Isaac Asimov Religion In The Foundation

819 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Francis bacon essays of truth

Isaac Asimov considers himself to be a rationalist, believing in concepts that are supported with evidence. He does not believe in conclusions that cannot be reached without the use of the scientific method or the rule of reason. As such, Asimov does not believe in the existence of a higher god and is agnostic in his religious beliefs. This viewpoint transcends Asimov into his novel, Foundation. In the narrative, science is presented as a religion, using satirical supernatural beliefs to spread scientific knowledge to the kingdoms of the Foundation empire while remaining an insignificant concept to the people of Terminus. The religion is introduced as the Foundation’s way of guaranteeing the acceptance of scientific knowledge within the empire. The character, Lewis Bort, explains this through his experience on Anacreon within the third part of the novel:

The priesthood has sole control of the instruments of science we have given Anacreon, but they’ve learned to handle these tools only empirically. They believe in this religion entirely…For instance, two …show more content…

The scientific concepts were taught to the priests of the neighboring kingdoms as religious values in the name of the “Galactic Spirit” (130). The people of Terminus know the religion to be a hoax, crafted by Salvor Hardin to unite the empire. This concept is directly related to Asimov’s rationalist beliefs. Asimov believes there is not enough evidence to conclude the existence of higher beings; however, he does believe in the existence of science and its direct conclusions. As such, he has chosen to incorporate these ideals by crafting this scientific religion as it holds scientific backing. There are always; however, those who choose to deny empirical facts. Religious concepts are held as the ultimate truth, influencing more people within a

Show More
Related

  • Ethos, Logos, And Purpose In Albert Einstein's Letter

    397 Words  | 1 Pages

    In 1936 a sixth-grade student by the name of Phyllis Wright wondered if scientists pray, and if so, what for. She decided to ask one of the greatest scientists of all time, Albert Einstein. A while later he wrote a letter back to Phyllis with his response. Understanding the context and purpose of his response assist in analyzing its effectiveness. After receiving a letter from such a young student, Einstein aimed to provide Phyllis with a comprehensible answer. He intended for his response not to sway her in one way or another, but to explain science and religion do not necessarily contradict each other completely. By using appeals to ethos, pathos, and logos, Einstein achieved his purpose by articulating a response suitable for a sixth grade

    Read More

  • Buddhism in China

    807 Words  | 2 Pages

    acceptance of it. Without imperial approval the religion was doomed to failure in such a

    Read More

  • The First Ammendment and Dealing with the Separation of Church and State

    1739 Words  | 4 Pages

    of this paper I am going to focus on the establishment of religion above mentioned in the

    Read More

  • Religion In Brave New World Essay

    1551 Words  | 4 Pages

    Religious Repression In what ways do countries differing religions affect our ever changing society? Does our diversity, combined with our lack of resources and overpopulation, ensure constant violence? I believe that the religious persecution of certain nations has been nothing more than denial of a human right. In Brave New World, Huxley predicts an all powerful government: “the world state”.

    Read More

  • Summary Of Jane Goodall's In The Forests Of Gombe

    1336 Words  | 3 Pages

    Religion is the belief and worshipping of a supernatural force like God. Religion explains most things that science cannot explain or prove. Goodall says that by the time she was twenty seven, her beliefs had already “molded” (145) so she was not influenced by the beliefs of the other scientists. While other scientists were either agnostic or atheist, Goodall was a Christian who believed in God. Goodall’s belief helped her get through the death of her husband. Feelings cannot be logically explained or proven. Science cannot prove the existence of feelings such as anger and grievance. Goodall says,” I was glad to be away from Dar es Salaam,with all its sad associations”(146). She had to get away because everything reminded her of her dead husband, Derek. She was “lost in awe” (Goodall 147) to the area surrounding her. She said that she “merged” (Goodall 147) with the spirit power of life itself. She also says that “self” (Goodall 147) was absent during her epiphany. It was only after she made it to Gombe, that she was able to “cope” (Goodall 150) with the death of her second husband, Derek. The religious window is the second part of the two parts to Jane Goodall’s concept of “windows.” With only the religious window, there are flaws to her

