The Argument from Design (New Studies in the Philosophy of Religion)

Hume himself presents the Argument at various points in his Dialogues concerning Natural Religion, first published, posthumously, in 1779, though originally written long before. The following passage occurs near the beginning of Part II: Not to lose any time in circumlocutions, said Cleanthes, addressing himself to Demea, much less in replying to the pious declamations of Philo; I shall briefly explain how I conceive this matter. Look round the world: Contemplate the whole and every part of it: You will find it to be nothing but one great machine, subdivided into an infinite number of lesser machines, which again admit of subdivisions, to a degree beyond what human senses and faculties can trace and explain. All these various machines, and even their most minute parts, are adjusted to each other with an accuracy, which ravishes into admiration all men, who have ever contemplated them. The curious adapting of means to ends, throughout all nature, resembles exactly, though it much exceeds, the productions of human contrivance; of human design, thought, wisdom, and intelligence. Since therefore the effects resemble each other, we are led to infer, by all the rules of analogy, that the causes also resemble; and that the Author of nature is somewhat similar to the mind of man; though possessed of much larger faculties, proportioned to the grandeur of the work, which he has executed. By this argument a posteriori, and by this argument alone, we do prove at once the existence of a Deity, and his similarity to human mind and intelligence. (Hume [1] p. 143) The discussion of the Argument from Design in Immanuel Kant's Critique of Pure Reason, the first edition of which appeared in 1781, was much influenced by Hume's Dialogues, which Kant read in 1780 in a manuscript translation by J. G. Hamann. Kant calls the Argument the Physico-Theological Argument, and states it in the following way: The chief points of the physico-theological proof are as follows: (1) In the world we everywhere find clear signs of an order in accordance with a determinate purpose, carried out with great wisdom; and this in a universe which is Front Matter....Pages i-ix What is the Argument from Design?....Pages 1-13 Design as Mind-imposed....Pages 15-21 Purpose in the Universe....Pages 23-41 Analogy....Pages 43-61 An Empirical Argument....Pages 63-69 Conclusion....Pages 71-75 Back Matter....Pages 77-78