| | |  | Jewelry | Home » » The God Delusion | | | | | | | Description: | | In his sensational international bestseller, the preeminent scientist and outspoken atheist Richard Dawkins delivers a hard-hitting, impassioned, but humorous rebuttal of religious belief. With rigor and wit, Dawkins eviscerates the arguments for religion and demonstrates the supreme improbability of the existence of a supreme being. He makes a compelling case that faith is not just irrational, but potentially deadly. In a preface written for the paperback edition, Dawkins responds to some of the controversies the book has incited. This brilliantly argued, provocative book challenges all of us to test our beliefs, no matter what beliefs we hold. | | | Features: | |
• ISBN13: 9780618918249
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
| | | Product Details: | | | Author:
| Richard Dawkins | | Paperback:
| 464 pages | | Publisher:
| Mariner Books | | Publication Date:
| January 16, 2008 | | Language:
| English | | ISBN:
| 0618918248 | | Package Length:
| 8.1 inches | | Package Width:
| 5.4 inches | | Package Height:
| 1.2 inches | | Package Weight:
| 1.05 pounds | | Average Customer Rating:
|  based on 1528 reviews |
| | | | Customer Reviews: | |
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2 of 8 found the following review helpful:
 Time to return to biologyMar 16, 2010
This is a book that obviously plugged directly into a high traffic port in the zeitgeist, and it's very difficult to get an objective opinion on it. Richard Dawkins articulates a forceful attack on 'religion' as a negative force in human intellectual development, something best left behind in favour of his particular brand of scientific secular humanism.
I felt as though the were two men authoring this book. One is a learned, witty and passionate biologist who is totally absorbed with his field of study. The other is a strangely petulant fellow of the sort who will corner you at a party to deliver a monologue the evils of religion as he sees it. I think the success of this book portends that the former may be consumed by the latter, to the loss of the intellectual life of our era.
The main weakness of the book is that outside his own field Dawkins is merely a dilettante. He has been informed of this, obviously, since the preface to my edition contains a statement to the effect that he doesn't need to learn about something of which there is nothing to learn - or that he can't be bothered reading much philosophy or theology because he doesn't think they refer to anything. Since it is the thesis of his book that they don't refer to anything, you feel that he should have taken the time to discern whether this was the case. In other parts, he makes superficial remarks about Biblical scholarship and sweeping generalisations about history that would not withstand any serious investigation. In a popular level book, we don't expect rigorous academic scholarship, but an acknowledgement of the limitations of such a work is in order, not a justification of it as though it doesn't matter. This may seem like a petty critique, but Dawkins is involved quite actively in disseminating his ideology and politics, and given the extreme nature of his views I think the public deserves better.
I am very sympathetic to the emotional force behind the production of this book. I do believe that philosophical theism, as it has been embodied in various religious institutions, has many problems and has often been a destructive force in the lives of individuals and societies. To the extent that The God Delusion offers people a way out of this, it has done a worthwhile thing. But the world that Dawkins is inviting the reader into feels like a small and cramped corner of existence, full of self-righteousness and smug intellectual superiority, and with strangely totalitarian ambition. The wide open spaces of the soul are to be found somewhere else, I believe.
This is a must-read because of its cultural relevance, not its content. In twenty years, deduct one star from my review.
3 of 4 found the following review helpful:
 BrilliantMar 12, 2010
This is an eminently cogent and brave book. Dawkins reasoning and arguments are brilliant, his style eloquent and warm. He gives a solid foundation for the improbability of a Creator Deity, the considerable harms caused by Religion and Theism, and the possibility and desireability of living a fulfilled, meaningful secular life.
1 of 3 found the following review helpful:
Disappointing DawkinsMar 12, 2010
I have purchased quite a few of Dawkins books, and actually share his convictions and understand where he comes from in his anti-creationist attitude. That however does not excuse this effort. I felt the book was cobbled together, and did not flow particularly well. He recycled arguments continuously, and even used arguments from other authors (many generations before his time) that were put nowhere near as succinctly as in their original form. Apologies Richard, but this book diminished your brand rather significantly.
3 of 23 found the following review helpful:
 The nonsense of evolutionMar 10, 2010
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The evolution theory disproves itself making it junk science.
If a cell evolved out of mud, primordial ooze, or whatever -- what is the driving force for it to want to reproduce? and what is the force driving it to want to evolve? Without this driving force, it would simply exist and eventually die off not caring if it reproduced or evolved or not. Consequently, the theory of evolution requires the existence of God (the "driving force") and with the existence of God, it makes evolution unnecessary.
I believe everyone should study the theory of evolution since it is widely taught although they should also be taught the downfalls of such unproven false theories as well. It is important to study all sides of an issue in order to make informed opinions.
Why do those who believe in evolution feel so threatened with studying creationism? - because they know their evolution theory has so many holes and that they do not want to admit the existence of God? (because if they did admit God exists, they know they are accountable to Him)
Without a "driving force" (IE: God), evolution would never happen. Why is it no evolutionst I have ever asked for an explanation of this "driving force" has even attempted to answer what the "driving force" is??? Are we suppose to believe the one celled organism (apparently evolving into a one celled organism with all reproductive organs present) decided it had to reproduce (or evolve) so it could one day become a human??? If evolution was real, the cell would have simply existed and died off and nobody would have ever known. There is absolutely no sense to evolution and it cannot be explained scientifically.
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3 of 5 found the following review helpful:
exceptional bookMar 09, 2010
Dawkins presents a clear, readable treatise on the case against religion. His arguments are powerful, and backed up with science wherever available. His style is detailed yet succinct. A knock-down blow against faith. If you open this book hoping to prove Dawkins wrong, you really are missing the point.
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