You didn't offer an argument.
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*[I believe] Atheism is an absurd worldview
- Thread starter Gambit
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Where in the OED entry is this? Is this from the entry "myth"? Because I can't find it:
"Etymology: Of multiple origins. Partly a borrowing from Latin. Partly a borrowing from Greek. Etymons: Latin mȳthus, mȳthos; Greek μῦθος.
< classical Latin mȳthus or mȳthos (see mythus n.) or its etymon ancient Greek μῦθος mythos n. Compare earlier mythos n., mythus n., and mythic adj. Compare also French mythe (1803).
N.E.D. (1908) states that the pronunciation /maɪθ/ (there transcribed as (məiþ)), ‘formerly prevalent, is still sometimes heard. The corresponding spelling mythe was affected by Grote and Max Müller (among others)’. This pronunciation is recorded as a rarer variant in editions of D. Jones Eng. Pronouncing Dict. until 1969. Compare also the following:
1838 T. Keightley Mythol. Anc. Greece & Italy (ed. 2) 1 Mythology is the science which treats of the mythes..current among a people.
1846 T. Keightley Notes Virgil: Bucolics & Georgics p. vii, From the Greek μῦθος I have made the word mȳthe, in which however no one has followed me, the form generally adopted being my̆th.
1.
a. A traditional story, typically involving supernatural beings or forces, which embodies and provides an explanation, aetiology, or justification for something such as the early history of a society, a religious belief or ritual, or a natural phenomenon.Myth is strictly distinguished from allegory and legend by some scholars, but in general use it is often used interchangeably with these terms.
1830 Westm. Rev. 12 44 These two stories are very good illustrations of the origin of myths, by means of which, even the most natural sentiment is traced to its cause in the circumstances of fabulous history.
1846 G. Grote Hist. Greece I. i. i. 67 It is neither history nor allegory, but simple mythe or legend.
1866 Edinb. Rev. Apr. 312 The celebrated mythe or apologue called ‘The Choice of Hercules’, one of the most impressive exhortations in ancient literature to a life of labour and self-denial.
1899 S. Baring-Gould Vicar of Morwenstow vii. 195 It is chronicled in an old Armenian myth that the wise men of the East were none other than the three sons of Noe.
1905 J. A. Stewart Myths of Plato 1 The Myth is a fanciful tale, sometimes traditional, sometimes newly invented, with which Socrates or some other interlocutor interrupts or concludes the argumentative conversation in which the movement of the [Platonic] Drama mainly consists.
1915 C. P. Gilman Herland in Forerunner Jan. 12/2, I made out quite a few legends and folk-myths of these scattered tribes.
1958 B. Deutsch Poetry Handbk. 93 The lack of an acceptable or widely accredited myth, that imaginative ordering of experience which helps the group or the person giving it assent to enjoy or endure life and to accept death, is the subject of many contemporary poems.
1978 J. D. Crichton in C. Jones et al. Study of Liturgy i. 7 The myth was a sacred narrative, whether true or fictional, which gave an account of, or ‘explained’, the origins of human life or of the community.
1997 P. Melville Ventriloquist's Tale (1998) i. 83 There is a savannah creation myth in which two brothers cut down this tree—Mount Roraima, in fact—and a flood gushes from the trunk.
b. As a mass noun: such stories collectively or as a genre.In later use coloured by sense 2a.
1840 W. H. Mill Observ. Gospel vi. 118 The same non-historical region of philosophical myth.
1885 E. Clodd Myths & Dreams 7 Myth was the product of man's emotion and imagination, acted upon by his surroundings.
1925 Glasgow Herald 29 Aug. 4 In the same tale données from classical myth are also to be encountered.
1941 H. G. Wells You can't be too Careful v. i. 240 As the New Deal unfolded, American myth and reality began to take on an increasing parallelism with Europe.
1991 M. E. Wertsch Military Brats Pref. p. xiii, Only if we look at our Fortress experience unvarnished by myth, can we know who we are.
2.
a. A widespread but untrue or erroneous story or belief; a widely held misconception; a misrepresentation of the truth. Also: something existing only in myth; a fictitious or imaginary person or thing.
1849 E. Bulwer-Lytton Caxtons II. x. iii. 167 As for Mrs Primmins's bones, they had been myths these twenty years.
1854 ‘G. Eliot’ Let. 23 Oct. (1954) II. 179 Of course many silly myths are already afloat about me, in addition to the truth, which of itself would be thought matter for scandal.
1874 A. H. Sayce Princ. Compar. Philol. iv. 165 The pronominal root is a philological myth.
1888 Times (Weekly ed.) 3 Feb. 9/3 Parliamentary control was a myth.
1911 Encycl. Brit. XV. 593/1 The jus [sc. the jus primae noctis or droit du seigneur], it seems, is a myth, invented no earlier than the 16th or 17th century.
