Happy Atheist Forum

Which books about atheism/secularism/humanism/etc. have most influenced your worldview?

And related: which books would you recommend a theist to read that present the most compelling case for atheism?

Logikos

Not a book persay, but Sartre's essay Existentialism is a Humanism has been extremely influential to me.  It really crystalized a lot of my feelings regarding religious belief (or the lack thereof, rather).

Quote from: "Logikos"Which books about atheism/secularism/humanism/etc. have most influenced your worldview?

The increasingly inaccurately named Hitchhikers Trilogy. Previously I had the bad impression that one could either be intelligent or funny, but after reading those books I realized that both can be accomplished at the same time. Really changed my world view from thinking that certain things must always be in opposition of each other to understanding that there is hardly anything that is opposing in the world and most things are complimentary.

Quote from: "Logikos"And related: which books would you recommend a theist to read that present the most compelling case for atheism?

I don't want this to turn into a huge debate here, but this question seems to me, to show that you don't understand what atheism is and how little atheism means. Atheism is a response to a claim, it's not a world view and there is no case for it. Cases are made for positive assertions, and while those who claim that god does not exist (a positive claim), can still be an atheist, it doesn't mean that all atheists claim that god does not exist. It's like a square can be a rectangle but a rectangle cannot be a square. As for a world view, atheism has many a varied world view just like theism has many a varied world view (Muslim, Christian, Buddhist, Presbyterian, Catholic, Protestant, Greek, Egyptian... etc.). So if you want to understand each worldview that contains atheism, you have a lot of work in front of you.

A lot of books about atheism are more geared toward people who were once religious and are dealing with the loss of their faith.  Personally, I've never been religious so I don't read a lot of atheist books and I feel like if you're not in a position where you've lost your faith, those books might not be very useful for you either.  "The End of Faith" by Sam Harris might be a good one to read - this is one of the most positively referenced books that I've heard about from other atheists who had the misfortune of struggling with their loss of faith.  I do like the book "The Three Pillars of Zen" which talks about Zen Buddhism, an atheist philosophy.  Other than that, I read a lot of books about evolutionary science.

The Art of Loving - Erich Fromm
Thus Spoke Zarathustra - Friedrich Nietzsche

You might want to look into the writings of Richard Dawkins, too.

Some books by atheists that have been influential to me:
"Twilight of the Idols, or, How To Philosophize with a Hammer" - Friedrich Nietzsche
"The Myth of Sisyphus" - Albert Camus
"The Ethics of Ambiguity" - Simone de Beauvoir

A compelling case for not being a Christian... Maybe something by Bertrand Russell? Perhaps the essay "Why I am not a Christian" (http://users.drew.edu/~jlenz/whynot.html).

Quote from: "Davin"I don't want this to turn into a huge debate here, but this question seems to me, to show that you don't understand what atheism is and how little atheism means. Atheism is a response to a claim, it's not a world view and there is no case for it. Cases are made for positive assertions, and while those who claim that god does not exist (a positive claim), can still be an atheist, it doesn't mean that all atheists claim that god does not exist. It's like a square can be a rectangle but a rectangle cannot be a square. As for a world view, atheism has many a varied world view just like theism has many a varied world view (Muslim, Christian, Buddhist, Presbyterian, Catholic, Protestant, Greek, Egyptian... etc.). So if you want to understand each worldview that contains atheism, you have a lot of work in front of you.

Definitions of atheism aside, how about books which argue for a metaphysic that entails atheism (eg. materialism or metaphysical naturalism)?

Quote from: "Logikos"Definitions of atheism aside, how about books which argue for a metaphysic that entails atheism (eg. materialism or metaphysical naturalism)?

Sorry I don't know of any book that argues that either of materialism or "metaphysical naturalism" imposes atheism.

Sorry, I don't subscribe to anything like that. I just don't make any positive assertions for things that I don't have evidence for. I haven't read any books that share my world view, probably because my world view is being developed by me and no one else. I guess just any book that explains logic and/or standards of evidence will do to satisfy this request.

Could this specific request be a manifestation of someone who has the misconception of atheism being a kind of religion?    I feel like when some theists ask for atheist literature they make the mistake of thinking that atheism is similar to religion in that there are universally accepted precepts in place that we all adhere to or a singular philosophy we all agree on.  It has to be confusing for a religiously inclined person to try to learn about atheism if they approach it in such a way.

