The Politics of Procrustes: Contradictions of Enforced Equality

by Antony Flew

Book by Flew, Antony

Hardcover

First published May 1, 1981

About the author

Antony Garrard Newton Flew (11 February 1923 – 8 April 2010) was a British philosopher. Belonging to the analytic and evidentialist schools of thought, he was notable for his works on the philosophy of religion.

Flew was a strong advocate of atheism, arguing that one should presuppose atheism until empirical evidence of a God surfaces. He also criticised the idea of life after death, the free will defence to the problem of evil, and the meaningfulness of the concept of God. In 2003 he was one of the signers of the Humanist Manifesto. However, in 2004 he stated an allegiance to deism, more specifically a belief in the Aristotelian God, stating that in keeping his lifelong commitment to go where the evidence leads, he now believes in the existence of God.

He later wrote the book There is a God: How the World's Most Notorious Atheist Changed His Mind, with contributions from Roy Abraham Varghese. This book (and Flew's conversion itself) has been the subject of controversy, following an article in the New York Times magazine alleging that Flew had mentally declined, and that Varghese was the primary author. The matter remains contentious, with some commentators including PZ Myers and Richard Carrier supporting the allegations, and others, including Flew himself, opposing them.

Reviews

[Barry Linetsky · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a re-read of this book from about 1985 when I used it in my Masters thesis. If you knew Professor Flew, you will likely enjoy reading it. But Flew had a mile-a-minute mind, and this book reflects that. It is philosophically sound, but bounces here and there, while keeping the main thread. He does an excellent job pointing out the contradictions of forced equality by the likes of Marx and Rawls, and other contemporaries of his at the time of its writing (1981). He sticks to the philosophical requirements of logical validity, indicating where arguments for forced equality fail to pass muster. An interesting book, but a tough nut to crack. The book does have form and substance, but it reflects Flew's unique personality and style. There's lots of humour, but I'm not sure it comes through if you didn't know him or experience his unique and lively lecturing style.