Hating God: The Untold Story of Misotheism

Bernard Schweizer

Nov 2010 · Oxford University Press

About this ebook

While atheists such as Richard Dawkins have now become public figures, there is another and perhaps darker strain of religious rebellion that has remained out of sight--people who hate God. In this revealing book, Bernard Schweizer looks at men and women who do not question God's existence, but deny that He is merciful, competent, or good. Sifting through a wide range of literary and historical works, Schweizer finds that people hate God for a variety of reasons. Some are motivated by social injustice, human suffering, or natural catastrophes that God does not prevent. Some blame God for their personal tragedies. Schweizer concludes that, despite their blasphemous thoughts, these people tend to be creative and moral individuals, and include such literary lights as Friedrich Nietzsche, Mark Twain, Zora Neale Hurston, Rebecca West, Elie Wiesel, and Philip Pullman. Schweizer shows that literature is a fertile ground for God haters. Many authors, who dare not voice their negative attitude to God openly, turn to fiction to give vent to it. Indeed, Schweizer provides many new and startling readings of literary masterpieces, highlighting the undercurrent of hatred for God. Moreover, by probing the deeper mainsprings that cause sensible, rational, and moral beings to turn against God, Schweizer offers answers to some of the most vexing questions that beset human relationships with the divine.

Ratings and reviews

Schweizer’s book opens a new chapter in the study of religious dissent and its manifestations in literature. This is a revealing look at the background and the history of one of the most unacceptable religious stances. The hatred of God is surprisingly widespread among bright minds and talented artists since the turn of the nineteenth century, from Blake and Shelley to Mark Twain, Zora Neale Hurston, and Philip Pullman. Schweizer shows how the theme developed over time and how it is manifested locally in works of art and in philosophical treatises. An eye-opening read that can make you question your received ideas about man’s relationship to the divine.

A. No. It is a book of literary criticism and it is not meant for the general reader. It was published by Oxford University and it targets certain academics, namely, those in the same field as Bernard. Q. So as a general reader you did not get much out of it? A. That is correct. I felt like I was wallowing in a literature class. Or maybe philosophy. Bernard seems to be expanding on his dissertation topic, or whatever. But the book never touches on the relationship of you, the reader, with a god figure. However, to give him credit, Bernard does make you think about this relationship. Still, why try to understand god through these literary figures? I have never read them: Proudhon, Hurston, Rebecca West, Philip Pullman, Elie Wiesel, others. Q. These are important figures in the world of letters. Why have you not read them? A. I was not an English or literature major. Rather, psychology was my field, and I was hoping to gain insight into the psychology of religion or the picture of god in the minds of people. I did not find it in this book. Overall, this book is a boring piece of academia, though I am sure people in the same field as Bernard can get more than I did from it.

About the author

Bernard Schweizer is Associate Professor of English at Long Island University. He is the author of Rebecca West: Heroism, Rebellion, and the Female Epic and Radicals on the Road: The Politics of English Travel Writing in the 1930s.