LEADER 04580nam 2200721 450 001 9910458946003321 005 20211005031919.0 010 $a1-280-45155-6 010 $a0-19-802336-7 010 $a0-19-535680-2 010 $a1-4237-5887-0 035 $a(CKB)1000000000401132 035 $a(EBL)4700501 035 $a(SSID)ssj0000152742 035 $a(PQKBManifestationID)11165166 035 $a(PQKBTitleCode)TC0000152742 035 $a(PQKBWorkID)10392463 035 $a(PQKB)10851598 035 $a(SSID)ssj0000359936 035 $a(PQKBManifestationID)12132164 035 $a(PQKBTitleCode)TC0000359936 035 $a(PQKBWorkID)10337638 035 $a(PQKB)11780352 035 $a(MiAaPQ)EBC271440 035 $a(MiAaPQ)EBC4700501 035 $a(Au-PeEL)EBL4700501 035 $a(CaPaEBR)ebr11272864 035 $a(OCoLC)960164676 035 $a(MiAaPQ)EBC1591201 035 $a(Au-PeEL)EBL1591201 035 $a(OCoLC)252559444 035 $a(EXLCZ)991000000000401132 100 $a20161011h19931993 uy 0 101 0 $aeng 135 $aur|n|---||||| 181 $ctxt 182 $cc 183 $acr 200 10$aFaces in the clouds $ea new theory of religion /$fStewart Elliott Guthrie 210 1$aNew York ;$aOxford, [England] :$cOxford University Press,$d1993. 210 4$dİ1993 215 $a1 online resource (335 p.) 300 $aDescription based upon print version of record. 311 $a0-19-506901-3 311 $a0-19-509891-9 320 $aIncludes bibliographical references and index. 327 $aContents; Introduction; 1. The Need for a Theory; 2. Animism, Perception, and the Effort After Meaning; 3. The Origin of Anthropomorphism; 4. Anthropomorphism as Perception; 5. Anthropomorphism in the Arts; 6. Anthropomorphism in Philosophy and Science; 7. Religion as Anthropomorphism; Notes; References; Figure Credits; Index; A; B; C; D; E; F; G; H; I; J; K; L; M; N; O; P; R; S; T; U; V; W; X; Y; Z 330 $aReligion is universal human culture. No phenomenon is more widely shared or more intensely studied, yet there is no agreement on what religion is. Now, in Faces in the Clouds, anthropologist Stewart Guthrie provides a provocative definition of religion in a bold and persuasive new theory. Guthrie says religion can best be understood as systematic anthropomorphism--that is, the attribution of human characteristics to nonhuman things and events. Many writers see anthropomorphism as common or even universal in religion, but few think it is central. To Guthrie, however, it is fundamental. Religion, he writes, consists of seeing the world as humanlike. As Guthrie shows, people find a wide range of humanlike beings plausible: Gods, spirits, abominable snowmen, HAL the computer, Chiquita Banana. We find messages in random events such as earthquakes, weather, and traffic accidents. We say a fire "rages," a storm "wreaks vengeance," and waters "lie still." Guthrie says that our tendency to find human characteristics in the nonhuman world stems from a deep-seated perceptual strategy: in the face of pervasive (if mostly unconscious) uncertainty about what we see, we bet on the most meaningful interpretation we can. If we are in the woods and see a dark shape that might be a bear or a boulder, for example, it is good policy to think it is a bear. If we are mistaken, we lose little, and if we are right, we gain much. So, Guthrie writes, in scanning the world we always look for what most concerns us--livings things, and especially, human ones. Even animals watch for human attributes, as when birds avoid scarecrows. In short, we all follow the principle--better safe than sorry. Marshalling a wealth of evidence from anthropology, cognitive science, philosophy, theology, advertising, literature, art, and animal behavior, Guthrie offers a fascinating array of 330 8 $aexamples to show how this perceptual strategy pervades secular life and how it characterizes religious experience. Challenging the very foundations of religion, Faces in the Clouds forces us to take a new look at this fundamental element of human life. 606 $aAnthropomorphism 606 $aReligion$vControversial literature 608 $aElectronic books. 615 0$aAnthropomorphism. 615 0$aReligion 676 $a211 700 $aGuthrie$b Stewart$f1941-$01042065 801 0$bMiAaPQ 801 1$bMiAaPQ 801 2$bMiAaPQ 906 $aBOOK 912 $a9910458946003321 996 $aFaces in the clouds$92466014 997 $aUNINA