William Paley’s Argument

  1. Identify the key strengths of the design argument (7)
  2. Identify the key weaknesses of the design argument (7)
  3. Comment on the view that this a valid argument for the existence of God (6)

a) William Paley put across his design argument in his book Natural Theology (1802). He believes that the universe and everything that it holds inside of it couldn’t have been there by just chance itself. He believes that the universe was designed and parts of the universe fit together for some purpose which is known as Design Qua Purpose.

Paley talks about design qua purpose and looks at simple analogy such as the eye and the watch and compares them to the universe. He states that a watch is designed and all the parts are fitted together in a specific way and made for a purpose; the universe was designed and fitted together and made for a purpose for example; the seasons, the water cycle, the life cycle, the orbit of the planets etc. They all seem to have a pattern that fits together for the cycle to continue. Again, the fittings in the watch aren’t there by chance and in the same way the patterns in the universe cannot be there by chance. The watch was created as the universe was created.

He uses another example which is the eye (Natural Theology, 1802). The eye is adapted for sight. Its various parts co-operate in complex ways to produce sight. Paley believes that the eye was specifically deigned for the purpose of sight and this complex design suggests a designer. Further more, he uses more evidence and uses an example of the lacteal system. He states that different animals such as the rabbit, the cat, the rat, the bitch etc have different a number of different litters, and numerous paps and are likely to be across the belly. For this simple purpose of creation, there has to be a designer. This creator must be God.

Paley also argues about the existence of God by Design Qua Regularity. He argues about the different patterns in the universe and uses evidence from astronomy and Newton’s law of motion and gravity to prove design in the universe. Paley refers to the rotation of the planets in the solar system. They all orbit the sun in the same way and are held in this orbit by gravity. If gravity were too much than the planets would be brought towards the sun and if gravity were too little, than the planets would be moving away from the original orbit of the sun. Therefore, with this specific design and pattern that has been consistent when the universe was created, this must have had a designer. Paley believes that this designer was yet again God.

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b) Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution really questions William Paley’s design argument. Darwin’s evolutionary theory appeals to a mechanistic self-ordering process in nature. The theory proposes that certain species have become extinct and new species emerge over time. Darwin offered an alternative explanation to the design of the world without the reference to creation by God. Darwin offered a mechanical explanation for the development of life on Earth in which natural selection took place. He argues that random variations which gave the best advantage to a plant or animal in the struggle for survival resulted in the survival ...

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