Essay The Teleological Argument - 1368 Words

William Paley and David Hume’s argument over God’s existence is known as the teleological argument, or the argument from design. Arguments from design are arguments concerning God or some type of creator’s existence based on the ideas of order or purpose in universe. Hume takes on the approach of arguing against the argument of design, while Paley argues for it. Although Hume and Paley both provide very strong arguments, a conclusion will be drawn at the end to distinguish which philosophiser holds a stronger position. Throughout this essay I will be examining arguments with reference to their work from Paley’s â€Å"The Watch and the Watchmaker† and Hume’s â€Å"The Critique of the Teleological Argument†. Paley’s analogy came about from the†¦show more content†¦This means that one knows of God’s existence through a posteriori knowledge (Paley, 1802, 196-197). For example, he makes a comparison between the universe to a watch, and God to watchmaker. Watches are made by watchmaker with prior experience with it, but we never truly experience it. This meaning that we ourselves are incapable of such craftsmanship and things that exhibits design has a designer and Paley claims that therefore the universe it must be the work of God (Paley, 1802, 197). His second argument for design he makes a comparison between machines and humans saying that both are equally complex and it was built with a purpose in mind. If changes are made to the watch such as taking away an internal component that makes it runs, or the minute or hour hand, its purpose would suddenly change and it would no longer be a watch. In his third argument about arguing from mind to design, he states that using the mind as a representation is only a small part of universe (Paley, 1802, 197). For example, a watch must have had a watchmaker because such a complex idea and mechanism could not have just come from nature. A creator with prior knowledge of the watch must have created it. Therefore, the universe must have had a creator. This creator was God. Lastly, his fourth argument assumes that things can be created by matter therefore if other things say otherwise it would be disregarded (Paley,Show MoreRelatedTeleological Arguments Essay849 Words   |  4 Pages The argument from design or the teleological argument points to the existence of order and direction in nature to a kind of purpose. The argument essentially proves the existence of God. A designer must exist because the universe and living things exhibit marks of design in their complexity. Design-type arguments are unproblematic when based upon things nature plainly could not or would not produce, like human artifacts. If designs entail a designer, and the universe shows marks of design, thenRead MoreRichard Swinburnes Teleological Argument790 Words   |  4 PagesRichard Swinburnes Teleological Argument Although explicated on many occasions and by many different authors, the teleological argument for the existence of God provides the best springboard from which to launch contemporary convictions of faith. In the revised edition of his earlier The Existence of God, Richard Swinburne constructs a solid outline that reveals the exact structure of the teleological argument. He presents both forms of the teleological argument , holds each under theRead MoreExamine the Key Features of the Teleological Argument?1491 Words   |  6 PagesExamine the key features of the Teleological argument. The word teleological comes from the Greek word ‘Telos’ which means purpose. The teleological argument is a posteriori and like the cosmological argument, attempts to prove the existence of God. 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