In reading Leo Tolstoy's "The Death of Ivan Ilyitch" I have found that there is significance to the philosophies of God as put forth in chapter four (p275-355) of Philosophy: A Text with Readings (Velasquez 2002). With deep thought and contemplation I have deduced that there is implication towards atheism and questioning one's own of beliefs. More interestingly there seems to be a striking possibility that this story could come from God's own point of view.
As soon as Ivan initially gets out of bed his obligation is to receive his medication. Sensing that there may perhaps exist in it some good, he takes the dosage and without delay he feels like there is no good within it at all. To him it is a deception, as numerous atheists feel that God is a deception. The deception, for atheists, is that theists account for knowledge through non-certifiable assumptions in relation to a divine being. Whereas, compared to a theist, an atheist accounts for their knowledge from the world around them without superficial propositions for the truth. When it comes to the medication the deception according to Ivan is that the medicine is supposed to alleviate his pain, but the pain does not go away. The pain in itself supports the atheistic side of the argument. "How could an all powerful and perfect being, if one so exists, allow pain and suffering to be conducted among its creatures?" is a common question asked among many atheists. The medication being representative of God and the distressing pain are the ingredients that complete the deception hypothesis. One could argue that you cannot actually see God so how can you compare God to the medication, which can be seen. There is a straightforward response to this question. The medication is only a manufactured representation of what God could look like, just as with any picture ever prepared to represent his/her image. They are only improvised objects used for visual aide to try and further proof that God does exist.