I think one of the most influential books I've read is still the bible. Having read it and studied it for years, it was important in shaping my life from a young age through my current place in life. The point at which it turned most illuminating was using it as a christian apologist and realizing that it breaks down under scrutiny (as far as being a book that is a reliable source of history and non-fiction).

Some other things I've read that were important in one way or another:

Common Sense, and Rights of Man, by Thomas Paine
The Sentinel by Arthur C. Clarke
Apology by Plato
Leviathan by Thomas Hobbes
Civil Disobedience, by Henry David Thoreau
Peanuts by Charles M. Schulz

and lots of others.

After I read Harry Harrison's short story "The Streets of Ashkelon" in the book "Two Tales and Eight Tomorrows", I gave up all of my remaining Christian beliefs.

To me, the greatest book I've read until now has to be "Rebellious Angels" ( Îngeri Rebeli ) by Pavel Coruţ. It is not really an atheism book, rather, a successful-life guide book, but it opened my eyes. I can't say a reason why you shouldn't read it, it encourages auto-suggestion, relying on your self, inventive thinking, always learning and gathering higher amounts of knowledge, helping humanity, success in life and strong morals. Amazing book from an under-rated writer which deserves more than insults from angry "religious" people.

Quote from: "AlP"

Quote from: "Logikos"Definitions of atheism aside, how about books which argue for a metaphysic that entails atheism (eg. materialism or metaphysical naturalism)?

Sorry I don't know of any book that argues that either of materialism or "metaphysical naturalism" imposes atheism.

Did you mean "implies" rather than "imposes"?  Given that God by any normal definition is said to be "immaterial" and "supernatural", that makes theism and materialism or theism and naturalism rather awkward bedfellows.

Quote from: "pinkocommie"Could this specific request be a manifestation of someone who has the misconception of atheism being a kind of religion?    I feel like when some theists ask for atheist literature they make the mistake of thinking that atheism is similar to religion in that there are universally accepted precepts in place that we all adhere to or a singular philosophy we all agree on.  It has to be confusing for a religiously inclined person to try to learn about atheism if they approach it in such a way.

Do you assume that every theist you meet is ignorant?

There exist books about atheism, books arguing for atheism, and books written by atheists on subjects pertaining to God and religious belief.  This thread is about these kinds of books.

Quote from: "Logikos"

Quote from: "pinkocommie"Could this specific request be a manifestation of someone who has the misconception of atheism being a kind of religion?    I feel like when some theists ask for atheist literature they make the mistake of thinking that atheism is similar to religion in that there are universally accepted precepts in place that we all adhere to or a singular philosophy we all agree on.  It has to be confusing for a religiously inclined person to try to learn about atheism if they approach it in such a way.

Do you assume that every theist you meet is ignorant?

...No. I'm sorry you found what I said offensive, that wasn't my intent.

Quote from: "pinkocommie"...No. I'm sorry you found what I said offensive, that wasn't my intent.

It's cool, I wasn't offended, just wondering what the point of the comment was?

Given that you're not approaching atheism as if it's some kind of religion, my comment is moot.

Quote from: "pinkocommie"Given that you're not approaching atheism as if it's some kind of religion, my comment is moot.

OK, cool.  Which books have most influenced your worldview?

Quote from: "pinkocommie"A lot of books about atheism are more geared toward people who were once religious and are dealing with the loss of their faith.  Personally, I've never been religious so I don't read a lot of atheist books and I feel like if you're not in a position where you've lost your faith, those books might not be very useful for you either.  "The End of Faith" by Sam Harris might be a good one to read - this is one of the most positively referenced books that I've heard about from other atheists who had the misfortune of struggling with their loss of faith.  I do like the book "The Three Pillars of Zen" which talks about Zen Buddhism, an atheist philosophy.  Other than that, I read a lot of books about evolutionary science.

Quote from: "pinkocommie"

Quote from: "pinkocommie"A lot of books about atheism are more geared toward people who were once religious and are dealing with the loss of their faith.  Personally, I've never been religious so I don't read a lot of atheist books and I feel like if you're not in a position where you've lost your faith, those books might not be very useful for you either.  "The End of Faith" by Sam Harris might be a good one to read - this is one of the most positively referenced books that I've heard about from other atheists who had the misfortune of struggling with their loss of faith.  I do like the book "The Three Pillars of Zen" which talks about Zen Buddhism, an atheist philosophy.  Other than that, I read a lot of books about evolutionary science.

Sorry, boss, missed that somehow!