Book review
Breaking the Spell
Dennett asks how religion can be studied scientifically, considering its origins, social effects and role in morality and meaning. An appreciated empirical approach, raising questions about religious belief.
Breaking the Spell by Daniel Dennett is a great exploration of religion. What it does best is ask questions and look at religion in a new way.
The Wikipedia outline in my original notes divides the book into three parts: whether science can and should study religion; possible evolutionary and memetic accounts of its origins; and questions about morality, meaning and what to teach children. It also notes that more empirical research is needed.
Dennett doesn’t take a hard stance, or at least not as far as I read it, but he makes a case for being more hostile towards religion, including its teaching to children. There are many more questions to answer, and I hope the book encourages people to pursue them.