1950 Sc. Jrnl. Theol. 3 37 To this inner fellowship of disciples the ‘mystery’ of the Kingdom of God is disclosed, whereas to outsiders this same Kingdom remains..an imaginative dream, or, as we might say, a myth.
1973 Times 13 Nov. 6/6 There is a myth going around that there are an awful lot of empty houses in Windsor Great Park.
1976 Glasgow Herald 26 Nov. 28/2 The much-vaunted ‘caring society’ is a myth.
1997 Guardian 9 June i. 4/3 The researchers suggest women who claim to be suffering from PMS are instead affected by random depression... PMS, they conclude, is a myth.
b. A person or thing held in awe or generally referred to with near reverential admiration on the basis of popularly repeated stories (whether real or fictitious). Cf. legend n..
1853 C. M. Yonge Heir of Redclyffe I. iv. 43 ‘That old-school deference and attention is very chivalrous..; I hope it will not wear off.’ ‘A vain hope,’ said Charles. ‘At present he is like that German myth, Kaspar Hauser, who lived till twenty in a cellar.’
1921 C. S. Lewis Let. 21 Mar. (1966) 58 He [sc. W. B. Yeats] said, ‘The most interesting thing about the Victorian period was their penchant for selecting one typical Great Man in each department—Tennyson, the poet, Roberts, the soldier; and then these types were made into myths.’
1962 R. Oberfirst Rudolph Valentino xvii. 172 In the space of the first two or three weeks that The Sheik was exhibited, Valentino had become a myth.
1979 Tucson (Arizona) Citizen 20 Sept. 5 a/3 Father Flanagan was legendary, his institution an American myth.
1991 Esquire Apr. 155 He wasn't a myth, he wasn't a genius. He was a frail human being.
c. A popular conception of a person or thing which exaggerates or idealizes the truth.
1928 E. O'Neill Strange Interlude iv. 139 Nina... He never appreciated the real Gordon. No one did except me. Darrell. (Thinking caustically). Gordon myth strong as ever..root of her trouble still.
1961 Listener 2 Nov. 739/2 Disraeli set himself to recreate a national political party out of the wreckage of Peel's following. A new myth had to be evolved.
1993 Guardian 19 Oct. ii. 10/3 This makes him a murderous subject for a biography, so hopeless entangled is the man with his myth."
Augustus
…
It's from an old digital version "Oxford English Dictionary Second Edition on CD-ROM (v. 4.0)".
b.1.b in generalized use. Also, an untrue or popular tale, a rumour (colloq.).
1840 W. H. Mill Observ. i. 118 The same non-historical region of philosophical myth. 1846 Grote Greece i. i. I. 67 It is neither history nor allegory, but simple mythe or legend. 1854 Geo. Eliot Let. 23 Oct. (1954) II. 179 Of course many silly myths are already afloat about me, in addition to the truth, which of itself would be thought matter for scandal. 1885 Clodd Myths & Dr. 7 Myth was the product of man's emotion and imagination, acted upon by his surroundings. 1939 J. S. Huxley ‘Race’ in Europe 28 Napoleon, Shakespeare, Einstein, Galileo—a dozen great names spring to mind which in themselves should be enough to disperse the Nordic myth. The word myth is used advisedly, since this belief frequently plays a semi-religious role, as basis for a creed of passionate racialism. 1940 C. S. Lewis Problem of Pain v. 64, I offer the following picture—a ‘myth’ in the Socratic sense, a not unlikely tale. 1941 H. G. Wells You can't be too Careful v. i. 240 As the New Deal unfolded, American myth and reality began to take on an increasing parallelism with Europe. 1950 Scot. Jrnl. Theol. III. 37 To this inner fellowship of disciples the ‘mystery’ of the Kingdom of God is disclosed, whereas to outsiders this same Kingdom remains veiled in parables, remains, that is, a figure of speech, a colourful vision, an imaginative dream, or, as we might say, a myth. 1959 Listener 31 Dec. 1171/2 The theme of Sacrilege in Malaya‥is that any institution of this kind needs some myth, that is some nonsense, to make it work. 1961 Ibid. 2 Nov. 739/2 Disraeli set himself to recreate a national political party out of the wreckage of Peel's following. A new myth had to be evolved. 1963 Brit. Jrnl. Sociol. XIV. 27 We use myth in a sense a little different from the popular one. To us it does not mean an untrue or impossible tale, but a tale which is told to justify some aspect of social order or of human experience. 1973 Times 13 Nov. 6/6 There is a myth going around that there are an awful lot of empty houses in Windsor Great Park. Ibid. 4 Dec. 7/4 Egypt's decision to sit at the table with Israel would ‘shatter the myth’ surrounding Israel's constant call for ‘direct negotiations’.
Is it really hilarious? Because I'm willing to laugh at myself but my reading time is limited.
Ah. Cool. Thanks!
Is it atheism that is absurd or is it not believing in the god you believe in that is absurd? If the latter both atheists and other theists are absurd according to you so there's no point singling out atheists. That would just be unfair.
