Peter Watson

Historian and former journalist. Books include Ideas: A History from Fire to Freud, and The Age of Nothing.

Peter Watson is an intellectual historian and former journalist, now perhaps best known for his work in the history of ideas. Books include Ideas: A History from Fire to Freud. His latest book, The Age of Nothing: How We Have Sought to Live since the Death of God.

Peter Watson is the author if Ideas: A History from Fire to Freud. His latest book, The Age of Nothing: How We Have Sought to Live since the Death of God, was published by Weidenfeld & Nicolson in February.


Photo of Peter Watson

Peter Watson is an intellectual historian and former journalist, now perhaps best known for his work in the history of ideas. Books include Ideas: A History from Fire to Freud. His latest book, The Age of Nothing: How We Have Sought to Live since the Death of God.

Peter Watson is the author if Ideas: A History from Fire to Freud. His latest book, The Age of Nothing: How We Have Sought to Live since the Death of God, was published by Weidenfeld & Nicolson in February.


You May Also Likeā€¦

Barry C. Smith,Christopher Hamilton,Raymond Tallis,Havi Carel,Zoe Williams

The Agony & the Ecstasy

Is pain a necessary part of human experience?

Zoe Williams,Simon Baron-Cohen,Rebecca Roache,Peter Dews

The Problem of Evil

Does 'evil' exist?

Julian Baggini,Peter Tatchell,David Miller,Natalie Cargill

Morality of the Tribe

Should and can we treat all people equally?

Terry Eagleton,Susan Neiman,Janne Teller,Stephen de Wijze

The Lure of Lucifer

Why do we love Evil?

Julian Baggini,Angie Hobbs,John Millbank,Christopher Hamilton

Our Sins and Our Selves

Should we embrace our inconsistency?

Hilary Lawson,Paul Boghossian,Naomi Goulder,Michael Ruse

The Mystery of the Good

Is morality relative or absolute?

Hilary Lawson,Phillip Blond,Myriam Francois

The Really Real

Is absolute right and wrong a fantasy?

Hilary Lawson,Brendan O'Neill,Naomi Goulder,Sam Roddick,Sameer Rahim

The Good, The Bad, and the Controversial

Is morality simply prejudice?

Finn Mackay,Myriam Francois,Leena Nair,Elif Safak

Rethinking Feminism

Is there a universal goal for women's rights?

Hilary Lawson,Simone Schnall,Rae Langton,Joel Robbins

Being Human and Being Good

Is morality relative?

Rebecca Goldstein

Why Philosophy Won't Go Away

Rebecca Goldstein | Plato in the Age of Google

Julian Baggini,Rupert Sheldrake,Nicholas Humphrey,Shahidha Bari,Richard Harries

Is Religion Dangerous?

Faith - The Problem or The Solution

Stephen Batchelor

After Buddhism

What could secular Buddhism bring the West?

Shaun Ley,Darren Langdridge,Liz Kelly,Teresa Morgan

The Last Taboo

Paedophilia, innocence and morality

Anders Sandberg,Eliane Glaser,Simon Baron-Cohen,Peter Dews

Doing Right and Feeling Good

Is morality about thinking or feeling?

Stanley Fish,Philip Collins,Myriam Francois,Roger Bolton

Thinking Good and Doing Evil

Is belief in any morality dangerous?

Janne Teller

On Evil

How do we explain our fascination with evil?

Danielle Sands,Christopher Hamilton,John Millbank,Patricia MacCormack

Trouble with Heaven

Why does the dark and the dangerous attract us?

Mary Midgley,Roger Bolton,Peter Singer

On Humans and Animals

Peter Singer and Mary Midgley on what's next for animal rights

Matthew Stone,Hilary Lawson,Raymond Tallis,Jake Chapman

Dancing with the Devil

Can and should art be moral? Our controversial panel confront the darkness.

Rupert Sheldrake

Rethinking Science and Spirituality

Rupert Sheldrake | They complement each other

Mark Rowlands

Can Animals Be Moral?

Myriam Francois,Anthony Gottlieb,Linda Woodhead,Julian Baggini

Reason and the Gods

What do secular and religious worldviews share?

Afua Hirsch,Scott Atran,Pavan Dhaliwal

New Gods

Do we need religion? And if so, why?

Don Cupitt

The Fountain

Vishvapani Blomfeld

Morality and Mindfulness

Vishvapani Blomfield | Can meditation fix ethics?

Margaret Heffernan

How to See Things Clearly

Overcoming Wilful Blindness | Margaret Heffernan

Terry Eagleton

The Death of God and the War On Terror

Secularism versus religious fundamentalism

Janet Radcliffe-Richards

Ethics, Darwin and Dante

The assumptions behind moral beliefs

Joel Robbins

Good and Evil Around the Globe

Is morality rooted in culture? | Joel Robbins

Jonathan Derbyshire,Stephen Law,Madawi Al-Rasheed,John Milbank

Belief and the Gods

Is the divine a fantasy?

Richard Schoch

The Myth of Being Happy

We should give up on the obsession with happiness

Alister McGrath

Science and Religion

Can science and religion coexist?

John Harris,Clare Carlisle,Richard Coles,Naomi Goulder

In Place of Prejudice

Can rationality provide a basis for morality?

Mary Midgley

Death and the Human Animal

Is the quest for immortality a fool's errand?

Samantha Roddick

God is an Orgasm

Peter Curran,Rae Langton,Tom Sorell,Sophie Van Der Zee

Of Lies and Necessity

Is honesty a fantasy?

Angela Saini,Stephen Law,Colin Tudge,Eileen Barker

Return of the Pagans

Does paganism offer a new haven for spirituality?

Angela Saini,Colin Tudge,Oliver Scott Curry,Tom Sorell

Moral Animals and Our Place in the Universe

Are good and evil unique to humans?

Mark Rowlands

The Point of It All

Where should we turn to find meaning?

Peter Watson

The Age of Nothing

The consequences of the decline of faith

Mark Rowlands,Pavan Dhaliwal,Sally Green,Camila Batmanghelidjh

The Banality of Evil

Nature versus nurture

Rana Mitter,AL Kennedy,Nicholas Humphrey,Pascal Bruckner

Life's Secret

Purpose and the Pursuit of Happiness

Christopher Hamilton,John Harris,Roger Bolton,Molly Crockett

Beyond Good and Evil II

Is morality instinctual?

Joanna Kavenna,Hilary Lawson,Parashkev Nachev,Katie Derham

True to Myself

Morality, virtues & consequences

Renata Salecl,Rowan Williams,Robert Rowland Smith,Michael Crick

A Tale of Love and Hate

Are love and hate inextricably linked?

Finn Mackay,Steve Hewlett,Julian Le Grand,Neel Mukherjee

Competition versus Cooperation

Can we survive and succed without competition?

Marcel Theroux,Sean Curran,Sarah Chan,John Sauven

Morality, Cruelty and Freedom

Attitudes towards animal suffering

Caspar Melville,Rupert Read,Benny Peiser,Alastair McIntosh

In the Beginning was Nature

Spirtuality and the environment

Gerald Moore,Harry Eyres,Val Curtis

Purity and Dirt

Uncovering the significance of cleanliness