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97th out of 469 books
—
433 voters
Doubt: A History: The Great Doubters and Their Legacy of Innovation from Socrates and Jesus to Thomas Jefferson and Emily Dickinson
In the tradition of grand sweeping histories such as From Dawn To Decadence, The Structure of Scientific Revolutions, and A History of God, Hecht champions doubt and questioning as one of the great and noble, if unheralded, intellectual traditions that distinguish the Western mind especially-from Socrates to Galileo and Darwin to Wittgenstein and Hawking. This is an accoun...more
Paperback, 576 pages
Published
September 7th 2004
by HarperOne
(first published 2003)
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What is it they say? "History is written by the winners."
That is unless you're Howard Zinn ("People's History of the United States") or Jennifer Michael Hecht, writing "Doubt: A History." No, I'm not calling these two "losers," but they definitely adopted Quixotic missions in championing the unspoken viewpoint of "the other side" of history.
And both turned out encyclopedic tomes on their respective topics. But as much as I enjoyed Zinn's take on American History (recommended, by the way, by Mat...more
That is unless you're Howard Zinn ("People's History of the United States") or Jennifer Michael Hecht, writing "Doubt: A History." No, I'm not calling these two "losers," but they definitely adopted Quixotic missions in championing the unspoken viewpoint of "the other side" of history.
And both turned out encyclopedic tomes on their respective topics. But as much as I enjoyed Zinn's take on American History (recommended, by the way, by Mat...more
Here's a little confession: I'm a doubter. I always have been. And given my very conservative Mormon family and the even more conservative Mormon community I live in, doubt is frowned upon. More than that, it's considered a serious character flaw--something to be ashamed of, purged, and overcome as quickly as possible. Doubt: A History provides an overview of some of the world's most prominent doubters--Socrates, Thomas Jefferson, even Jesus--and describes the crucial roles they played in histor...more
An absorbing history of healthy skepticism through the ages.
Personally, I've always joked that Descartes' "I think, therefore I am" could be "I doubt, therefore I may not be." In reading this book, I realize "I think, therefore something thinks, but it's not necessarily me." Which can ironically lead one to a non-dogmatic spirituality. As an agnostic, I find the claimed certainties of both religion and science to be irksome. As Hecht has in her book (it may be a quote from someone else), the rea...more
Personally, I've always joked that Descartes' "I think, therefore I am" could be "I doubt, therefore I may not be." In reading this book, I realize "I think, therefore something thinks, but it's not necessarily me." Which can ironically lead one to a non-dogmatic spirituality. As an agnostic, I find the claimed certainties of both religion and science to be irksome. As Hecht has in her book (it may be a quote from someone else), the rea...more
This is a hefty, dense tome. There's a lot of quality analysis, history and argument here, but the problem with a book like this is that it's a 'preaching to the choir' sort of exercise.
People who are already somewhat doubtful of established cultural institutions will be nodding in agreement and amusement all the way through, and will likely already be familiar with much of the historical and philosophical background the book provides, but those who have a more reverent attitude toward those in...more
People who are already somewhat doubtful of established cultural institutions will be nodding in agreement and amusement all the way through, and will likely already be familiar with much of the historical and philosophical background the book provides, but those who have a more reverent attitude toward those in...more
Halfway through this library book when I changed cities and thus had to return it unfinished... so invaluable, and subtly galvanizing, however, that I've got my hands on another copy of it.
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"We live in a meaning-rupture because we are human and the universe is not."
If you want the gist of Doubt, that is it: a direct quote of the text, one that yields for those who desire the crux of a larger context, as well. I think it a bright sentence of not little sangfroid, what with the ripping fucking...more
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"We live in a meaning-rupture because we are human and the universe is not."
If you want the gist of Doubt, that is it: a direct quote of the text, one that yields for those who desire the crux of a larger context, as well. I think it a bright sentence of not little sangfroid, what with the ripping fucking...more
I have nearly reached the end and I know I will be starting again when I finish. I enjoy Jennifer's writing style very much. It feels to me like we're two friends walking though a museum and she's giving me the guided tour of my life. She speaks to me in a conversational tone opening up my mind to the secret history of thought. I'm relishing in the choice bits she chooses to quote, like handpicked produce from the grower. She hasn't grabbed the bag of discount apples from a supermarket like so m...more
3 likes · like · see review
I have picked up this text again, after a previous read during my theological studies in 06. This current reading includes new motivation and questions revolving around a growing capacity for and acceptance of healthy doubt while viewing it as akin to faith; and thus seeing the notion of certainty (or the need for things settled) as opposing or unrelated to genuine faith as life would have it. I am also seeking Hecht's help with my interest in Christian atheism and the language and history of do...more
Definitely enjoying.. a lot!
