In her enlightening Introduction, Sarah Bakewell presents one of the risks of being a Humanist today:
“…Pakistani humanIsts have been killed mostly by vigilante mobs, with the authorities looking away. A notorious case occurred in…2017: the student Mashal Khan, who posted on social media as “The Humanist,” was beaten to death by fellow students.” (p. 6)
Bakewell warns that “anti-humanism” is on the rise and threatens democracy and the planet in general. While Bakewell provides a number of definitions of Humanism in her Introduction, the one I liked best is: “Humanists…prefer to guide their lives by their own moral conscience, or by evidence, or by their social or political responsibilities to others, rather than by dogmas justified solely by reference to authority.” (p. 22)
I’ve enjoyed Sarah Bakewell’s work in the past. You can read my review of her AT THE EXISTENTIALIST CAFE: FREEDOM, BEING, AND APRICOT COCKTAILS here. Highly recommended!
Most of Humanly Possible explores humanists from Erasmus to Bertrand Russell, from Voltaire to Zora Neal Hurston. With the current rise in opposition to freedom, and diversity, and women’s rights Bakewell’s book arrives at a key moment to provide hope and strength to defend Humanism. Are you a Humanist? GRADE: A
TABLE OF CONTENTS:
Only connect! An introduction — 1
- The land of the living — 25
2. Raising ships — 55
3. Provocateurs and pagans — 86
4. Marvelous network — 120
5. Human stuff — 136
6. Perpetual miracles — 163
7. Sphere for all human beings — 195
8. Unfolding humanity — 220
9. Some dream-country — 248
10. Doctor hopeful — 278
11. The human face — 304
12. The place to be happy — 342
Acknowledgments — 369
Appendix: Declaration of modern humanism (Humanists International, 2022) — 371
NOTES — 375
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS — 433
INDEX — 437
Well, as an atheist and not (though too often irritable) a misanthrope, I will tend toward humanism. Not to the extent of being a chauvinist for our species, but we have to get to the DJTs of the world before I’d trade a human life for that of a, say, polar bear.
It’s only sporadically “safe” to be anything in this country, and it’s even less so where the default runs to I Get to Kill You because it’s showing how much a team player I am…not that that doesn’t operate entirely too much in this country, as well. See that chauvinism (which has never been solely about sexual/gender chauvinism, and hasn’t been solely about nationalism since Chauvin was cited as a model) remark above.
Todd, I think you would find HUMANLY POSSIBLE both fascinating and contentious. We seem to be regressing in the Freethinking, inquiry, and hope areas.
Oh, the regression toward the Vicious vs. the Mean has always been with us and as active in the past as it is now. Entirely too often it has been Official Policy of our supposedly liberal or freedom-loving government bodies, as, certainly, aggrieved members of most ethnic and sexual minorities, among so many others, might justly note. Reservations, Jim Crow, internment of Japanese-Americans and German and Italians who hadn’t quite gotten their green cards by WW2, as well as turning away Jewish and other refugees from the Nazis comes quickly to mind. We haven’t ever been free of all this phobic madness, nor the institutional elitist condescension and worse that helps the reactionary resentment to fester.
Todd, none of the above actually happened. If it had, they would be teaching it in Florida schools.
Todd, the Founding Fathers believed in Limited Government for a reason: they did not trust humanity or democracy. The US was supposed to be a Republic.
“A sect or party is an elegant incognito devised to save a man from the vexation of thinking.” — Ralph Waldo Emerson
Jerry, we’re seeing that Emerson was so right with the MAGA crowd hounding us.
What Jerry (and Ralph Waldo) said.
Neoliberals only somewhat better. At least their resentment tends to be against “only” the poor and just-getting-by.
Todd, the key Election question for 2024 is Immigration. FOX News presents a new immigration horror story each hour they broadcast. FOX News loves interviews with Republicans and Conservatives who predict the destruction of America unless the Border Crisis is solved (but they don’t want it solved before the 2024 Election–it’s their main campaign issue!).