The document discusses several philosophical arguments related to the existence of God and the problem of evil. It summarizes William Paley's teleological argument that objects like the human eye show evidence of design and therefore a designer. It also discusses David Hume's critique of the design argument. The document then summarizes arguments from fine-tuning and from the problem of evil, including attempts to reconcile evil with God like Augustine's theodicy. It concludes by discussing perspectives on the value and purpose of art from Plato and Aristotle.

1. Philosophy
God
Flipbook
The problem of evil
• That the existence of evil counts
The argument from design against the existence of an all loving
• Arguments for design based on and all powerful God. Moral and
apparent order and purpose and natural evil and their relation to one
challenges to those arguments. another.
• Arguments from design (analogy, • Attempts to reconcile the evil we
the inadequacies of naturalistic perceive with the existence of God
explanations) and challenges (the free will defence, the best of
to those arguments. all possible worlds, soul making and
the
afterlife).
The religious point of view
• Consideration of the claim that the
world can accommodate different
perspectives („seeing as‟).
• The status of the religious
hypothesis;
is it a „hypothesis‟ at all?
Consideration
Paley
of the claim that religious „belief‟
mirrors the feelings, attitudes and
commitments of the religious rather
than facts about the world. Paley's Teleological Argument
Paley's Teleological Argument (cont)
4. A watch has many complex
1. Walking through a heath, he parts all working for one purpose,
stubs his toe on a stone. It must have a designer, a
2. He believes that stone could watchmaker.
have been there forever. 5. Natural objects, such as the
3.He imagines the stone as a human
watch. He cannot say that it eye, have many parts Working
towards
has one purpose as well, so must be
been there forever Designed and have a designer.

2. Paley to the idea of universe
by chance
"Nor … would any man in his Paley Strengths
senses •It uses literal logic, which says
think the existence of the watch, basically that anything
with its various machinery, designed, implies that it had
accounted for, by being told a designer.
that it was one out of possible Paley Weaknesses
combinations of material forms…" •Even if there is a designer,
the
Paley Weaknesses
concept of design tells us
•The analogy is weak. A watch,
nothing about them. God's
human eye and the universe
traits
are not similar enough for the
have been
Same conclusions to be
anthropormorphised.
reached
•It does not explain the
Something being complex
problem
does
of evil and the flaws in the
not mean it was necessarily
world.
designed, eg. evolution
•Some things appear to have
Paley Counter-arguments Criticsno Paley
of
•It is not necessary to show that David Hume: "Design
something is perfect in
purpose
Argument:
order to show that there is a
Critique"
design.
•Simply because we do not know Charles Darwin:
the function of the parts does “Recapitulation
not imply that there is no function. and Conclusion"
the design is evident from the Richard Dawkins:” The Blind
rest of the watch (the universe). Watchmaker”
1.The combination of physical
constants that we observe
in our universe is the only one
Fine capable of sustaining life as we
know it.
2.Other combinations of physical
Tuning constants are conceivable.
3.Therefore, some explanation is
needed why our actual combination
of physical constants exists rather
than a different one.

3. 4. The very best explanation of the
given fact is that our universe, with
the particular combination of physical 5.But such a being as
constants that it has, was created out of described
nothing by a single being
who is omnipotent, omniscient,
in 4. is what people mean
all-loving, eternal, and interested by "God."
in sentient organic systems, and that 6.Hence there is good
he "fine-tuned" those constants in a evidence that God exists.
way which would lead to the evolution
of such systems.
Fine tuning weaknesses
It could still be chance
Fine tuning strengths
The multiverse theory could
With all the precision at each
explain it: There are an infinite
stage of the creation of the
number of universes, each
universe, it is hard to argue
with
that
slightly different physical
it has no been fine tuned.
constants and ours just
happened to be the one that
Fine tuning weaknesses support life.
Fine turning Counter
Even if there is a God who
Arguments
finely tuned the universe, it
Though chance cannot be
does
ruled
not tell us anything about him.
out, if the big bang had been 1
Anything we assume it though
in 1060 stronger, it would have
the anthropic principle and
expanded too quickly for the
knowing that there is a creator
creation of stars. If gravity was
does not give him
1 in 10 then stars could not be
characteristics
sustained
often associated with him.
Critics of Fine Tuning
Terry M. Gray
“A creationist criticism of
Problem of
irreducible complexity”
Evil

