John Gray (9)

An obsession with the nature of death lies at the heart of the human experience. Throughout most of human history, religion provided a clear explanation for life and the afterlife. But in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, this framework came under relentless pressure as new ideas—from ... (more)psychiatry to evolution to Communism—seemed to suggest that our fate was now in our own hands. We would ourselves become God. Philosopher and bestselling author John Gray raises a host of fascinating questions about what it means to be human. The great and terrible implication of Darwin’s ideas was that natural selection made humans into animals like any other, doomed some day to disappear from the face of an uncaring Earth. The refusal to follow this logic and to insist instead on our immortality resulted in a series of experiments that carry on to the present day, some of which ravaged whole countries and some of which generated more private forms of pain. Don’t miss this compelling look at what it means to be human. Tickets $15 / $10 reduced. Free for festival members.

Georges Simenon was not only a popular and prolific novelist but also a visionary writer of modern life. His short romans durs, the “hard” or “tough” novels he set apart from his crowd-pleasing Maigret mysteries, are perceptive, nervewracking and unsentimental explorations of the crooked passages ... (more)of the mind and heart. John Banville will discuss the singular art of this powerful and still under-appreciated writer with John Gray, for whom Simenon “achieved the rare feat of entertaining us with the truth”. Edwin Frank, editor of the NYRB Classics series which is republishing Simenon, will be in the chair.

John Gray is celebrated as Britain's foremost political philosopher with some of the most influential books in recent times to his name, including Black Mass and Straw Dogs. In his new collection of essays, he discusses issues that are central to the most cherished beliefs that humanity holds, overturning ... (more)our views. Why is the human imagination to blame for the worst crimes of the twentieth century? Why is progress a pernicious myth? Why is contemporary atheism just a hangover from Christian faith? John Gray will be talking about his writing, his lifetime's work and answering questions in this exciting event. This event will be chaired by Prof Nicholas Davey, University of Dundee.

£7.50. During the last century global politics was shaped by science-based utopian projects, with genocidal consequences. Today, the war in Iraq has promised a new era of democracy yet produced a blood-soaked anarchy and emerging theocracy. Black Mass, John Gray's powerful and frightening new book, ... (more)argues that the death of utopia does not mean peace.Instead it portends the return of fundamentalist and apocalyptic religion. Join our 'most important living philosopher' (Will Self) for a stimulating enquiry into the religious roots of today's global conflicts.