Teleological argument Flashcards
summary of the argument
- Concerned with ‘Telos’ → greek word for end/purpose; denotes that the Design argument is concerned with the DESIGN AND PURPOSE of the world, and a
DESIGNER/CREATOR who made this so - The Design argument is an ANALOGICAL argument: it is based on analogies (ie the watch and the universe, the eyes and the telescope)
- A part of NATURAL THEOLOGY: questions about God’s existence, nature and attributes. They are answered using reason, science, history and observation → it does not take into account any scriptures or special revelations
- A POSTERIORI→ concerned with Paley’s EXPERIENCE/OBSERVATIONS of the world, the watch and all other objects he uses in his analogies
- INDUCTIVE as it has a PROBABLE conclusion → not grounded in reason
qua purpose vs qua regularity
Qua purpose
- The universe was DESIGNED TO FULFILL A PURPOSE by a ‘maker’ = GOD
- Watch vs rock
- Eyes vs telescope
Qua regularity
- The universe behaves ACCORDING TO SOME ORDER due to a calculating creator who created the universe according to a well-constructed plan = GOD
- Planets, gravity, Goldilocks universe
aquinas’ 5th way and design
- He sees ‘natural bodies’ (natural things in the world, eg trees, sun etc) that act with a PURPOSE (tree life cycle, sun rising) REGULARLY AND IN THE SAME WAY
- He assumes they complete these repeated actions ‘not fortuitously, but designedly’
- As these natural bodies are without souls and consciousness, they cannot do this alone
- He concludes that this behaviour is due to a PURPOSE endowed by GOD
william paley –> the watch vs the rock
- If he saw a rock in his path, he would not think twice about it being there, and would conclude it just happened to be there; his answer would differ it were a watch, as it has design, complexity, order and a Telos, while the stone is simple, needing no explanation
- He makes a guided assumption (‘the inference, we think, is inevitable’) from the watched attributes that it must have a maker, who must:
- Must exist
- Planned out how he was going to create it
- Understand what he has made
Paley’s counterarguments
- You do not need to understand how something is made/works to dispute whether it has been made (‘does one man in a million know how oval frames are turned’)
- You do not need to see something being made to know it has been made (‘all this being no more than what is true of some exquisite remains of ancient art’)
- The machine does not need to be perfect and without fault for it to be made (‘it is not necessary a machine be perfect)
telescope, human eye and fisheye and counterarguments
- Telescope and eyes have the same purpose: to see
- If we assume the laws of light are fixed for all 3, then we can say all 3 work slightly differently for their designated PURPOSE
- ‘But such laws being fixed, the construction, in both cases, is adapted to them’
- ie fish eyes are adapted to see underwater, human eyes for land, and telescopes to see longer distances than the simple eye
- The subtle differences for the same Telos = designer to Paley
- A POSTERIORI due to evidence used for argument, so probable conclusion
- He has inferred that the laws of light are definitely fixed, and that all 3 have indeed been created
- However, one could argue that he cannot compare the telescopes and the eyes as the eyes are organic machines while the telescope is a a man made machine
- Their structure and design are incomparable as a result
analogical elements of the argument –> watch and the world
‘For every indication of contrivance (deliberate making), every manifestation of design, which existed in the watch exists in the world of nature….on the side of nature, of being greater and more, and that in a degree which exceeds all computation’.
- For Paley, the world and the watch compare strongly, as the watch is a MICROCOSM of the world. However, the world demonstrates these qualities on a LARGER SCALE
- The parts of the world interconnect and are harmonious to an end
conclusion of paley’s argument
watch = world
- order = animal kingdom
- complexity = human body
- regularity = sun setting and rising
- purpose = sustaining life
- The watch is a microcosm of the world, so they can be compared.
- However the world displays these qualities on a much larger scale than the watch.
- From this, you can conclude that everything that you say about the watchmaker = everything about the world maker on A MUCH BIGGER SCALE.
The only being with such power and qualities to achieve such design on such a broad scale is..
GOD !!
Hume’s criticisms of paleys argument –> dialogues concerning natural religion
- Scottish philosopher, sceptic and probably an atheist who writes BEFORE Paley publishes his argument
- Paley is aware of Hume’s criticisms when writing however, but Hume was not commenting on PALEY’s Design argument
Hume addressed the argument in his book Dialogues concerning Natural religion 1779
- Takes the form of a play where his main three characters (Philo (Hume), Cleanthes (Paley) and Demea) debate religion
- The book is published after Hume’s death as attacking religious belief was sensitive
- Despite Philo having the best argument, Cleanthes wins → is Hume showing respect for religious sensitivities (could be put to death for atheism), but sets out reason why he thinks they are wrong
humes counter arguments to paleys tel arg
- If the universe was designed, there is no evidence that it is the Christian God → could be a lesser being
- The existence of evil and imperfection: suggests a limited designer
- analogies are unsound
- anthropomorphism
- chance
If the universe was designed, there is no evidence that it is the Christian God → could be a lesser being
- Humes guiding principle: cause must be proportional to its effect
- Paley infers the designer of the Universe is omnipotent, omniscient, omnibenevolent like the Christian God → this could be true but it is out of proportion to the evidence
- If there is a designer, a lesser being could be responsible
If there was a designer, there is no evidence that it needs to be a metaphysical being as many brilliant minds are physical humans - If there is a designer, it didn’t need to be one singular being, but a team of lesser beings → a team of junior gods on trial and error basis
The existence of evil and imperfection: suggests a limited designer
- Inconsistent triad JLM
- Not like an infinite being → rather a senile/infant God
analogies are unsound
- Hume argues the world = floating vegetable (organic)
- Anticipated Darwin’s evolution theory, not directed by any external agent
anthropomorphism
- Trying to explain God in our own image, not comparable
- Imagining God like a human designer, anthropomorphic in the extreme
chance
- Epicurean hypothesis: epicurus believed that the universe was made of atoms and it was inevitable that they should arrive at an ordered state
- Multiversal theory: this universe is highly ordered by chance but a similar universe is disordered by chance as well → can explain universe without God
