Alternative questions from Atheism by Julian Baggini
- What is Baggini’s main aim in this book? (2&7).
- Baggini believes that what “form” of naturalism lies at the core of atheism? (4).
- According to Baggini, what best explains the existence of evil in the world? (29).
- According to Baggini, if any one thing distinguishes us as individual persons, it is what? (18-19).
Alternative discussion questions.
- Write a description of “God” and how if at all, it has evolved since you were a child. Please do not include your name on the description. Give them to Dr. Oliver, he will shuffle them, and redistribute for review. Please let him know if you receive your own paper back. Read and pass to your right. After you have read the second one, return them to Dr. Oliver. Then let’s have an open discussion on whether the perspective in the description was different than yours and whether it gave you something to think about. Avoid critiquing the perspective for now.
- In the very beginning of human history, what do you think was the focus of early homo sapiens?
Re: In the very beginning of human history, what do you think was the focus of early homo sapiens?
ReplyDeleteConversations in the history and anthropology departments on pre-historical society tend to all go the same: This thing they did was either to survive or as part of a religious or proto-religious practice. Cave paintings, Venus figurines, the like. I hate this. And not because of my personal beliefs. I hate this because it ignores a very basic fact of humans: We like to be entertained. We like pretty things. We like making things. We want to see if we can, and then see if we can do it better. WE GET BORED. Living is the business of living, whether you are an ant or a pan-dimensional entity made of pure energy and thought. Survive, thrive, have as good a time doing it as possible.
James, I couldn't agree more with your statement that "Living is the business of living," and I have often wondered how much better the world could have been if we had approached life like that from the very beginning. Unfortunately, even though we have a brain we didn't have knowledge early on to know how certain phenomena could be explained. Since we didn't have the necessary knowledge, we invented explanations and then when the truth was later discovered, we either believed it or denied it and if we had the power, punished those who dared challenge the tradition that was false. As far as cave paintings, I am fascinated to imagine someone doing those for any reason. I took my first ever drawing course this summer at MTSU and felt a long distance connection with those beings in the caves of Lascaux, except theirs were better than mine.
ReplyDeleteThanks for your comment.
Don
Can you imagine being the first person to look at their tools, to look at plants that left pigments, and think "You know... I bet I could draw a wicked deer"? And then being the guy that walked up after and said "That is a wicked deer, how did you do that?" Most of the current thought on the cave paintings centers around their purpose as teaching aides or spiritual reverence for their hunt, but I tell myself that the story started with Steve or Sally bored in a cave thinking to try and draw herself a wicked deer because why not.
Delete"Survive, thrive, have as good a time doing it as possible" - you've given me a good slogan for the next rendition of my Happiness class!
ReplyDeleteI think it's that third part that makes us Human. Surviving and thriving are the instinctual and evolutionary drives.
Delete...But what if they aren't? Case in point, raccoon somersaults
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L2Mm1sFZoYw
I have a feeling that one day, we will master communication with the greater animal kingdom. And when we speak to them, and ask them the why of so much of what they do, they will shrug and say "Seemed like fun at the time."