B-Theory of Time and Why Atheists Need Not Fear Death
This paper examines Robin Le Poidevin's essay "Should the Atheist Fear Death?" and his use of the A-theory and B-theory of time to argue that death need not be feared by atheists. The paper outlines Le Poidevin's contrast between the A-theorist's view of time as a meaningful progression of past, present, and future, and the B-theorist's view that such distinctions are merely perspectival. It explains how the B-theory undermines the emotional weight attached to posthumous nonexistence and why, from this framework, future nonexistence is no more troubling than past nonexistence. The paper concludes by noting Le Poidevin's careful agnosticism on the existence of God.
- Introduction: Atheism and the Fear of Death: Le Poidevin challenges the assumption atheists must fear death
- The A-Theory and B-Theory of Time: Contrasting temporal frameworks and their implications for mortality
- The B-Theory's Challenge to Fears About the Future: Why B-theory dissolves dread of posthumous nonexistence
- Non-Existence, Dread, and the Limits of the Fear of Death: Non-existence cannot be experienced and therefore dreaded
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What makes this paper effective
- Clearly introduces Le Poidevin's central argument before unpacking the philosophical distinctions that support it.
- Uses a well-chosen analogy — nearness as a relational rather than intrinsic property — to make the B-theory accessible.
- Maintains fidelity to the source text through direct quotation while providing sufficient paraphrase to demonstrate comprehension.
Key academic technique demonstrated
The paper demonstrates effective philosophical summarization: it traces a multi-step argument (from the critique of theist assumptions, through the A/B-theory distinction, to the conclusion about non-existence) without collapsing or distorting any of the logical steps. Each claim is anchored to a specific page reference, showing careful engagement with the primary source.
Structure breakdown
The paper opens by situating the question within the context of atheism and the afterlife, then introduces Le Poidevin's key conceptual framework (A-theory vs. B-theory). The middle section applies the B-theory to the specific fear of death and posthumous irrelevance. The final paragraph addresses the narrower claim about dreading non-existence and closes with Le Poidevin's restrained theological conclusion. The structure mirrors the argumentative progression of the source essay.
Introduction: Atheism and the Fear of Death
There is a common assumption that all atheists fear death, given that the atheist lacks the comfort of belief in a world that exists after this one. However, according to Robin Le Poidevin's essay "Should the Atheist Fear Death?" this is not necessarily the case. Le Poidevin points out, first of all, that not all theists believe in a concrete conception of the afterlife (643). Secondly, the question arises as to why we are so fearful of the "attenuation of the effects of our life after we die" and why we "fear being forgotten" (643). Le Poidevin implies that a theist conception of the universe is, in part, why we regard such an eventuality as something awful.
The A-Theory and B-Theory of Time
Over the course of his essay, Le Poidevin draws a contrast between what he calls the A-theory and B-theory of time. The A-theorist conceives of time as being composed of a past, present, and future (644). This view suggests that there is value in preserving our present achievements for future immortality. The B-theorist, by contrast, views divisions between past, present, and future as meaningless. Such divisions are based upon where the individual stands in the moment — much like saying something is far away or near, but no object inherently possesses nearness as a stable feature of its existence (645).
The same is true regarding whether an object exists in the past or the present. As Le Poidevin writes, "A given time is only present only with respect to some particular event or observation" (645). Time is a reflection of the individual's perspective, not something that possesses an absolute property. The fact that the future seems more important than the past is only true based upon a single person's personal experience (646). For the B-theorist, "a premature death is no more of an evil than a delayed birth" (648).
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