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Life
Robert Wright is an American journalist and author. His books follow one line of thought across evolution and culture: The Moral Animal (1994) introduced evolutionary psychology to a wide readership; Nonzero (1999) argued that history tends toward more cooperation ('non-zero-sum' games); The Evolution of God (2009) traced how ideas of God changed with social conditions. Why Buddhism Is True (2017) asks why minds shaped by natural selection suffer, and argues that Buddhist meditation helps to see through those built-in illusions. He has taught at Princeton and the University of Pennsylvania, was visiting professor of science and religion at Union Theological Seminary (2019), and edits the newsletter Nonzero.
The system
- The mind was built by natural selection for reproduction, not for happiness or truth.
- Meditation as a way to see feelings and the 'self' less literally.
- History and religion as moving, unevenly, toward wider cooperation.
Key works
- The Moral Animal (1994) Amazon
- Nonzero: The Logic of Human Destiny (1999) Amazon
- The Evolution of God (2009) Amazon
- Why Buddhism Is True (2017) Amazon
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Where to start
- Why Buddhism Is True is the natural entry for readers interested in meditation.
Ask Orin
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Why does Robert Wright say evolution makes us suffer, and how does meditation help in his view?Ask Orin this question