Origin Story

Atheism: No God, What Now?


Listen Later

This time: the tumultuous history of Atheism. The concept has been around since the ancient world but for centuries it was demonised and suppressed. Who could believe such a thing? Ian Dunt and Dorian Lynskey track the ultimate heresy from the earliest days of western civilisation to the freethinkers of the Enlightenment and the bare-knuckle oratory of the New Atheists.

What’s the difference between atheism, agnosticism, secularism and deism? What does it stand for? Can it explain the world while also satisfying the need for meaning and community? Was totalitarianism the monstrous zenith of atheism or just a substitute religion?

Thomas Paine, Bertrand Russell, Percy Shelley, Albert Camus, Richard Dawkins and more feature in the story of the fight for the right not to believe in God.

Listen to next week’s episode right now when you support Origin Story on Patreon: www.Patreon.com/originstorypod 

  • “Every day around the world it is incalculable the amount of damage done by religions saying; you can’t go there, you can’t marry them, you can’t say that.” – Ian Dunt
  • “Declaring oneself an atheist is still a bold claim.” – Dorian Lynskey
  • “It’s quite a humbling experience to think it’s taken us 1,500 years to get back to the position we were in in 300AD.” – Ian Dunt


    Reading List:  

    Julian Baggini – Atheism: A Very Short Introduction 

    David Berman – A History of Atheism in Britain: From Hobbes to Russell 

    Albert Camus – The Myth of Sisyphus 

    John Gray – Seven Types of Atheism 

    Christopher Hitchens – God Is Not Great 

    Christopher Hitchens (ed.) – The Portable Atheist 

    Susan Jacoby – Freethinkers: A History of American Secularism 

    Percy Bysshe Shelley – The Necessity of Atheism 

    James Thrower – A Short History of Western Atheism 

    Tim Whitmarsh – Battling the Gods: Atheism in the Ancient World

    Richard Dawkins – The God Delusion


    Written and presented by Dorian Lynskey and Ian Dunt. Audio production and music by Jade Bailey. Logo art by Mischa Welsh. Episode art by James Parrett. Lead Producer is Anne-Marie Luff. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Origin Story is a Podmasters production.


    https://twitter.com/OriginStorycast  



    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    ...more
    View all episodesView all episodes
    Download on the App Store

    Origin StoryBy Podmasters

    • 4.8
    • 4.8
    • 4.8
    • 4.8
    • 4.8

    4.8

    90 ratings


    More shows like Origin Story

    View all
    Page 94: The Private Eye Podcast by Page 94: The Private Eye Podcast

    Page 94: The Private Eye Podcast

    355 Listeners

    Oh God, What Now? by Podmasters

    Oh God, What Now?

    189 Listeners

    Rock & Roll Politics with Steve Richards by Steve Richards

    Rock & Roll Politics with Steve Richards

    51 Listeners

    The Bunker – News without the nonsense by Podmasters

    The Bunker – News without the nonsense

    113 Listeners

    This Is Not A Drill with Gavin Esler by Podmasters

    This Is Not A Drill with Gavin Esler

    153 Listeners

    The Rest Is Politics by Goalhanger

    The Rest Is Politics

    3,088 Listeners

    The News Agents by Global

    The News Agents

    1,070 Listeners

    The Rest Is Politics: Leading by Goalhanger

    The Rest Is Politics: Leading

    838 Listeners

    Past Present Future by David Runciman

    Past Present Future

    324 Listeners

    Behind The Lines with Arthur Snell by Arthur Snell

    Behind The Lines with Arthur Snell

    43 Listeners

    The Rest Is Politics: US by Goalhanger

    The Rest Is Politics: US

    2,220 Listeners

    American Friction by Podmasters

    American Friction

    49 Listeners

    Quiet Riot by Alex Andreou, Naomi Smith, Kenny Campbell

    Quiet Riot

    41 Listeners

    Strong Message Here by BBC Radio 4

    Strong Message Here

    64 Listeners

    Alex Andreou's Podyssey by Alex Andreou

    Alex Andreou's Podyssey

    27 Listeners