    Read More

  • Brave New World - The Basis of Religion

    609 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the novel "Brave New World" civilized society lives in a world of science and technology. Major changes have occurred during the future; Utopia now revolves a religion of drugs and sex. God and the cross have been replaced by Ford and the symbol T, the founder of the age of machines. Instead of Sunday church, members now attend solidarity services where morals and tradition are not learned, but rather faith is taught in the belief of hallucinations produced by a substance known as "soma." Soma has effectively replaced the belief in a higher being by its elimination of problems and stress resulting in a lack of imagination , creativity, or "soul." Yet religion can still be found in today's society because of man's continuing need for answers to questions that cannot be solved by science or technology.

    Read More

  • Viking Religion

    1916 Words  | 4 Pages

    Religion comes from religare, which means have a reunion. Aneel Baquer says that humans have a need to connect with others, the ability of myths and thoughts of religion is a desire that humans need to bond. In most civilizations, religion is the reason why civilizations are successful. Religion give, people a motive to survive or do what they do. Sometimes the religions actually make their civilization expand and even more successful. not only does religion give us a motive to survive. Still today, religion is one of the biggest factors in modern civilizations. In several religion motives are used for example, christianity. In christianity to meet with god, you must do good. Religion can change a persons personality by aiding from stress, to giving hope. Religion can also reduce the fear of death. In ancient civilizations, egyptians did not fear death. In their religion they believed that living on earth was the beginning of life. Once dead it sends you to the beginning of happiness or horrible. Religion can also expand. If you have a strong connection to your religion, some people spread the word of their religion to other people. It also teaches manners and the difference between the good, and the evil. Vikings were such a significant civilization than any other because of their religion. Religion for the vikings have given them motivation to expand territories, learn between the good and the bad, and not to fear death but to welcome death; reasons why are from being taught was from viking mythology, heroic people and their warlike god.

    Read More

  • The Evolution of Religion

    1331 Words  | 3 Pages

    Berger, Peter L. The Sacred Canopy: Elements of a Sociological Theory of Religion. New York: Anchor, 1967. Print.

    Read More

  • Science versus Religion in Cat’s Cradle

    1425 Words  | 3 Pages

    “The idea that philosophy and science can be combined to give us the best possible knowledge about the world and how to act within it is an old one, encapsulated by the classic concept of scientia, a Latin word that means knowledge” (Pigliucci 6). In the book Cat’s Cradle the main topic of debate is clearly science versus religion. In many ways, these two topics are very different, but in others, they are quite similar. Both science and religion have a common goal, to find truth in the world. The main character of Cat’s Cradle is a man named John. At the beginning of the book, John is a Christian who is doing research on Felix Hoenikker, the maker of the atomic bomb. His attempt to learn about the science behind the bomb leads him to a religion called Bokononism. In this book, Bokononism is not like other religions. It is more of a mindset that attempts to explain the world and why unexplainable things happen. John’s gradual transition from Christianity, a religion that focuses on getting into heaven, to Bokononism, a mindset that strives to explain the world and gain knowledge about it, is a perfect example of how religion or science by itself does not supply knowledge. Scientists and religions experts try to explain the world through different ways. Scientists try to explain life with true facts, and religious people believe that a supernatural force who assigns purpose to everyones lives. Even though they are different, both groups try to explain the world and give purpose to their lives.

    Read More

  • Religion In Sociology Essay

    1605 Words  | 4 Pages

    Religion and science are complementary elements to our society. The notion that religion and science should not be merged together, does not mean neglecting to understand the parallel relation between these two concepts and will result in a better understanding of our surroundings. This will put an end to our scientific research and advancement because we will be relying on answers provided by religious books to answer our questions. If we don’t argue whether these answers are right or wrong, we would never have studied space stars or the universe or even our environment and earthly animals. These studies have always provided us with breakthroughs, inventions and discoveries that made our lives better.

