Religion has been called "the opiate of the masses," a comforting refuge that people can turn to when nothing else answers their questions. Not only does religion answer the unanswerable questions of where we come from and where we're going, it provides guidance in our everyday lives, giving a set of rules by which communities can exist in (relative) peace. It is so important for communities, in fact, that in Thomas More's Utopia, all religions were are accepted and respected save one. The only philosophy that could not be tolerated in More's perfect--and imaginary--world was atheism.
Atheism isn't frightening simply because it removes the easy, comforting answers, but because it takes away the rules that govern polite society. Without fear of God's wrath, what becomes of morality? Without hope of an eternal reward, what are all of our sacrifices worth? Most frightening of all... what if this is it? That the protagonist of Ronan Noone's compelling play The Atheist is, in fact, an atheist is simultaneously his least important and most important trait. Ambitious reporter Augustine Early (named for the saint who gave the oldest European city in North America its name, and who famously pondered how many angels could dance on the head of a pin) believes only in Augustine Early. In his poor midwestern community, self-confidence and self-reliance are the only ways to success--and in this day and age, fame is the same thing as Heaven. Determined to reach the top of his game, Augustine manipulates and maneuvers everyone around him in order to get what he wants. He is fearless and cunning in his machinations, because in his eyes, there is no "right" and "wrong." There is only success and failure, and Augustine's road to success--and to failure--is the narrow line between immorality and amorality.
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