So far the chapter on Buddhism has given me the most to think about. Overall this book has morphed my thinking a little into... why can't pieces of doubt come together? I think doubt can shape the way we practice whatever it is we believe. Perhaps what formed from doubt in the Greek gods led to athiesm, but the nontheistic philosophies include meditation and oneness of self and connection with nature and things we could all experience no matter what God or religion we...more
So far the chapter on Buddhism has given me the most to think about. Overall this book has morphed my thinking a little into... why can't pieces of doubt come together? I think doubt can shape the way we practice whatever it is we believe. Perhaps what formed from doubt in the Greek gods led to athiesm, but the nontheistic philosophies include meditation and oneness of self and connection with nature and things we could all experience no matter what God or religion we...more
I bought the book shortly after it was first published. I skimmed it, read the first chapter and set it aside. Time to read it through. I heard the author interviewed on "Speaking of Faith" and was intrigued by her premise for the book.
A fascinating look at doubt through ages of human civilization. I recommend it highly to anyone interested in the history of free thought.
It took me considerable time to read, taking a small section at a time. It's a book I will read again and use as a reference.
A fascinating look at doubt through ages of human civilization. I recommend it highly to anyone interested in the history of free thought.
It took me considerable time to read, taking a small section at a time. It's a book I will read again and use as a reference.
2 likes · like · see review
This magnificent work, full of enthralling portraits of the world's great sceptics, and landscapes of the times and cultures they inhabited, provides an invaluable history of serious thought. While an enormous amount of scholarship, analysis and deep thinking has obviously gone into it, the writing is always accessible, frequently surprising, and often moving. I learnt a great deal, not least about myself. I shall never forget the feelings of certainty and melancholy that wrapped around me as I...more
Even though some of my grammatical concerns from my Amazon review of the original edition have been addressed, I still can't rate this book higher.
Now, on the one hand, this is a very interesting book, with great content, especially for those not more familiar with the history of doubt, above all in doubt in the East. I learned some new things about the East, such as the Carvaka of early Hinduism. I gained new insight on a few more familiar faces from the West as well.
That said, I had a few mino...more
Now, on the one hand, this is a very interesting book, with great content, especially for those not more familiar with the history of doubt, above all in doubt in the East. I learned some new things about the East, such as the Carvaka of early Hinduism. I gained new insight on a few more familiar faces from the West as well.
That said, I had a few mino...more
I have yet to read a book by Ms. Hecht that I didn't find very thought provoking. For an agnostic like myself, this was a enlightening journey through millenia of the history of doubt over religious dogma and theology. It contains more fantasticly memorable and stimulating passages than I'll attempt to repeat here.
It was incredibly affirming to read that renowned persons from hundreds or even thousands of years ago were expressing the exact same doubts that have marked my personal philosophical...more
It was incredibly affirming to read that renowned persons from hundreds or even thousands of years ago were expressing the exact same doubts that have marked my personal philosophical...more
Nov 29, 2010
Dianne
is currently reading it
Only a couple of chapters in so far, and I can already see that Ms. Hecht is a lively but carefully original thinker. Just a couple of examples:
- She characterizes the work of the Cynics, Stoics, Epicureans, and Skeptics as some of the first self-help books in the West. I find this notion appealing, as it shows that supposedly pie-in-the-sky philosophy is actually deeply relevant to how we live, while simultaneously ennobling the much-maligned desire of human beings to read self-help books.
- By...more
- She characterizes the work of the Cynics, Stoics, Epicureans, and Skeptics as some of the first self-help books in the West. I find this notion appealing, as it shows that supposedly pie-in-the-sky philosophy is actually deeply relevant to how we live, while simultaneously ennobling the much-maligned desire of human beings to read self-help books.
- By...more
Aug 02, 2007
steve ross
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
everyone with a working mind
Shelves:
nonfiction-essay,
history
Combines atheistic philosophy with poetic craft. Unlike many of the recent atheist-rants, Hecht’s history is a work of actual persuasive-writing, and its call for our stepping past religion, mainly because her argument is so effortless, is powerful. She’s a cool, welcoming voice to the fold of irreligion, and this is the only book I’d truly recommend to a religious person. Non-combative, though calculated, Doubt is fascinating, instructive, and bolstering.
Wow! This book is amazing at giving a history of doubt. I have always thought that skepticism and doubt was a big minority in the world (it still is). However, it's the second largest "belief" in the world (the first is Christianity). This book could be used as a text book in class, but it doesn't have that dryness to it that other text books have. I wish that this book was longer so that Hecht could delve into greater detail about doubt into these great thinkers.
Amazing overview of philosophy from the perspective of doubt! Definitely worth the time and thought on the part of a reader. I would have given 5 stars except that the latest generation of atheists seemed to be glossed over fairly quickly-- I see many of them as superficial and not well-grounded in their own tradition. Also, it would have been interesting for her to have given a little more explanation of how she jumped from the stance of saying throughout the book that the "God as Universe" con...more
Doubt: A History: The Great Doubters and Their Legacy of Innovation from Socrates and Jesus to Thomas Jefferson and Emily Dickinson by Jennifer Michael Hecht
“Doubt: A History" is about the history of religious doubt, from all over the world, and from all recorded history. This ambitious and comprehensive book takes us up close and personal with those who have grappled with the ultimate questions of life and found possible answers contrary to traditional faith. Jennifer Hecht provides freethinker...more
“Doubt: A History" is about the history of religious doubt, from all over the world, and from all recorded history. This ambitious and comprehensive book takes us up close and personal with those who have grappled with the ultimate questions of life and found possible answers contrary to traditional faith. Jennifer Hecht provides freethinker...more
This book took me some time to get through, most of the summer and into the fall, actually, on and off. It is truly a tome. Both Folboteur and April Hamilton have written very comprehensive reviews of the content so I'll skip that and refer you to them for the play-by-play.
