Given that the subject of our Freud episode was Civilization and its Discontents, we were pretty quick regarding Freud's specific points on religion, which are pretty interesting in themselves, in that his view is for practical purposes very much in line with the modern scientism of someone like Dawkins but acknowledges elements of Kantian agnosticism. For a refresher, here's a short quiz I found on the web that puts forth the basic points in a painless manner.
Why would you want to answer quiz questions instead of just reading a two paragraph summary, that I could write right here? Well, because it's like a Choose-Your-Own-Adventure, and who doesn't like those? (Do you young people under 30 even remember those?) Just like when reading one of those books, I suggest you click on all the wrong answers first, as the author Harry Gensler, philosophy prof. at John Caroll University in Cleveland) here gives a few interesting remarks like "that's not Freud's view but it is the view of this guy and this other guy."
If you like this, Gensler has a number of other quizzes and study aids on ethics, philosophy of religion, and several of the figures we have covered or will cover in the podcast.
To learn more about Freud's view here, take a gander at his book The Future of an Illusion (Buy it here).
-Mark Linsenmayer
[…] presents a big book of anecdotes about terrible things done in the name of religion. Like Freud, he thinks the fundamental tenets of the worlds religion are superstitions that adults in the […]