Project Gutenberg 2009-10-06 Public domain in the USA. 55 Foote, G. W. (George William) 1850 1915 Foote, George William Flowers of Freethought (First Series) Produced by David Widger "Flowers of Freethought (First Series)" by G. W. Foote is a collection of philosophical essays written in the late 19th century. This work engages in critiques of religion, superstition, and the social implications of faith, reflecting the growing movement of Freethought during that period. Foote approaches topics with a blend of satire and earnest inquiry, addressing issues such as the perception of the devil, the nature of hell, and the hypocrisy of religious leaders, aiming to provoke critical thinking among readers. The opening of "Flowers of Freethought" presents a preface that sets the tone for the essays to come, revealing Foote's ambition to be a voice in the struggle for intellectual liberation from religious dogma. He positions himself alongside historical figures who fought for freedom of thought, indicating his desire to challenge conventional religious beliefs and societal norms. The preface flows into the first essay, "Old Nick," which details the transformation of the devil's image from a figure of fear to one of mockery, illustrating how public perception of supernatural beings changes with progress in human understanding. Through sharp wit and analytical reasoning, Foote critiques the historical context surrounding superstition and its implications for society, making the case for a rational approach to understanding existence free from the constraints imposed by traditional theology. (This is an automatically generated summary.) en Free thought BL Text Browsing: Philosophy & Ethics Browsing: Religion/Spirituality/Paranormal 484668 484677 2024-09-13T04:19:41.167099 2023-09-13T09:21:37.882496 text/html text/html 479824 2013-01-28T12:20:12 text/html; charset=iso-8859-1 176119 2013-01-28T12:20:12 text/html; charset=iso-8859-1 application/zip 239361 2024-09-13T04:19:47.783041 application/epub+zip 247529 2024-09-13T04:19:42.779059 application/epub+zip 247528 2024-09-13T04:19:41.858125 application/epub+zip 457993 2024-09-13T04:19:51.967058 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 418692 2024-09-13T04:19:47.115058 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 418950 2022-09-14T05:01:02.590567 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 424522 424515 2024-09-13T04:19:40.561130 2023-09-13T09:21:37.316512 text/plain; charset=us-ascii text/plain 424311 2009-10-06T16:15:10 text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1 170096 2009-10-06T16:15:12 text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1 application/zip 424317 2009-10-06T16:15:10 text/plain; charset=us-ascii 170028 2009-10-06T16:15:12 text/plain; charset=us-ascii application/zip 19869 2024-09-13T04:19:52.102036 application/rdf+xml 14505 2024-09-13T04:19:42.208078 image/jpeg 3266 2024-09-13T04:19:42.033067 image/jpeg 234361 2024-09-13T04:19:41.207095 application/octet-stream application/zip Archives containing the RDF files for *all* our books can be downloaded at https://www.gutenberg.org/wiki/Gutenberg:Feeds#The_Complete_Project_Gutenberg_Catalog en.wikipedia