46 pages 1 hour read

Carl Sagan

Cosmos

Nonfiction | Book | Adult | Published in 1980

A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.

Index of Terms

The Cosmos

This term comes from the Greek word kosmos, and literally means “order,” as opposed to “chaos.” The term is commonly used to describe the systems and laws of the universe (though these structures have now been called into question by quantum physics). Sagan sees the cosmos as a context for life on Earth: “We grow up in isolation. Only slowly do we teach ourselves the Cosmos” (10). In the development of scientific thought, the understanding of the universe depends upon the concomitant understanding of Earth’s place in it. This imbues the term cosmos with spiritual connotations, as humankind learns to find itself in a larger context.

In addition, the author is invested in the idea of exploring the cosmos as a physical reality and as an imaginative place. He hopes that science will help humanity comprehend the magnitude and importance of the universe: “if we are to deal with the Cosmos we must first understand it, even if our hopes for some unearned preferential status are, in the process, contravened” (193). Essentially, he suggests that, even if Earth’s place in the cosmos is prominent, the scientific evidence for what is possible in the universe should be accepted.

Related Titles

By Carl Sagan

Study Guide

logo

Pale Blue Dot

Carl Sagan

Pale Blue Dot: A Vision of the Human Future in Space

Carl Sagan

Study Guide

logo

The Demon-Haunted World

Carl Sagan

The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark

Carl Sagan