Deschutes Public Library

Breaking the spell, religion as a natural phenomenon, Daniel C. Dennett

eng

Includes bibliographical references (pages 413-426) and index

index present

non fiction

Breaking the spell

bibliography

80090868

Daniel C. Dennett

religion as a natural phenomenon

An innovative thinker tackles the controversial question of why we believe in God and how religion shapes our lives and our future. For a growing number of people, there is nothing more important than religion. It is an integral part of their marriage, child rearing, and community. In this daring new book, distinguished philosopher Dennett takes a hard look at this phenomenon and asks why. Where does our devotion to God come from and what purpose does it serve? Is religion a blind evolutionary compulsion or a rational choice? In a narrative that ranges widely through history, philosophy, and psychology, Dennett explores how organized religion evolved from folk beliefs and why it is such a potent force today. He contends that the "belief in belief" has fogged any attempt to rationally consider the existence of God and the relationship between divinity and human need.--From publisher description

Part I. Opening Pandora's Box -- 1. Breaking Which Spell? -- 1. What's going on? -- 2. A working definition of religion -- 3. To break or not to break -- 4. Peering into the abyss -- 5. Religion as a natural phenomenon -- 2. Some Questions About Science -- 1. Can science study religion? -- 2. Should science study religion? -- 3. Might music be bad for you? -- 4. Would neglect be more benign? -- 3. Why Good Things Happen -- 1. Bringing out the best -- 2. Cui bono? -- 3. Asking what pays for religion -- 4. A Martian's list of theories -- Part II. The Evolution of Religion -- 4. The Roots of Religion -- 1. The births of religions -- 2. The raw materials of religion -- 3. How Nature deals with the problem of other minds -- 5. Religion, the Early Days -- 1. Too many agents: competition for rehearsal space -- 2. Gods as interested parties -- 3. Getting the gods to speak to us -- 4. Shamans as hypnotists -- 5. Memory-engineering devices in oral cultures -- 6. The Evolution of Stewardship -- 1. The music of religion -- 2. Folk religion as practical know-how -- 3. Creeping reflection and the birth of secrecy in religion -- 4. The domestication of religions -- 7. The Invention of Team Spirit -- 1. A path paved with good intentions -- 2. The ant colony and the corporation -- 3. The growth market in religion -- 4. A God you can talk to -- 8. Belief in Belief -- 1. You better believe it -- 2. God as intentional object -- 3. The division of doxastic labor -- 4. The lowest common denominator? -- 5. Beliefs designed to be professed -- 6. Lessons from Lebanon: the strange cases of the Druze and Kim Philby -- 7. Does God exist? -- Part III. Religion Today -- 9. Toward a Buyer's Guide to Religions -- 1. For the love of God -- 2. The academic smoke screen -- 3. Why does it matter what you believe? -- 4. What can your religion do for you? -- 10. Morality and Religion -- 1. Does religion make us moral? -- 2. Is religion what gives meaning to your life? -- 3. What can we say about sacred values? -- 4. Bless my soul: spirituality and selfishness -- 11. Now What Do We Do? -- 1. Just a theory -- 2. Some avenues to explore: how can we home in on religious conviction? -- 3. What shall we tell the children? -- 4. Toxic memes -- 5. Patience and politics -- A. The New Replicators -- B. Some More Questions About Science -- C. The Bellboy and the Lady Named Tuck -- D. Kim Philby as a Real Case of Indeterminacy of Radical Interpretation