Reading The Unpersuadables: Adventures with the Enemies of Science by Will Storr has been quite an experience. It is different from any other book I have read in that it constantly kept me questioning whether I truly enjoyed reading it or not. After all, it spent countless pages dissecting the foundations of humanity – I believe that is reason for discomfort. However, I cannot deny that it has ultimately changed the way I approach my life in a way which I think is better. It exposed me to concepts and ideologies which I never knew existed! Even beyond that, however, The Unpersuadables has helped me grow as a person. Ultimately, The Unpersuadables has changed the way I perceive the beliefs of myself and others by exposing my capacity for bias, empathy, and knowledge, thus giving me the confidence to approach the world with newfound compassion and strength. Confirmation bias is an unavoidable topic in The Unpersuadables – in fact, it is one of the book’s main topics. Storr dissected it on numerous levels throughout his writing. Initially, he introduced it in its most obvious form – blunt bigotry – through John Mackay. He then…show more content… In the end, bias is bias. I realized this during Chapter 6, in which Storr dissected the brain on a neuroscientific level. I found myself becoming frustrated with Storr because his rhetoric was somewhat condescending. For example, he ended the chapter by saying, “and if, after reading all of that, you still believe you are the exeption, that you really are wise and objective and above the powers of bias, then you might as well not fight it. You are, after all, only human” (Storr 91). After reading this, I couldn’t help but wonder – how can he say any of this with such conviction? What gives him the right to speak so condescendingly? Is he not in the exact same boat as