I'd prefer if you guys didnt talk. It makes my brain hurt.
Most people would prefer I didn't talk. More often than not, I'm one of them.
We need you to talk here!
Reading posts we don't understand embiggens us all.
Shadow Wolf
Certified People sTabber & Business Owner
Why would I waste my time on something that begins with a faulty assumption?
ThePainefulTruth
Romantic-Cynic
If there is no God, then the universe would ultimately be meaningless. I wouldn't call that absurd, just depressing. Deism, on the other hand, is the one worldview that offers hope without blind faith.
I'm right on board with you talking, I just prefer one of us to be drunk.
It's depressing to some, but not to me.
So I've no need to believe in deities.
How would your "meaning" be any more than or different from mine?
Reflex
Active Member
I think it is. I really envy the author's ability to see the humor in many of the arguments made by atheists that are more fitting for bumper stickers than serious discourse. It's a humorous though serious look at many of the things atheists say, like "Atheism is not a belief," "I just believe one fewer gods than you do," "Religion is for the weak." With titles like The Loch Ness Monster’s Moustache (or: The Terrible Consequences of Bad Arguments), The Scandinavian Sceptic (or: Why Atheism Really is a Belief System), The Aardvark in the Artichokes (or: Why Not All Gods are the Same),; and The Santa Delusion (or: Why Faith in God Does Not Mean You’re Insane), each chapter begins with a humorous short story that had me laughing while also making a point.
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And that is, in a nutshell, why most people believe in god, gods. Hope.
Ciao
- viole
Reflex
Active Member
LOL! Childish bravado that aims for the haystack! (Has to do with one of the opening stories in a chapter of the book I mentioned.)
Aim for That Haystack!
“Fun?” I asked sardonically.
“Yes! And a great way to raise money for charity, too. I love charity skydives; they put the ‘fun’ into ‘fundraising’.”
“Or ‘funeral’,” I muttered under my breath. I had spent my life avoiding skydiving, feeling a natural suspicion of any sport in which progress comes more through natural selection than practice. Indeed, I still wasn’t sure quite how I’d got talked into this. There’d been beer, there’d been talk of embarrassing photos from university days being released on Facebook, and then the guilt trip laid on me that, while I dithered, untold thousands were suffering. The Oxfam rep who had signed us up had grinned and said: “Think of it as win– win. If you live, you raise thousands of pounds for the starving. If it all goes badly wrong, the John Radcliffe Hospital gets your organs.”
A buzzer sounded loudly in the plane, pulling me back to the present. “Time to go!” said Dave. He had skydiven* many times before, so we were due to perform what’s called a tandem jump. Apparently, this doesn’t involve plunging to your doom on a bicycle made for two, but being strapped to the front of a bearded psychopath whose first words on leaping from the plane were “Geronimo!”
The wind whistled past my ears, we spun on multiple axes several times before we levelled off, and the whole of Oxfordshire opened out beneath us. I resisted the urge to throw up. I am of the opinion that the human brain is designed to deal with geography in small chunks: this is your village; this is the next farm, etc. A concept like this is the entire darned county is too much for our minds to process at once.
“What a view!” shouted Dave from somewhere behind me. He glanced at his watch, one of those clever gadgets that tells you everything apart from the time. Apparently it included a vertical speed indicator.
“Look at that!” he exclaimed. “We’ve achieved terminal velocity.”
“Have you ever reflected on how profoundly unhelpful a term that is?” I called back.
Well, the vertigo, nausea, and sheer general terror aside, the free-fall part of the jump went well. The view was, I had to admit, spectacular, and there was something exhilarating about flying like a bird. Even if the bird in question was one plummeting like a kakapo with concrete blocks strapped to its feet.
“Right,” shouted Dave, “time to think about landing. I’ll aim for that haystack, over there, at about two o’clock.”
“I’m sorry,” I yelled back. “You’ll do what?”
“I’ll aim for that haystack. Down there in that field behind the cemetery.”
“I realize I’m a newcomer to this,” I replied, with as much politeness as the fear and the rushing of the wind would allow, “but wouldn’t, er, a parachute be a better option?”
“Parachute!” Dave spluttered back, in the same kind of tone as if I’d suggested a wet herring. “Oh, puuurrrrleeease, you’re not one of those people who believe in parachutes?”
“Well, I was kind of hoping you were too, before I strapped myself to you and leapt out of a plane.”
“Parachutes are for the weak!”
“Happy to be counted among the weak,” I admitted. “Eagles may soar, but weasels don’t get sucked into jet engines; that’s my motto.”
(*Before linguistic pedants tell me that’s not a word, you try declining the verb “to skydive”.)
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Shadow Wolf
Certified People sTabber & Business Owner
How is it childish that some of us do not feel depressed over the lack of god in our lives?
Whuh?
ImmortalFlame
Woke gremlin
Er, what exactly is the message of that story trying to be? Because all I'm getting out of it is a poorly modified version of Pascal's wager.