foregiveness multiplied by seventy times seven, and invented hell; who mouths morals to other people, and has none himself; who frowns upon crimes, yet commits them all; who created man without invitation, then tries to shuffle the responsibility for man's acts upon man, instead of honorably placing it where it belongs, upon himself; and finally, with altogether divine obtuseness, invites his poor abused slave to worship him!
-- Mark Twain, The Mysterious Stranger
The best minds will tell you that when a man has begotten a child he is morally bound to tenderly care for it, protect it from hurt, shield it from disease, clothe it, feed it, bear with its waywardness, lay no hand upon it save in kindness and for its own good, and never in any case inflict upon it a wanton cruelty. God's treatment of his earthly children, every day and every night, is the exact opposite of all that, yet those best minds warmly justify these crimes, condone them, excuse them, and indignantly refuse to regard them as crimes at all, when he commits them. Your country and mine is an interesting one, but there is nothing there that is half so interesting as the human mind.
-- Mark Twain, Letters from the Earth
-- I feel so much better since I stopped trying to believe.
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Atheism is not an idea, neither good nor bad.
It is a fundamental attitude that springs out from your basic hardwired existential being.
If it doesn't, you shouldn't bother with it. No serious atheist will ever discourage your from your beliefs.
If they comfort you, they are useful, and so they are also valuable in their own right.
The only correct "atheist" position when it comes to saying something about "atheism" is to refuse to say anything.
Either you get it, or you don't. It needn't be any more complicated than that.
Feel free to believe what you like! But also be aware that smart people will judge you for it.
You are crazy. An idiot. An addict. You need your fix. Or else you will collapse in a fit of nervous seizures.
Swell. Even *I* will sing "holy holy holy" just to keep you balanced enough just get on and not kill anybody.
(That was less than 30 pages. Feel free to quote it.)
"The idea of God is the sole wrong for which I cannot forgive mankind." (Alphonse Donatien De Sade)
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I'm fairly sure he's got this stuff written in his books, but since I'm not being paid to be your teacher, I don't feel like looking them up... However, these two George Carlin clips are good.
George Carlin on Religion and God
The Ten Commandments
You might try something from 50 Voices of Disbelief, which is now out, edited by Russell Blackford. Haven't read it, though so i can't comment on any of the essays.
Also, for something "that argues that atheism is not only intellectually right but also morally or ethically superior", I would recommend finding an essay by Richard Carrier on naturalism or ethics. See http://richardcarrier.blogspot.com/ and look under the naturalism category. He usually makes interesting, thought-provoking, and bold arguments. He did a lecture on the values of naturalism vs. supernaturalism which was quite good. If you could find a written version of it, you'd be doing well. Sorry I can't find more links for you. Too busy right now.
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