There’s simply no polite way to tell people they’ve dedicated their lives to an illusion. — Daniel Dennett Copy Share Image
Most people in the West who say they believe in God actually believe in belief in God. — Daniel Dennett Copy Share Image
Darwin's idea of natural selection makes people uncomfortable because it reverses the direction of tradition. — Daniel Dennett Copy Share Image
People ache to believe that we human beings are vastly different from all other species - and they are right! We are… — Daniel Dennett Copy Share Image
I am inclined to think that nothing could matter more than what people love. At any rate, I can think of no… — Daniel Dennett Copy Share Image
I even agree that the concept of god helps some people lead better lives. That does happen. Don't ever forget it. I… — Daniel Dennett Copy Share Image
I think many people are terribly afraid of being demoted by the Darwinian scheme from the role of authors and creators in… — Daniel Dennett Copy Share Image
The traditional view of purpose says it comes from on high, from God, from the Creator. Darwin's idea of natural selection makes… — Daniel Dennett Copy Share Image
For more than a century, people have often thought that the conclusion to draw from Darwin's vision is that Homo sapiens, our… — Daniel Dennett Copy Share Image
Whereas religions may serve a benign purpose by letting many people feel comfortable with the level of morality they themselves can attain,… — Daniel Dennett Copy Share Image
When people ask me what philosophy is, I say philosophy is what you do when you don't know what the right questions… — Daniel Dennett Copy Share Image
I don't think the 9/11 attacks taught us anything we didn't already know about religion. It has long been obvious - even… — Daniel Dennett Copy Share Image
After Darwin, God's role changes from being the designer of all creatures great and small to being the designer of the laws… — Daniel Dennett Copy Share Image
Virtually every major technological advance in the history of the human species- back to the invention of stone tools and the domestication… — Daniel Dennett Copy Share Image
Virtually every major technological advance in the history of the human species- back to the invention of stone tools and the domestication of fire… — Daniel Dennett Copy Share
Churches have given us great treasures such as music and architecture. Whether that pays for the harm they have done is another matter. — Daniel Dennett Copy Share
The secret of happiness is: Find something more important than you are and dedicate your life to it. — Daniel Dennett Copy Share
Whereas religions may serve a benign purpose by letting many people feel comfortable with the level of morality they themselves can attain, no religion… — Daniel Dennett Copy Share
There's no polite way to say to somebody (religious followers) 'Do you realize you've wasted your life? — Daniel Dennett Copy Share
Wherever there is a design that is highly successful in a broad range of similar environments, it is apt to emerge again and again,… — Daniel Dennett Copy Share
The haven all memes depend on reaching is the human mind, but a human mind is itself an artifact created when memes restructure a… — Daniel Dennett Copy Share
In the beginning, there were no reasons; there were only causes. Nothing had a purpose, nothing has so much as a function; there was… — Daniel Dennett Copy Share
I look around the world and see so many wonderful things that I love and enjoy and benefit from, whether it's art or music… — Daniel Dennett Copy Share
In all mammalian species that have so far been carefully studied, the rate at which their members engage in the killing of conspecifics is… — Daniel Dennett Copy Share
Cults and prophets proclaiming the imminent end of the world have been with us for several millennia, and it has been another sour sort… — Daniel Dennett Copy Share
Consciousness is cerebral celebrity--nothing more and nothing less. Those contents are conscious that persevere, that monopolize resources long enough to achieve certain typical and… — Daniel Dennett Copy Share
People ache to believe that we human beings are vastly different from all other species - and they are right! We are different. We… — Daniel Dennett Copy Share
Minds are in limited supply, and each mind has a limited capacity for memes, and hence there is considerable competition among memes for entry… — Daniel Dennett Copy Share
