The Four Horsemen

December 15, 2018
A commemoration of the only extended conversation the four bestselling authors ever had.It was the loosest of confederations that united these "Four Horsemen" of the literary atheist apocalypse. The publication, around the same time, of bestselling challenges to organized religion by neuroscientist Harris, philosopher Dennett, biologist Dawkins, and journalist/essayist Hitchens linked them in the public's mind, as each of them participated in increasingly public debate on the ascendance of atheism and the decline of religious faith. The bulk of this slim volume is a transcript of a two-hour cocktail conversation among the four, in 2007, at the annual conference of the Atheist Alliance International, filmed by the Richard Dawkins Foundation for Reason and Science and subsequently available on DVD and YouTube. Padding what would otherwise be a 90-page transcript in large print are a biographical and contextual introduction by Stephen Fry ("sitting in on these dialogues...reminds us that open enquiry, free thinking and the unfettered exchange of ideas yield real and tangible fruit"), a new essay by Dawkins ("The Hubris of Religion, the Humility of Science, and the Intellectual and Moral Courage of Atheism"), and considerably shorter introductory pieces by Dennett and Harris. Though the conversation has plenty of wit and bite, it is the atheist equivalent of preaching to the choir, capable of reinforcing convictions but unlikely to topple or change any. It's a convivial conversation without agenda, as the four thinkers try to figure out what they're collectively trying to accomplish and what the best outcome might be. Dawkins takes the hardest line, hoping that organized religion will simply disappear as the world comes to its collective senses; Harris is the most mystical, confirming the sacred and practicing meditation while distancing both from God; Hitchens wants the debate to continue forever; and Dennett appreciates some of what churches do, though not what they believe.Mostly for devotees of the New Atheism. More than a decade later, not much has changed, as the faithful and the skeptics continue to talk past each other.

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In September 2007, four key proponents of New Atheism, popularly called the Four Horsemen, gathered for a two-hour filmed conversation in which they both explained their atheistic positions and addressed criticisms from theistic opponents. The discussion among Richard Dawkins (evolutionary biologist and ethologist), Christopher Hitchens (journalist, essayist, and political historian), Sam Harris (neuroscientist and moralist), and Daniel Dennett (philosopher) was viewed widely on YouTube. This book contains the entire transcript of that influential meeting as well as current reflections and comments by the group's three surviving members, as Hitchens died in 2011. Having the conversation available in book format is beneficial since current statements can be examined more closely and compared with arguments found in other writings. As the ideas of New Atheism in general and those of these four authors have received significant criticism over the years, revisiting the meeting allows these scholars to respond to criticism and contemporary readers to reflect anew on their ideas. VERDICT Spanning religion and philosophy, this work will appeal to readers of both, especially those interested in atheism and apologetics.--John Jaeger, Johnson Univ., Knoxville, TN

February 15, 2019
Most of this small book is taken up by a transcription of the only discussion that the four-man vanguard of the new atheism ever had. Not open to the public, it was yet meant for the public and probably has had more watchers on YouTube than the best-sellers of its participants?Christopher Hitchens, Richard Dawkins, Daniel Dennett, and Sam Harris?have had readers. The conversation's opening topic is how science purportedly offends religion, and it closes in concern with ongoing, religiously powered conflict in Palestine. The bases touched in between arise from contrasting faith and reason, superstition and theory, and?what may surprise some?discussing the aspects and products of religion that must be conserved. Besides the talk, the three remaining interlocutors (Hitchens died in 2011) contribute new essays. Dennett on the new atheism's progress and Harris on the Zika virus are quite brief, but Dawkins expands on The Hubris of Religion, the Humility of Science, and the Intellectual and Moral Courage of Atheism. All three miss Hitch, who in these pages remains the best communicator of the four.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2019, American Library Association.)