(I'm sure there's a cheap shot about atheism somewhere in there, along the lines that Dawkins indeed has no soul and neither does anyone else...)

I wasn't really intending to express surprise that Adams was philosophically astute. I've lost count of the number of times I've quoted from Hitch-Hiker because it contains an eloquent passage making exactly the point I wanted in some discussion (and, as an added bonus, is funny in the process). I was more surprised that in this particular case his influence on my thinking appears to have been subtle and subconscious, whereas usually I know it's happening.

I was using soul in the non-technical sense, as well you know.

No, I wasn't suggesting that you were surprised that Adams was a philosopher at heart - but I've certainly heard his books dismissed as 'funny science fiction stuff' by people who simply missed the point.