Includes bibliographical references and index

Atheism in antiquity / Jan N. Bremmer -- Atheism in modern history / Gavin Hyman -- Atheism : contemporary numbers and patterns / Phil Zuckerman -- Theistic critiques of atheism / William Lane Craig -- The failure of classical theistic arguments / Richard M. Gale -- Some contemporary theistic arguments / Keith Parsons -- Naturalism and physicalism / Evan Fales -- Atheism and evolution / Daniel C. Dennett -- The autonomy of ethics / David O. Brink -- The argument from evil / Andrea M. Weisberger -- Kalam cosmological argument for atheism / Quentin Smith -- Impossibility arguments / Patrick Grim -- Atheism and religion / Michael Martin -- Feminism and atheism / Christine Overall -- Atheism and the freedom of religion / Steven G. Gey -- Atheism, a/theology and the postmodern condition / John D. Caputo -- Anthropological theories of religion / Stewart E. Guthrie -- Atheists : a psychological profile / Benjamin Beit-Hallahmi

In this volume, eighteen of the world's leading scholars present original essays on various aspects of atheism: its history, both ancient and modern, defense and implications. The topic is examined in terms of its implications for a wide range of disciplines including philosophy, religion, feminism, postmodernism, sociology and psychology. In its defense, both classical and contemporary theistic arguments are criticized, and, the argument from evil, and impossibility arguments, along with a non religious basis for morality are defended. These essays give a broad understanding of atheism and a lucid introduction to this controversial topic