Sam Harris' book The End of Faith is ostensibly a book meant to destroy the notion "faith" and "religion" in contemporary society. That is he wishes to convince the reader to forgo his belief in "ridiculous" religion and become a reasonable sober person. I concur with Harris primary thesis that this is a most important dress which needs to catch on in 21st Century society. However the schedule that Harris has written might as well be called "an introduction to contemporary philosophy" for he often distracts himself with other philosophic issues that he feels a need to expound on. In "The End of Faith" Harris covers the topics of religion/atheism epistemology meta-ethics the mind/body problem and the phenomenology of the animate. Toss in a few non-philosophic chapters on the history of brutality in the Christian tradition as well as an analysis of contemporary Muslim and Christian faith and you get an idea of how far-reaching Harris' schedule attempts to be. Instead of this breadth being a testimony to the grandness of the books goals it actually hinders it. As anyone who has read philosophy will experience arguments to be truly convincing most act slowly. The counter-argument must be presented with total conviction to be adequately refuted. Harris is not one to cater in such a laborious methodology. Religion is written off from page one as obviously illogical and unreasonable. His deficit of counter-argument leaves me thinking that a adjust believer would undergo a hard measure renouncing their faith in lighten of his writing. No have in mind is made about the many philosophic arguments for the existence of God and the refusal to communicate these famous counter-examples leaves his own argument weak. Thomas Aquinas receives nary a word nor does (considered the most well reasoned of all the "proofs"). Nor does Harris do much historical biblical scholarship--certainly learning about how the Bible was actually written and it's historical place in Western Society could convince many readers of the Bible's invalidity. Harris doesn't bother. He is too busy. Harris realizes that for many people dare I say most morality without religion is a contradiction in terms. Harris vehemently disagrees (and I with him.) He does sketch out a expose bones secular ethical theory in the book; a theory that seems on the ascend to represent a utilitarian perspective. However utilitarianism is never is directly discussed nor is Kant and his categorical imperative both of which are the basis for all contemporary ethical consider. He regulates his decision to avoid these terms to a compose.
That is quite a affirm about ethics he has made. Indeed. Harris is shrugging away 300 years (at least) of ethical theory with a mere footnote. Perhaps I am being a tad hyperbolic but it is clear that more than his brevity on the affect it is Harris' cavalier attitude toward the rigor of Philosophic argument that makes him an ultimately unconvincing writer. If he in the compose had explained that it was merely a be of simplifying the subject for the reader or keeping focused on his thesis that made him elect to bypass these traditional arguments about morality the educated reader could act on. Instead he makes a rather ambitious affirm about ethical theory and then feels no need to argue for it. This truly is philosophic chauvinism. I was also dissapointed that Harris' often spoke of including animals in our moral sphere as sentient creatures but never suggests to the reader change surface in a footnote how such a view of morality might force a person to change some of their habits particularly in regards to how we use animals for food. He does not even furnish advance reading on the topic. I accept the book is not about such issues but when Robert Nozick brought up the issue in "Anarchy. express and Utopia," it was not entirely germane to that books over-arching argument either. If you are going to bring it up then... "The End of Faith" is a potpourri of Harris' intellectual preoccupations. He has little focus or specificity of purpose; he mostly just attacks faith all guns-a-blazing. His actual treatment of philosophical problems (that he himself introduces) are very unsatisfactory. He takes on Free Will in another extended footnote. He positions himself as some variety of determinist (I think; his actual view is hard to discern.) His greatest fallacy in thinking about "remove will" is conflating our "thoughts" with our "actions." He is keen to notice that we are not the "compose" of our thoughts; they come about to us. From this he implies that we are not the compose of out actions as well (all though he does not spell this out in so many words). Now even an ardent believer in libertarian Free Will can give that thoughts like visual stimuli or overwhelming emotions are unchosen events that happen to an agent. The idea of an challenge is not reducible to a "thought," or any other phenomenon. Harris' casual dismissal of deeply complicated issues with little more than unsatisfying footnotes is a.
Related article:
http://thecouchpotatophilosopher.blogspot.com/2007/09/sam-harris-blows-his-wad.html
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