4. There are 2 problems of evil:
The logical problem, in which
The Logical Problem:
All 4 statements about God
Gods exists.
and
God is omnipotent.
evil co-existing cannot be true,
God is benevolent.
and the evidential problem, in
Evil exists.
which there is not only evil
but great quantities of it.
Possible solutions to the logical
Problem of evil:
An atheist would conclude that
God does not exist. The Evidential Problem:
Perhaps this world is the one Jewish Holocaust, 1984
with the smallest amount of evil Ethiopian
God may not be omnipotent Famine, Eruption of Pompeii,
or benevolent, they are Asian Tsunami 2004
anthropomorphised traits. The
God of the Old Testament is
often quite malicious.
There are also 2 types of evil:
Moral evil which is caused by There are other related
humans, eg. Civil wars, and arguments that pose similar
natural evil which occurs problems, such as the problem
without human intervention, of hell. If God is benevolent,
eg. Tsunamis. Both types of then why send people to a
evil place of eternal suffering?
cause suffering.
If unbelief, incorrect beliefs,
or poor design are
considered evils, then the
argument from nonbelief, the
argument from inconsistent
Augustinian
revelations, and the argument
from poor design may be Theodicy
seen as particular instances
of the argument from evil

5. Augustinian Nature of Evil:
Evil is not something that
Augustinian Creation:
actually exists, evil is the
God made a perfect world
privation (a lack of) of good.
and it is humans that
It is similar to dark being a
made it imperfect.
lack of light, as opposed to
something on it's own.
Augustinian Origin of Moral
Evil Augustinian Origin of Natural
Free will allowed humans the Evil
option to commit moral evils. Fallen angels also have free
There is also an inherant sin will and use it to change
carried down from Adam and the laws of nature and cause
Eve in the Fall, eating the natural disasters such as
apple earthquakes, tsunamis and
from the forbidden tree of volcanoes
knowledge.
Augustinian Nature of Man
Augustinian View of the
Men have free will so have the
Afterlife
choice between committing
Souls will go to Heaven or
good or evil acts but they
Hell.
are tempted by desires.
Augustinian Possible
Objections
It does not explain for the
suffering of innocents
Irenaean
Why is there a hell is God is
benevolent?
Theodicy
Why didn't God make us/at
least tempt us more towards
the better decision?
(Hicks)

6. Irenaean Creation: Irenaean Nature of Evil:
God created an imperfect Evil comes in many forms
world and is used to develop
and it is humans that must people through the process of
develop it and make it soul-making, so a person
perfect. suffers to become better.
Irenaean Origin of Moral Evil
Irenaean Origin of Natural Evil
Humans were allowed free
God created natural evil in the
will and many abuse it and
world so that humans can be
use it to commit acts of moral
tested and challenged by it
evil, which is destructive to
to develop their souls.
their soul-making.
Irenaeann Nature of Man
Man was made as part of an Irenaean View of the Afterlife
imperfect world and is Everyone will eventually
therefore go to heaven, however they
imperfect too, but through must have suffered and
suffering and soul-making, developed enough in order
they can come closer to being to get there.
perfect.
Irenaean Possible Objections
The quantity and extremity
of some evil eg. Mengele's
experiments.
Evil goes unpunished and
Leibniz
justice is not ultimately given
if everyone eventually goes
to heaven anyway – no
Theodicy
incentive
to act morally.

7. Leibnizian Creation:
God created the best of all Leibnizian Nature of Evil:
possible worlds. It must work Evil is a relative concept,
logically with physical and like light and dark, and it
chemical laws that must is impossible to know one
be followed, and this world without the other so both
has the least amount of evil are necessary.
while still following these laws.
Leibnizian Origin of Natural
Evil
Leibnizian Origin of Moral Evil God can't create a world that
Humans exercising their free is logically impossible so
will created moral evil. included evil in order to
make it logically possible as
the best of all possible worlds.
Leibnizian View of the Afterlife
Leibnizian Nature of Man
At death the soul passes
Man has free will and is
out of one body and enters
able to understand that
into another (influenced by
suffering is a necessity
Giordano Bruno).
Leibnizian Possible Objections
If the best of all possible
worlds
Religious
is flawed, how is God
omnipotent?
Point of
Why does God have to follow
logic and the physical laws? View

