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 | | Imprint: Greenwood | | Publication Date: 09/2012 | | Pages: 278 | | Volumes: 1 | | Size: 8 1/2x11 | | Format | | Price | | ISBN-13 | | Hardcover | | $100.00 | | 978-1-59884-978-3 | | eBook | |
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Voices of Unbelief
Documents from Atheists and Agnostics
Dale McGowan, Editor
This book spotlights individual expressions of atheist, agnostic, and secular humanist opinion—both public and private—to shed light on the phenomenon of religious disbelief throughout history and across cultures.
Unbelief is manifest in the denials of 15th-century atheists caught in the net of the Inquisition and in the letters of an 18th-century priest revealing doubts to his parishioners. It is found in writings from China, India, and the Arab world and in the doctrine of early feminists. Unbelief is controversial, thought provoking, and a most interesting window into the past—and present.
Voices of Unbelief: Documents from Atheists and Agnostics is the first anthology to provide comprehensive, annotated readings on atheism and unbelief expressly for high school and college students. This diverse compilation brings together letters, essays, diary entries, book excerpts, blogs, monologues, and other writings by atheists and agnostics, both through the centuries and across continents and cultures.
Unlike most other anthologies of atheist writings, the collection goes beyond public proclamations of well-known individuals to include the personal voices of unbelievers from many walks of life. While readers will certainly find excerpts from the published canon here, they will also discover personal documents that testify to the experience of living outside of the religious mainstream. The book presents each document in its historical context, enriched with an introduction, key questions, and activities that will help readers understand the past and navigate current controversies revolving around religious belief.
Features
• Documents include book and diary excerpts, letters, blogs, and video and radio scripts, bringing historical settings and individual lives into focus
• A chronology helps place the writings and writers in history and in relation to each other
Highlights
• Presents annotated documents by atheists and agnostics across 3,000 years and four continents
• Brings suppressed medieval voices into the conversation
• Widens the cultural scope beyond Europe and America by including documents from nonbelievers in China, India, Africa, and the Arab world
• Offers an accessible approach that will appeal to general readers as well as high school and university students
Dale McGowan is a writer, educator, and executive director of Foundation Beyond Belief, a humanist charitable foundation. His previous books include Parenting Beyond Belief: On Raising Ethical, Caring Kids Without Religion and Raising Freethinkers: A Practical Guide for Parenting Beyond Belief, the first comprehensive resources for nonreligious parents. In 2008, he was named Humanist of the Year by the Humanist Chaplaincy at Harvard University. |
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