British readers choose Bible and Darwin as most influential books
Poll by Folio Society sees Bible win on 37% – but Origin Of Species comes close with 35%
A poll conducted by publisher the Folio Society has ranked the Bible as the most important book for the modern world – closely followed by Charles Darwin's On the Origin of Species. Works by Stephen Hawking, Albert Einstein and George Orwell also ranked highly.
The Folio Society asked 2,044 adults to name the books they felt were of most significance to humanity today. The respondents were British, which may explain the Christian dominance – though nine per cent chose the Koran instead.
The Bible took 37 per cent of the vote, says The Guardian - but Darwin's scientific masterpiece was not far behind with 35 per cent. Hawking's A Brief History of Time had 17 per cent, while Einstein's Relativity was chosen by 15 per cent of people.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The rest of the top ten was, in order: Orwell's Nineteen Eighty-Four, Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird, Newton's Philosophiae Naturalis Principia Mathematica, Adam Smith's The Wealth of Nations and The Double Helix, by James Watson, the co-discoverer of the structure of DNA.
The survey asked people to choose three titles from a list of 30. Folio Society editorial director Tom Walker said it was interesting that two books in some ways opposed to one another had come out on top.
He said: "The first question I had was whether the similar figure for Darwin and the Bible does show a continuing polarisation between the realms of science and religion, or whether in fact it reveals a more balanced approach to ideas for the modern reader."
"They are the two ideas which have clashed in the 20th century – this shows, I think, that we can take understanding from both of them." He added that the Koran is "probably relatively recent to many UK people's top 10 because of the impact of global debates around Islam".
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
Sport on TV guide: Christmas 2022 and New Year listings
Speed Read Enjoy a feast of sporting action with football, darts, rugby union, racing, NFL and NBA
By Mike Starling Published
-
House of the Dragon: what to expect from the Game of Thrones prequel
Speed Read Ten-part series, set 200 years before GoT, will show the incestuous decline of Targaryen
By Chas Newkey-Burden Published
-
One in 20 young Americans identify as trans or non-binary
Speed Read New research suggests that 44% of US adults know someone who is transgender
By The Week Staff Published
-
The Turner Prize 2022: a ‘vintage’ shortlist?
Speed Read All four artists look towards ‘growth, revival and reinvention’ in their work
By The Week Staff Last updated
-
What’s on TV this Christmas? The best holiday television
Speed Read From films and documentaries to musicals for all the family
By The Week Staff Published
-
Coco vision: up close to Chanel opticals
Speed Read Parisian luxury house adds opticals to digital offering
By The Week Staff Published
-
Abba returns: how the Swedish supergroup and their ‘Abba-tars’ are taking a chance on a reunion
Speed Read From next May, digital avatars of the foursome will be performing concerts in east London
By The Week Staff Published
-
‘Turning down her smut setting’: how Nigella Lawson is cleaning up her recipes
Speed Read Last week, the TV cook announced she was axing the word ‘slut’ from her recipe for Slut Red Raspberries in Chardonnay Jelly
By The Week Staff Published