    Read More

  • Argumentative Essay On The Scientific Revolution

    1361 Words  | 3 Pages

    ...wever, in the best interest of advancing education and an enlightened society, science must be pursued outside of the realm of faith and religion. There are obvious faith-based and untestable aspects of religion, but to interfere and cross over into everyday affairs of knowledge should not occur in the informational age. This overbearing aspect of the Church’s influence was put in check with the scientific era, and the Scientific Revolution in a sense established the facet of logic in society, which allows us to not only live more efficiently, but intelligently as well. It should not take away from the faith aspect of religion, but serve to enhance it.

    Read More

  • Albert Camus and his Idea of Religion

    1197 Words  | 3 Pages

    Albert Camus was an existentialist. He was also not a religious person and even though he was born and raised a Catholic; he soon quit his religious faith and turned into an atheist, believing that religion was “philosophical suicide”. He described his attitude toward religion in the lines “I would rather live my life as if there is a God and die to find out there isn't, than live my life as if there isn't and die to find out there is.” Yet, it is seen that even though he denied being an existentialist, he is seen to have ‘brooded over such questions as the meaning of life in the face of death.’ “Men are convinced of your arguments, your sincerity, and the seriousness of your efforts only by your death.” This quote shows that Camus believed death was what created people in society and brought their life into the spotlight.

    Read More

  • Functionalism And Religion Essay

    1620 Words  | 4 Pages

    Functionalists believe religion is a conservative force that performs positive functions of promoting social integration and social solidarity through the reinforcement of value consensus. In this essay I will draw on ideas from Durkheim, Malinowski, Parsons and Bellah. I will then evaluate these theorists with Marxist, feminist and postmodernist perspectives in order to assess the extent functionalism helps us to understand religion today.

    Read More

  • The Nature of Faith

    1299 Words  | 3 Pages

    In many aspects of our lives, the use of faith as a basis for knowledge can be found. Whether it is faith in the advice of your teacher, faith in a God or faith in a scientific theory, it is present. But what is faith? A definition of faith in a theory of knowledge context is the confident belief or trust in a knowledge claim by a knower, without the knower having conclusive evidence. This is because if a knowledge claim is backed up by evidence, then we would use reason rather than faith as a basis for knowledge . If we define knowledge as ‘justified true belief’, it can be seen that faith, being without justification, can never fulfill this definition, and so cannot be used as a reliable basis for knowledge. However, the question arises, what if a certain knowledge claim lies outside of the realm of reason? What if a knowledge claim cannot be justified by empirical evidence and reasoning alone, such as a religious knowledge claim? It is then that faith allows the knower to decide what is knowledge and what is not, when something cannot be definitively proved through the use of evidence. When assessing faith as a basis for knowledge in the natural sciences, the fact arises that without faith in the research done before us, it is impossible to develop further knowledge on top of it. Yet at the same time, if we have unwavering faith in existing theories, they would never be challenged, and so our progress of knowledge in the natural sciences would come to a standstill. Although I intend to approach this essay in a balanced manner, this essay may be subject to a small degree of bias, due to my own non-religious viewpoint.

    Read More

  • Religion and Civilization

    1234 Words  | 3 Pages

    Religion helps establish mankind’s place in the order of the universe. As civilization began to be established through the domestication of animals, the irrigation and cultivation of agricultural crops, and life became more complex (moving from mainly a hunter/gather existence to one that could settle down and have more time to consider advanced ideas) people began to consider questions such as, where life comes from, is there a creator or creators who helped make the world, and what happens after we die. Religion helped answer some of these questions. It gave people purpose, meaning, and perspective. Religion helped establish nations in the case of religious theocratic governments. In many of the ancient civilizations, such as the Egyptians, the Mayans, and even Mesopotamia, the priests and other religious leaders played prominent roles in help shaping the laws and government of these civilizations. As his...

    Read More

More about Isaac Asimov Religion In The Foundation

Open Document