Evolution as a Religion: Strange Hopes and Stranger FearsAccording to a profile in The Guardian, Mary Midgley is 'the foremost scourge of scientific pretensions in this country; someone whose wit is admired even by those who feel she sometimes oversteps the mark'. Considered one of Britain's finest philosophers, Midgley exposes the illogical logic of poor doctrines that shelter themselves behind the prestige of science. Always at home when taking on the high priests of evolutionary theory - Dawkins, Wilson and their acolytes - she has famously described evolution as 'the creation-myth of our age'. In Evolution as a Religion, she examines how science comes to be used as a substitute for religion and points out how badly that role distorts it. As ever, her argument is flawlessly insightful: a punchy, compelling, lively indictment of these misuses of science. Both the book and its author are true classics of our time. |
Contents
Evolutionary Dramas | 1 |
Do Science and Religion Compete? | 11 |
Demarcation Disputes | 22 |
The Irresistible Escalator | 33 |
Choosing a World | 40 |
The Problem of Direction | 54 |
Scientist and Superscientist | 64 |
Dazzling Prospects | 76 |
Mixed Antitheses | 112 |
Science Scepticism and Awe | 122 |
The Service of Self and the Service of Kali | 134 |
Who or What is Selfish? | 143 |
Dreaming and Walking | 155 |
The Limits of Individualism | 163 |
The Vulnerable World and Its Claims on Us | 174 |
NOTES | 192 |
Other editions - View all
Evolution as a Religion: Strange Hopes and Stranger Fears, Volume 10 Mary Midgley Limited preview - 2002 |