Darwin, God, and the meaning of life : how evolutionary theory undermines everything you thought you knew / Steve Stewart-Williams.

"If you accept evolutionary theory, can you also believe in God? Are human beings superior to other animals, or is this just a human prejudice? Does Darwin have implications for heated issues like euthanasia and animal rights? Does evolution tell us the purpose of life or does it imply that life has no ultimate purpose? Does evolution tell us what is morally right and wrong or does it imply that ultimately nothing is right or wrong? In this fascinating and intriguing book, Steve Stewart-Williams addresses these and other fundamental philosophical questions raised by evolutionary theory and the exciting new field of evolutionary psychology. Drawing on biology, psychology and philosophy, he argues that Darwinian science supports a view of a godless universe devoid of ultimate purpose or moral structure, but that we can still live a good life and a happy life within the confines of this view"-- Provided by publisher.

"Evolutionary theory answers one of the most profound and fundamental questions human beings have ever asked themselves, a question that has plagued reflective minds for as long as reflective minds have existed in the universe: Why are we here? How did we come to exist on this planet? In a lot of ways, this is a very ordinary planet"-- Provided by publisher.

Cambridge ; New York : Cambridge University Press, 2010.

ix, 341 pages ; 24 cm

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Machine generated contents note: 1. Darwin and the big questions; Part I. Darwin Gets Religion: 2. Clash of the Titans; 3. Darwin and design; 4. Darwin's God; 5. God as gap filler; 6. Darwin and the problem of evil; 7. Wrapping up religion; Part II. Life After Darwin: 8. Human beings and their place in nature; 9. The status of human beings in nature; 10. Meaning of life, RIP?; Part III. Morality Stripped of Superstition: 11. Evolving good; 12. Remaking morality; 13. Uprooting the doctrine of human dignity; 14. Evolution and the death of right and wrong.