Analysis Of The Book ' A Hitchhikers Guide On The Galaxy '

William James maintains that pure reason is never the final factor of what we believe. He states that our emotions and desires partially determine what beliefs we have. We can, through will, have belief in any live hypothesis. A dead hypothesis means we have previously exercised our will in a certain way, like by being influenced by the opinions of those around us and chose to belief the hypothesis is inapplicable. James notes that we have the duty to believe the truth and the duty to not believe the false. In order to believe the truth, we must have beliefs and so we risk having false beliefs.

As the human race makes life-changing discoveries, it is made apparent that there is always more to learn as the universe, instead of becoming familiar, is becoming absurd. The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, written by Douglas Adams, as well as the 2005 film adaption, portrays absurdity to be an all-encompassing system in the universe. Through the introduction and attempt to understand lack of reason, the narration of important elements and the human perception of the universe, the novel is as a whole, more complete than the film. With these points it is irrefutable that The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy develops the theme of absurdity with greater prowess than the film, resulting in a deeper

What is the meaning of life? This has been a topic that has been greatly debated and discussed for as long as anyone can remember. Many people believe that happiness is the key to life and living a good life. Although achieving happiness can be difficult and it is another topic that no one really has a clear definition of and no one knows how to truly acquire it and can actually differ from person to person. John Steinbeck actually asks a question about happiness and in the story Cannery Row by John Steinbeck there are many different characters who… seem to have quirky personalities. While these characters do seem to live a tough life and don’t seem to have very much as far as money they are actually happy and content with their lives.

William James explains his position on religious belief by relating his idea to that of Pascal’s. He does think that is reasonable to believe in God without evidence, but not based on Pascal’s wager which is to base your belief on cost-benefit analysis; James thinks this is wrong because it is not live. James does think it is permissible to believe without evidence when we have a genuine option that cannot by its nature be decided on intellectual grounds. That is when our passional nature takes over and decides the matter. James states how when he is explaining passional nature he means “all factors of belief as ear and hope, prejudice and passion, imitation and partisanship, the circumpressure of our caste and set,” and then says that when we find ourselves believing we don’t know how or why. James begins his paper by explaining is stance on belief by writing that anything that may be proposed to our belief is a hypothesis. He goes on to explain that the decision of two hypotheses is an option. There are several options: living if both possibilities appeal as real possibilities for the agent, forced if it is unavoidable, and momentous if it is not trivial. He states that religion is a momentous option, and that “we are supposed to gain, even now, by our belief, and to lose by our non-belief, a certain vital good.” He then goes on to say that religion is also a forced option; we cannot remain skeptical and wait for a greater evidence to believe. However, he does say that

The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy single-handedly answers the question to the meaning of life in a mere 220 pages. The answer to this perplexing question is 42 (Adams 180), but ironically it is impossible to know what the question itself entails. For, according to Douglas Adams, if any one person knows the meaning of the question and the answer at the same time, the Universe will start over and become even weirder than it already is. His theory may seem irrational, but just wait, it gets even better. Imagine going on a crazy, wild interstellar adventure with the threat of death around every corner. If given only one item to take along, a towel would be at the top of the list, right? Well, according to the Guide, a towel is incredibly

Joseph, I like your conclusion statement and to talk a little bit more about beliefs, James retains that pure reason is certainly not the ultimate root of what people believe. The non-intelligent elements of people mind like desires partly decide what beliefs people have. People can via will evoke belief in any live hypothesis which are dead for all of us since human beings have formerly used their will in a particular manner. To me, William James does embrace, and develops a very influential argument to support his thesis, that people do not have the mental influence to will a belief to be dead/ alive. That is to say, in the conclusion, people cannot actually "choose" their beliefs just as people desire. Due to the fact that that majority

have faith that they will wake up the next day in a good mood, despite

In the essay “The Will to Believe”, William James criticizes the views of W.K Clifford, who held the belief that no one should ever go beyond evidence when forming an opinion. James thinks that our reasoning has to sometimes use other considerations apart from what the evidence points to. He claims that if our primary aim is to have true beliefs, then we sometimes have to take the risk of believing without strong evidence and let our passion decide or we are guaranteed to believe in the wrong things all the time.

Upon reading William Clifford’s essay “The Ethics of Belief” and George Santayana’s essay on James in “Character and Opinion in the United States”, we now critically analyze James’s argument in favor of religious belief in his essay “The Will to Believe”. After briefly explaining the underlying descriptors that are entrenched in formulating a hypothesis in becoming a firm belief, we’ll further follow up on applying them to his notion of religion and the potential it has on an individual, as well as the antithetical approach provided by William Clifford.

William James, in an article, expresses his views in the title, “Will to Believe.” He classifieds our beliefs as hypothesis’. These hypothesis are either alive or dead and alive meaning the hypothesis appeals to a real possibility by whom it’s proposed to. He believes when making appeals of hypothesis we always make reference to ones beliefs no matter how small. James presents all of this is a fort of one or the other. He allows no room for an “in-between” and one must make a choice. Essentially, James believes when coming about conflicts our decisions are forced options, and one must live with the option they choose.

In the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy Book and movie, there were many elements of science and many differences between the Book and Movie. Each interpretation has its quirks and differences, making each format unique and humorous. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy Book certainly touched on many elements of the scientific method, scientists as a whole, and experimentation. There were many elements that are possible scientifically, as well as many things that are simply impossible as we know it. Finally, the Book and Movie were very different in terms of plot, and I believe that the book was better because of the reasons I will address below at a later time.

The Will to Believe is a philosophical essay written by William James. In the book, James focused on the concepts of genuine choice and forced beliefs. His argument is that individuals have choices to believe; however, those choices are shaped around ‘facts and forced beliefs. He also argues on religious hypotheses and the concept of belief without reason.

William James’ responds to Clifford in his essay title, “The Will to Believe.” (Burger, 2008) As we learned, Clifford argues it is wrong to believe anything without sufficient evidence; whereas, James’ argument is in some cases, despite insufficient evidence, it is still justified to believe. James discusses hypothesis in his argument. Said hypothesis can either be alive or dead. Additionally, there are decisive options for the hypotheses. These options include living or dead, forced or avoidable, and momentous or trivial. An option that is living, forced, and momentous, is a genuine option. Essentially, live or dead hypotheses are separated by how it interests the person. In other words, the emotional reaction or connection to the

What the Will to Believe is advocating is one can morally or rationally believe in God or something, even if there is not sufficient intellectual evidence for such a belief.

The meaning of life is something some people may spend their lives trying to uncover and may come out unsuccessful. Some claim to have it all figured out while others are left seeking it to no end. It may be an extreme philosophy derived from one of the vast religions across the ever modernizing world. Or it could be so simple you could stumble on to it without even realizing it. Throughout literature poets from all kinds of backgrounds have different takes on this issue.