63 pages 2 hours read

A Secular Age

Nonfiction | Book | Adult | Published in 2007

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Essay Topics

1.

Taylor describes the transition from an “enchanted” world, filled with spirits and divine purpose, to a “disenchanted” modern world. What implications does this have for understanding the development of secularism, and how might this historical framing challenge contemporary narratives about secularization?

2.

Examine the use of historical narrative in A Secular Age to argue against simplistic secularization theories. How does Taylor’s approach to history—particularly his emphasis on the Reformation, Enlightenment, and Romantic periods—support his claim that secularism is not a linear decline of religion but a complex reconfiguration of belief and unbelief?

3.

How does the immanent frame function as a central metaphor in A Secular Age? Analyze how Taylor uses this metaphor to illustrate the modern secular condition and discuss its implications for understanding both closed and open perspectives of secularism.

4.

Taylor suggests that different narratives of secularization have shaped contemporary Western societies. Compare and contrast two of these narratives from the book and evaluate their impact on modern secular thought.

5.

What does Taylor mean by “exclusive humanism,” and how does he argue that it became a viable option in Western society? Explore the cultural and philosophical shifts that facilitated this development and discuss its significance.

6.

How does the concept of fullness function in the text to articulate the challenges of living as a believer or unbeliever in the modern world? Use examples from the text in your response.

7.

Consider critiques of Taylor’s argument in A Secular Age. What do these texts cite as the book’s weaknesses? What models of modernity and belief do they propose instead? Use external sources in your response.

8.

Much of Taylor’s argument is based on interpreting historical events as part of a single narrative of modernity. Choose a particular historical period or event discussed in the book and examine it from a critical perspective. Can you draw different conclusions about these events’ relationship to secular modernity? If so, why?

9.

How does A Secular Age address political movements as a way of making meaning in the modern era? Choose two such references and analyze how Taylor uses them to build his argument about secularization. How do these references enhance or complicate his thesis about the transition to a secular age?

10.

Analyze how A Secular Age addresses community and social solidarity in a secular age. How do they differ from traditional communities grounded in religious belief? What new forms of community or solidarity emerge in the modern context, and what is the significance of this for society?

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