8. Wittgenstein
The phrase “language games”
is used to express that words
only make sense in the context
Wittgenstein and a background of other
words that belong to the same
“game”
Wittgenstein: Strengths
Wittgenstein It may eliminate the logical
If the concept of language problem of evil as people are
games is applied to religion, it simply applying language in
shows that many people the wrong way, perhaps not
use scientific and evidential understanding what evil truly
language, where as they means in the religious
are a different language game. language
game
Wittgenstein: Weaknesses:
If God is all powerful, then
Wittgenstein: Weaknesses
why
The concept wasn't produced
can we not see him when
directly for religious arguments
using
so many not work at times
scientific or evidential
Wittgenstein had 2 theories
language?
and discounted the first, what
Surely if he exists he should
is stopping the 2nd from also
be able to stand up to the
being false and needing to be
same
discounted?
words we use for other things
James The Will to Believe
we can observe
"The Will to Believe" hinges on the
idea that access to the evidence
for whether or not certain beliefs
William are true depends crucially upon
first
James adopting those beliefs without
evidence. It is this belief that
presents the benefits and comfort
that come along with religion and
gives people reason to believe.

9. James The Will to Believe: Strengths
James The Will to Believe
The option to believe or not Theists do seem to get a

to believe is live, forced, and psychological comfort from
momentous so has an emotive holding belief: in hard times
appeal, has only 2 options, believe they
or not believe, and is an important may often pray to God in
decision in someone's life. hopes
of things getting better
James The Will to Believe: Weaknesses
People do not always make
their
mind up and are agnostic: not
a forced decision
People may convert and
change
their minds to or from
People may still find it hard to
believe in God if bad things
happen frequently

10. We value art because it informs
us:
Value Good art should illuminate our
experience: reveal 'truths',
Of articulate a vision, be
epiphanic,
portray authentically or at least
Art Imitate or represent its subject
convincingly or faithfully.
How is art supposed to stand
for
reality? Are all arts equally
concerned with representing?
What could we mean by „truth‟ Plato
in art? Even if art informs us
, is that why we value it as art?
Is art especially informative?
Plato
Theory of forms Plato
God, the creator, had the one true Theory of forms
form when he imagined and The first imitation of the one true
created objects. Every object in form is where a carpenter
its likeness after this is merely produces a a physical form
an instance, capturing just from the idea of a one true form.
a small part of the true form.
Plato Plato Theory of Forms: Strengths
Theory of forms It can be applied to almost every
An artist will see a carpenters kind of art.
Impression of the one true It seems logical as a lot of things
Form and use it to inspire in art are based on a physical
Their artwork, creating an object eg. Van Gogh's bedroom is
Inferior imitation of an an
Imitation of the form. imitation of a physical bed, table
and chair.

11. Plato Theory of Forms:
Plato Theory of Forms Weaknesses
Supporting examples of art There are some mediums it
Leonardo's: Mona Lisa doesn't
 Vermeer's: Girl with the pearl work with at all eg. Abstract
earring It suggests that art MUST be
 Shakespeare's: Anthony and Cleopatra inferior
 Michaelangelo's: David when it can in fact show things
 Homer's :Blue Boat
that a physical forrm can't
Plato Theory of Forms
Contradicting examples of art
Raphael's: Lady with a
unicorn
Pollock: No. 5
Dali: The persistence of
Aristotle
memory
Schoenburg: Peripetie
Aristotle Poetics Aristotle Poetics
Though it was aimed primarily Catharsis is purging of the
at tragedies, Aristotle states emotions "through pity and
that fear"
art is important in provoking and leaves the spectator
emotions within the spectator without the emotions so they
so they may undergo the feel refreshed and better for
process of catharsis. having viewed the work of art.
Aristotle Poetics
Aristotle Poetics: Strengths
Supporting examples of art
All forms of art do have some
Shakespeare's: Hamlet
emotional effect on the
Corneille: Medée
spectator and may leave them
David's: The oath of the
feeling better
Horatii
It sets out exactly what makes
Turner's: Slave ship
a good piece of work, as far
Ghostly Theatre: Lament of
as tragedies go
Innocence

