The Phenomenon of Man

Rating:
Summary: A Middle Ground?
Review: As pointed out by another reviewer, Peter Medawar thoroughly demolished this book, and you can see for yourself that no modern thinker relies on this nonsensical babble.

Rating:
Summary: Bring your oxometer, and try to keep a straight face...
Review: Derek Bickerton, in "Language and Species," gives us an example of language creating concepts: a friend declares that, to evaluate a certain speech, he would really need his "oxometer." What's that? Oh, "it measures the percentage of BS in things." Hmm, could be a useful tool -- but it doesn't exist.

If there were such a thing as an "oxometer," it would register very nearly 100 percent when presented with this absurd book.

Why do I call it absurd? Well, take a look at this statement, which Father Teilhard considered so important that it deserved a whole paragraph to itself:

"In the last analysis the best guarantee that a thing should happen is that it appears to us as vitally necessary."

So -- using our powers of analytical thinking -- we can reduce this sentence to the proposition that we will get whatever we really need. Which is nonsense, as every failed lottery contestant and starving infant can assure you.

This is nothing like scientific thinking, of course. So how did this book ever get a reputation as a scientific book?

Well, part of it is "jumping on the bandwagon." As Brian Silver brilliantly shows in "The Ascent of Science," every major scientific discovery has been pounced on by the ignorant and mistakenly applied to everything under the sun. Newton's Laws of Motion were applied to politics, medicine, and human behavior. David Hume thought he saw "inertia" in thought! ("Every thought will continue thinking in the same direction at a constant speed unless acted on by some force?")

Similarly, the law of universal gravitation was dragged into politics, biology, and chemistry. And the same fate lurked for Einstein and Darwin, naturally.

Charles, meet Father Teilhard! The fundamental process or motion in the universe is evolution, and evolution is "a general condition to which all theories, all hypotheses, all systems must bow..." Now, there is the biggest bandwagon-jump I have ever seen!

All theories must bow to the general law of evolution? Really? How about Newton's Laws of Motion? They haven't evolved a bit during the history of the universe. How about rocks? They haven't evolved and never will.

Evolution is a discovery about life and DNA. It is not applicable outside the realm of biology. Get a grip, folks. "The universe" is not "evolving." Life is evolving. Computers are not "evolving" -- unless you use language loosely. Evolution is a process governing living organisms only.

There is much more and much worse in this awful book. As Brian Silver remarked, "Here we are in the land of unprovable statements, abuse of language, and everything that has given mysticism a bad name." Just like a TV psychic babbling of "focusing cosmic energy," Father Teilhard takes strictly defined terms such as "energy," uses them in the loosest metaphorical way, and then pretends that his "energy" corresponds to the "energy" found in a scientific text.

As Peter Medawar brilliantly remarked, this sort of book finds a huge audience among people who have been educated far beyond their capacity to undertake analytical thought.

Rating:
Summary: Too much nonsense
Review: Don't be expected to be blown away by the logic in this book, or the conclusions that are derived thereof. The logic gaps in much of this book are tremendous. A pantheist may find this book to be enlightening but don't expect to be convinced if you aren't already so inclined.

It is not hard to understand from this book why de Chardin was censured by the Catholic Church. It is not quite as simple as the fact that he espoused evloution, as a previous review would imply. The Church does not have a problem with evolution. It does, however, have a problem with one of its priests claiming that inanimate matter possesses consciousness.

There is no doubting de Chardin's intellect and genius, as well as his mystical tendencies, and it shines through rather well in this book. However, at times it seems he is either too intelligent or too mystical for his own good. In the end I was struck by the fact that large sections of this book seemed to be nothing more than intelligent sounding gibberish.

Rating:
Summary: Tellhard de Chardin is a must read for those in conflict.
Review: I am not going to argue points as the author can do that for him self. I will say, many people surpassingly arrive at the same conclusions independently of this work. The few negative reviews are because of a disagreements not that this book is negative in any way. Even with all of today's scientific discoveries the truth in his extrapolations still hold up. However I would listen to Dinosaur in a Haystack : Reflections in Natural History [UNABRIDGED] ISBN: 0787109150. Just put the number in the search engine and press "GO!" before reading Book 2, chapter 2, section 3 "THE TREE OF LIFE".