Actually, though, were it not the case that the copy I read was borrowed, I might be inclined to start it over again as I didn't have background knowledge on some of the people Hecht considered. I definitely would pick up a co...more
Actually, though, were it not the case that the copy I read was borrowed, I might be inclined to start it over again as I didn't have background knowledge on some of the people Hecht considered. I definitely would pick up a co...more
A marvelous read. The structure of the book is best described as a chronological listing of great doubters throughout recorded history strung together by the stream of thought that runs through them accented by their many flashes of unique brilliance. What I found most surprising was to discover the genius of some ancient thinkers who based their atheism upon conjecture which we in the modern world can easily take to be proven fact. These ancient thinkers were already foreshadowing the general c...more
Ok, I put off reviewing this for several weeks, so this review won't be very thorough. But I found the book fascinating, if hefty enough that I wore out a little by the end. Hecht is academic yet lively, two things I really value in a nonfiction work: Academic because (at least in the good ones) it means thorough, well-researched, and really dedicated to its subject matter; lively because it keeps it from being a jargony tome!
Doubt: A History really is an overview; it covers about 2,500 years of...more
Doubt: A History really is an overview; it covers about 2,500 years of...more
A good read, but more importantly, a really solid education; Not simply in terms of the history of doubters, but the history of, well, thought. Of philosophy. For someone who didn't quite get the education he might have liked, this book is a great tour through different ways of thinking about the world, freed from the gauze and blur of supernaturalism.
I have never learned so much from ONE book.
Jennifer Michael Hecht'a comprehension of history and philosophy is staggering. The "doubt" of which she speaks is the history of the doubting of God and gods in human thought and society. She goes from the ancient Greeks like Epicurus to Job to Lucretius to Thomas Jefferson to George Carlin and everyone else in between. Her wit and wisdom are evident on every page. I actually high-lighted this book as I read it. If you are a believer, read it. It will...more
Jennifer Michael Hecht'a comprehension of history and philosophy is staggering. The "doubt" of which she speaks is the history of the doubting of God and gods in human thought and society. She goes from the ancient Greeks like Epicurus to Job to Lucretius to Thomas Jefferson to George Carlin and everyone else in between. Her wit and wisdom are evident on every page. I actually high-lighted this book as I read it. If you are a believer, read it. It will...more
Insightful and interesting, as well as sweeping in scope. My only complaint is that Hecht sort of drops the ball towards the end. Doubt is the questioning of the established view, and when, in modern day, the established view is doubt, it seemed to me appropo to look at faith as doubt.
But that's just me.
But that's just me.
Typically we measure a time period in history according to the heroes or champions of the day; instead, the author argues, it's really those who were the "doubters" that we should be looking at...for those are the people that affected change.
I have no words to describe the brilliance and execution here. If the title causes even the least spark of interest for you, read this book. I'm sure this will be one of the most well-loved books on my shelves for the rest of my life.
An excellent, readable, throughly researched and noted history of religious doubt. Great general reference book for those interested in countering the bile that spews from the mouths and keyboards of the religious wrong.
This book is a joy to read for so many reasons that there's no point any even bothering to explain it. Just read it. You'll see what I mean.
Puts a lot of things in context. Very readable and most thought-provoking. Highly recommended for thinking people everywhere.
Wonderful! A survey of history which was quite complete and integrated. I highly recommend this book and this author.
I am currently on page 153, and I am already very disappointed with this book. I had very high hopes for it -- the title alone sounded wonderful -- but the quality of the prose is terrible. I am surprised Jennifer Hecht's editors approved the manuscript. Furthermore, I am still not completely sure what, exactly, the topic of the book is. Is it the history of doubt in religion, or the history of skepticism? Is it the history of doubt related to notions of God? I am going to finish _Doubt: A Histo...more
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Jennifer Michael Hecht is a poet, historian, philosopher, and author.
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“Prayer is based on the remote possibility that someone is actually listening; but so is a lot of conversation. If the former seems far-fetcher, consider the latter: even if someone is listening to your story, and really hearing, that person will disappear from existence in the blink of a cosmic eye, so why bother to tell this perhaps illusory and possibly un-listening person something he or she is unlikely to truly understand, just before the two of you blip back out of existence? We like to talk to people who answer us, intelligently if possible, but we do talk without needing response or expecting comprehension. Sometimes, the event is the word, the act of speaking. Once we pull that apart a bit, the action of talking becomes more important than the question of whether the talking is working-because we know, going in, that the talking is not working. That said, one might as well pray.”
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Apr 07, 2012 03:53pm