12. Aristotle Poetics: Weaknesses
His 6 criteria can only be
applied to tragedies, not other Aristotle Poetics
forms of art. Contradicting examples of art
He believed that there was Pace: Nana's Blue Fruit Bowl
some Monty Python's: Flying Circus
imitation involved as art is Shakespeare's: The Merry
based Wives of Windsor
on people's actions, though Beethoven's: Ode to Joy
there Supergott: Carmelldansen
are some pieces which cannot
be based on actions. Hume Of the Standard of Taste
It seems clear that tastes
differ
to a certain extent however
there is a general rule to taste
Hume which all people will adhere to
as humans are all
fundamentally the same, and
anyone who doesn't must
have a defectStandard of Taste
Hume Of the or imperfection.
1. Start with the right equipment. To discern
"the sentiment of beauty" reliably requires
"a delicate imagination."
Hume Of the Standard of Taste 2. Practice makes perfect. The more
experience
The general rule of taste is you get in looking at works of art, the more
established through 2 tests: discerning your judgment becomes.
3. Take several looks. What you miss on the
if it lasts through time and the first
other is a recommended examination may become clear on the third or
fourth.
procedure for critics to follow. 4. Compare the work with others like it.
This will help you see what you might
otherwise miss.
5. Free the mind from prejudice. Try to be a
disinterested observer.
Hume OtSoT: Strengths Hume Of the Standard of Taste
There does seem to be some Supporting examples of art
truth behind it, there are books Shakespeare's: Romeo and Juliet

that become popular among Da Vinci's: Mona Lisa

Curtiz's: Casablanca

many, suggesting a similar
Faust's: My Little Pony Friendship

taste, and most would agree is
that Shakespeare is a greater Magic
author than John Grisham Michael Jackson's: Billie Jean


13. Hume OtSoT: Weaknesses Hume Of the Standard of Taste
Skeptical philosophy opposes the Contradicting examples of art
idea that there is any standard of Meyer's: Twilight Saga
taste. It assertsthe equal right Ofili‟s: Holy Virgin Mary
of every personal evaluation  Lagenbach‟s:Loose Lips Sink
There are some works of art that Ships
are highly controversial so do not Schmidlin's: Miss Kitty
seem to have a fundamental taste Harvey's: Myra
that all people adhere to  Orwell's: Nineteen Eighty-four
Tolstoy What is Art
Tolstoy defines art as an
expression of a feeling
or experience in such a way
Tolstoy that the audience to whom the
art is directed can share that
feeling or experience so an
artists job is to communicate
this feeling.
Tolstoy What is Art
According to Tolstoy, good art is
intelligible and comprehensible. Tolstoy What is Art Strengths
Bad art is unintelligible Almost all art communicates
and incomprehensible. The some level of emotions, so it
more that art restricts itself to a seems to work
particular audience, the more It can be applied to any
obscure and incomprehensible it medium
becomes to people outside that
particular audience.
Tolstoy What is Art
Tolstoy What is Art Weaknesses
It is developed from a series
Supporting examples of art
of unprovable assumptions
Picasso's: Weeping woman
about
Munch's: The Scream
what is good and what is bad
Bronté: Jane Eyre
It assumes that there must be
Shakespeare's: Othello
a deeper purpose to art, an
Seress: Gloomy Sunday
artist cannot create a piece
simply for the sake of creating

14. Tolstoy What is Art
Contradicting examples of art
Westall's: Surrender of the
San
Nicolas at St Vincent
The Bayeux Tapestry
Collingwood
O'Dell's: Island of the Blue
Dolphins
Collingwood Aesthetics
For Collingwood, art is about Collingwood Aesthetics: Strengths
Clarifying the emotion for the Corresponds closely to the intuitions

of many contemporary artists
Artist. They feel the emotion eg. Van Gogh's letter to Theo; "I
But are unclear and only have have tried [in The Night Café] to
A vague idea of what it is. express the terrible passions of
Through the process of humanity by mean of red and green."
creating The theory includes what art

is, the process of creation and
Art, they clear up the emotion the relationship between the
For themselves and artist and the art.
understand it.
Collingwood Aesthetics Collingwood Aesthetics: Weaknesses
Supporting examples of art The theory fails to take account