This is a five star book no matter what side of the argument you are on. Listen to Teilhard de Chardin's words coming from Oskar Werner as Fr. David Telemond in "Shoes of the Fisherman (1968)" ASIN: B00003OSTW

Rating:
Summary: Tainted Logic
Review: I bought this book with high expectations, having been delighted with the idea of Teilhard's "noosphere". However, to my dismay, I've found his unique insights muddled in a jarble of mental gymnastics which oftentimes escapes honest logic. "The Phenomenon Of Man" is less a work of genius and revelation than it is a work of belief determining conclusion. I found myself searching the pages for some vestige of untainted logic, but could find none. Religion and science have one thing in common: neither allows fence-sitting. You either have faith in God, or you do not (religion); you either have faith in logic, or you do not (science) -- no inbetweens. I'm thoroughly unconvinced that Teilhard has disuaded either, as only seems appropriate since God is beyond any rationalization. And what's the use of trying to convince skeptics of anything beyond skepticism? This said, I agree with Teilhard that science neglects "the within of things", but is this any real wonder, given that science is a study of the workings of nature and nature alone? Perhaps in the end Teilhard will be proven right, that any description of reality science pieces together will never be complete without a spiritual perspective, but until science uncovers incontrivertible evidence of that conclusion, all our conceits pertaining to it are a waste of breath or ink -- and a wearying read.

Rating:
Summary: Good Insight
Review: I stumbled across this site and was captured to read the reviews about Teilhard's book. I read this book 20+ years ago and had relegated it to my archives but these reviews have rekindled the fire.

This book was one of the most eye opening books I have ever read. I have been an observer of Pierre's vision of global "confluent synthesis" since, and I might add, have been impressed as to how his concept has developed.

Another writer commented that de Chardin's mysterious description of the "global mind" has since materialised into the internet (?). That is the exact same thought I had when I witnessed its emergence. Anywhere on the globe now, people can tap into this "mind" and access whatever data is required to facilitate their "evolution" to greater understanding. Hence, the transference of "evolution" to the inner man. It is having a greater impact on all phases of life, even now 2002. What will this thought process bring mankind in 5 years, 10, 20 and beyond?

It is synthesizing all thoughts into one, using the process of elimination. This is done through the "confluent" contributions of the many. People come to places, such as this site, interject their opinions, read others and eventually a dominant concensus arises which abandons all others. Is this not natural selection?

I really liked this book and read 4-5 others by the author. Those who scorn his writings simply see the world from a different viewpoint, but that does not dissipate its development.

Rating:
Summary: Muddled Synthesis
Review: Pierre Teilhard De Chardin was a Jesuit scientist, a brilliant paleontologist and evolutionist who attempted throughtout his life to reconcile Catholic belief with scientific knowledge. It was necessary for him to invent a new vocabulary in order to accomplish this. The trouble is that this vocabulary is rooted in mysticism and faux scientific terminology.

He valiantly tries to show the long march from unicellular creatures to modern human. This is much more plausible than his introduction of a spiritual "zone" through which this evolution is strained. In other words, evolutionary change with a hidden guiding hand. Parts of it were beautiful and I agree with the author that man is a unique phenomenon on this planet. But how one reconciles a physical mechanism with a spiritual theology is a task too great even for a great man.

How is Jesus as God reconciled with ape-man or pre-man? Chardin suggests that religion is a natural outgrowth of being human and he may be right. But it should be noted that the spiritual side of man has evolved along with the physical changes. All we can do is take a "snapshot" of where we are, discover who we were and prepare for who we will become.

Rating:
Summary: bloviated
Review: the author seems to write backwards. it requires too much effort to unscrambe 100 words to get at the 5 meaningful words. i personally dont have the time to suffer through it.

Rating:
Summary: Profound, Complex and Farsighted
Review: This is the toughest book I have ever read.

Teilhard de Chardin starts with the Universe as primal gas and traces the evolution of "matter and consciousness" to the present day. He charts this development as a vector leading to higher consciousness. Man is only one more stepping stone along this path. What is next? He predicts the development of a "noosphere" existing between the biosphere (the thin, wet, green and flesh layer on the lithosphere) and the atmosphere.

When I read this book, 20 years ago, I thought the noosphere was the development of a collective consciousness and a precursor of mental telepathy. I now believe that the internet and widespread use of wireless communications already fulfills his prophecy.

Despite being a Jesuit (or perhaps because of it), Teilhard de Chardin develops his analysis without relying on the concept of God.

Brilliant and subtle. Not for the faint of heart or the speed reader.

Rating:
Summary: Profound, Complex and Farsighted
Review: This is the toughest book I have ever read.

Teilhard de Chardin starts with the Universe as primal gas and traces the evolution of "matter and consciousness" to the present day. He charts this development as a vector leading to higher consciousness. Man is only one more stepping stone along this path. What is next? He predicts the development of a "noosphere" existing between the biosphere (the thin, wet, green and flesh layer on the lithosphere) and the atmosphere.

When I read this book, 20 years ago, I thought the noosphere was the development of a collective consciousness and a precursor of mental telepathy. I now believe that the internet and widespread use of wireless communications already fulfills his prophecy.

Despite being a Jesuit (or perhaps because of it), Teilhard de Chardin develops his analysis without relying on the concept of God.

Brilliant and subtle. Not for the faint of heart or the speed reader.