Religion Explained: The Evolutionary Origins of Religious Thought

by Pascal Boyer

Overview

Many of our questions about religion, says the internationally renowned anthropologist Pascal Boyer, were once mysteries, but they no longer are: we are beginning to know how to answer questions such as "Why do people have religion?" and "Why is religion the way it is?" Using findings from anthropology, cognitive science, linguistics, and evolutionary biology, Boyer shows how one of the most fascinating aspects of human consciousness is increasingly admissible to coherent, naturalistic explanation. And Man Creates God tells readers, for the first time, what religious feeling is really about, what it consists of, and how it originates. It is a beautifully written, very accessible book by an anthropologist who is highly respected on both sides of the Atlantic. As a scientific explanation for religious feeling, it is sure to arouse controversy.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780465006960
Publisher:	Basic Books
Publication date:	05/02/2002
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	384
Sales rank:	708,853
Product dimensions:	5.35(w) x 8.00(h) x 1.25(d)
Lexile:	1270L (what's this?)

About the Author

Pascal Boyer is Luce Professor of Collective and Individual Memory at Washington University, St. Louis, Missouri.

Table of Contents

	Acknowledgments	VII
1	What is the Origin?	1
2	What Supernatural Concepts are Like	51
3	The Kind of Mind it Takes	93
4	Why Gods and Spirits?	137
5	Why do Gods and Spirits Matter?	169
6	Why is Religion about Death?	203
7	Why Rituals?	229
8	Why Doctrines, Exclusion and Violence?	265
9	Why Belief?	297
	Further readings	331
	Notes	335

What People are Saying About This

David M. Buss

"The Myth of Monogamy provides a fascinating tour of human mating strategies, from monogamy to sexual treachery, from exclusivity to polygamy. Barash and Lipton brilliantly locate human mating within the broader spectrum of mating strategies pursued by other species. The book is gripping from start to finish, solid in its science, and literary in its flair. It's one of the best books written about why humans covet, why commandments are broken, and why men and women get into deep conflicts over mating."

Editorial Reviews

Unlike other books offering "scientific" explanations for religion, this one actually details the common strands running through spiritual concepts and feelings, rather than using science to simply explain away religion. Drawing upon the latest findings of evolutionary psychology and cognitive science, Boyer shows why religious ideas make sense to humans and just which ideas are acceptable.

bn.com

...a penetrating scientific analysis of religion.

Washington Post Book World

....fascinating book.

Booklist

Utilizing cross-cultural studies and a multidisciplinary approach, anthropologist Boyer (research fellow, Inst. of Cognitive Science, Lyon, France) argues that the origin, development, and diversity of religion are scientifically explainable within the naturalistic frameworks of evolutionary biology and cognitive psychology. His point of departure is the complex human brain and its mental activity, both being a result of natural selection enhancing the adaptation, survival, and reproductive success of our social ancestors through over four million years of hominid evolution. Boyer focuses on the inference systems and intuitive expectations of evolved human brain capacities in order to account for the biocultural origin of religious concepts and supernatural agents (e.g., gods, ghosts, demons, spirits, and witches). He is to be commended for his scholarly and critical examination of religion, but some readers may find his arguments difficult to follow and to accept. Nevertheless, this is a significant contribution to anthropology. Especially recommended for academic libraries. H. James Birx, Canisius Coll., Buffalo, NY Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.

Library Journal

Drawing on theories and research in evolutionary biology and cognitive psychology, Boyer (collective memory and individual memory, Washington U., St. Louis, Missouri) claims to have final answers to such questions as why religion matters so much in people's lives, why there are several religions instead of just one, why there are churches and religious institutions, and why religion persists in an age of rational thought. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

Booknews

A roundabout consideration of why humans turn to otherworldly thoughts. Boyer (Collective Memory and Individual Memory/Washington Univ.) is fluent in several disciplines that touch on the cognitive sciences, including physical anthropology and evolutionary psychology. All of these disciplines, along with classical philosophy, come to bear on his account of why humans in every place and at every time have found it necessary or desirable to think of gods, the afterlife, and other extraordinary matters, building "complex supernatural constructs out of very simple conceptual bricks" (such as the recognition that all mortal beings die). While recognizing that religious beliefs vary widely within and between cultures and individuals, the author suggests that we hold them largely because we can; that is, all humans possess "the mind it takes to have religion," a mind that uses processes such as "decoupling" and "inference systems" to arrive at what Boyer considers to be eminently practical reasoning about the meaning of life (reasoning that can sometimes involve inventing cosmic explanations for the mysteries and problems the mind confronts). Regrettably, the author is rarely straightforward in making such arguments, preferring instead to linger over (and then demolish) straw-man arguments and to show the flaws in other influential theories of religion (such as those of William James). The noted biologist E.O. Wilson gives a more concise and better argued account of the evolutionary basis of religion-if one that seems calculated to offend believers, as Boyer's is not-in Consilience (1998). For all that, Boyer's account has many merits, showing how the mind works by means of analogy, trial anderror, and sheer speculation (the more counterintuitive the better) in the service of helping us to become comfortable inside our own skins and sleep well at night. Students of psychology and philosophy will find much value in Boyer's treatise, but it will probably strike most general readers as dry and daunting.

Kirkus Reviews