Hoffman's: Self-Portrait of the vast numbers of works of art
Expressive dance that were created on commission,
Paalen's: Implicit Spaces under duress, or as production.
Shakespeare's: O Mistress
Historically, much of art was

Mine produced not by individuals to
express personal emotions, but
Tichborne's: Tichbornes Elegy
by an assemblage of artists.
Heaney's: Mid-term break
Collingwood Aesthetics
Contradicting examples of art
Battle of Kadesh at Abu
Simbel
Michaelangelo: Sistine Chapel
Gillespe's: Famine
Moyne de Morgues's:
Clive Bell
Oranges
and Lemons
Mozart's: Requim in D minor

15. taste,
Clive Bell Art
people enjoy a piece of art
There is a certain uniquely
work
aesthetic emotion, and that
when they are able to
aesthetic qualities are the
recognize
qualities in an object that
the significant forms present in
evoke this emotion. These
it. As a critic of abstract art,
qualities are the significant
Bell
forms
believed he was good at doing
and include the lines, colour,
Clive Bell Art this in that genre, but less
symmetry and geometry.
Aesthetic emotions are Clive BellgoodStrengths
Art:
different in explains why people may
It
others which he enjoyed
from other emotions, for seem to have less.
different taste in art
example the aesthetic value of a painting or
a photograph of a loved one sculpture has absolutely nothing
may evoke emotion, however to do with its success as a
it is at the memory of them representation of something
rather else
than the forms within the allowing for almost any kind
piece, of Clive Bell Art: Weaknesses
medium to be good or bad
 It applies easiest to visual arts
so is not Clive Bell Art emotion.
an aesthetic and is
Supporting examples of art harder to apply to music or
Polynesian carvings
literature
The conceptual circle of aesthetic
Delaunay's: Le Premier
emotion, aesthetic quality, and
Disque significant form is so small that in
The Parthenon
the
Holbein's: The Ambassadors end, one cannot give reasons
Landseer's: Monarch of the why a work is good.
Glen There is a sharp separation
between
aesthetic and other emotions.
Clive Bell Art
Contradicting examples of art
Titian's: Bacchus and Ariadne
Klimt's: Adele Bloch-Bauer I
Dicken's: A Christmas carol
Bernini's: The Rape of
Kant
Proserpina

16. Kant Observations on the
Feeling Kant
of the Beautiful and Sublime He claimed that judgments of taste
Kant thought that Beauty or are both subjective and universal.
They are subjective, because they
Sublimity were not really are responses of pleasure, and do
properties of objects, but not essentially involve any claims
ways in which we respond to about the properties of the object
objects. He was concerned to show Itself. On the other hand, aesthetic
that this focus on the subjective judgments are universal and not
aesthetic response did not merely
make aesthetic value a mere personal. That's because in a crucial
function of individual or personal way they must be disinterested.
Kant Kant
taste. Kant divided the kinds of
These non-aesthetic interests aesthetic response into responses
are extraneous to my to the Beautiful and the Sublime.
appreciation The one represents a pleasure
of the painting. Rather I am in order, harmony, delicacy and
pleased by the painting just for the like. The other is a response
what it is, apart from anything of awe before the infinite or the
overwhelming. While the beautiful
I presents the appearance of form,
may get out of it, therefore it the sublime may often seem
is art for art's sake. formless.
Kant Strengths
It eliminates a personal bias
Kant
so Supporting examples of art
good art is always defined as Kush's: Treasure Island
good Botticelli's: The Birth of Venus
 Many of contemporary Escher's: Relativity
philosophers Edgar Allan Poe's: The Raven
agreed or came up with similar
theories eg. Burke
Kant Weaknesses
Just because something is not
“beautiful” does not make it Kant
a bad piece of art work Contradicting examples of art
 Kant thought to be beautiful Sanzio's: The deposition of Christ
works had to be disinterested, Van Gogh's: Starry Night
universal, necessary and Banksy's: Kissing policemen
purposive Anything with expression or
without purpose, however we may information
feel something is beautiful
while others disagree, so may