Critically evaluate plantingas view that kants objection to anselms ontological argument is irrelevant. I introduce a plausible interpretation of the ontological argument that is not vulnerable to millicans objection and conclude that even if the ontological. For, in my judgment, there is no presentation of the ontological argument that is as carefully developed, forceful, and clear as plantingas formulation and discussion of the argument on 3 ibid. Pdf where the conflict really lies download full pdf. The argument was first proposed by alvin plantinga in 1993 and raises issues of interest to epistemologists, philosophers of mind, evolutionary biologists, and philosophers of religion. Plantingas argument, and others like it, always lead me to a related question. I took it that these arguments are successful only if they start from propositions that compel assent from every honest and intelligent person and proceed majestically to their conclusion by way of forms of argument. Plantingas version of the ontological argument is seen as the most updated and formidable. Consequently, the modal ontological argument is a logical argument, but not an ontological argument in the sense of having any existential relevance.
Patching plantingas ontological argument by making the. The nature of necessity, together with a series of subsequent articles, constitutes what is perhaps the most sophisticated theory of possible worlds yet to be constructed. Historically, however, the term is inextricably associated with the famous argument presented in anselms proslogion chapter ii, and with. Contemporary defenders of the ontological argument include alvin plantinga, william alston. Alvin plantinga download ebook pdf, epub, tuebl, mobi.
The ontological argument for the existence of god has enjoyed a recent renaissance. Aug 04, 2015 a video response to inspiringphilosphy and anticitizenx regarding alvin plantingas modal ontological argument for gods existence. However, the predicate logic of descriptions must be free, since these. Sep 17, 2014 unfortunately, this reformulation of the ontological argument implies the existence of possible beings which do not exist. I shall only defend the modal version of the argument as offered by plantinga. What was particularly intetesting was seeing alvin plantingas rebuttal of the argument he would later come to support, although only after tweaking it which i think has really transormed it and is the most convincing form of it that ive ever read. The evolutionary argument against naturalism eaan is a philosophical argument asserting a problem with believing both evolution and philosophical naturalism simultaneously. Arguments that prove the existence of god ukessays. Plantinga has been one of the principal figures involved in the attempt to clarify and understand the metaphysics of possible worlds.
Then again, whenever gutting veers close to theism i have no problem taking him to task either. Plantinga and taylor did a fine job compiling parts of famous philosophical works that. Get your kindle here, or download a free kindle reading app. But the nomaximality premise of the rival to plantingas ontological argument seems in no relevant way different from nu. William lane craig considers alvin plantingas version of the ontological argument as having the best chance of being cogent wlc 2004, p.
In contrast, the greater complexity of godels argument requires the formalization and automation. Plantinga begins his discussion of the ontological argument by borrowing seventeenth century philosopher leibniz idea of possible worlds. He is known for his work in philosophy of religion, epistemology, metaphysics and christian apologetics. Jan 17, 2009 on plantingas ontological argument by darrin at 1172009 one of the most curious arguments for the existence of god has been presented by st. Other readers will always be interested in your opinion of the books youve read.
If religious belief is reasonable, then its up to a posteriori arguments design, cosmological or religious experiences to show that its also true. While plantinga maintains that belief in the great pumpkin cannot have adequate grounds, he does believe that any belief in god could have grounds. Robert maydole, the modal perfection argument for the. So, for example, there is a possible world in which i am able to execute dazzling slam dunks and a possible world in which i am lucky to make a basket at all. Where the conflict really lies available for download and read online in other formats. Philosophy genius editors the ontological argument for the. Refuting plantingas victorious ontological argument. My chief aim in this chapter is to logically evaluate logical reconstructions of each of these six. Evolutionary argument against naturalism wikipedia. I often enjoy guttings columns, for instance his argument for why the pope should revisit the catholics church position on abortion. In warrant and proper function alvin plantinga established his evolutionary argument against naturalism1 eaan.
Apr 23, 2014 the ontological argument has a long history st. Text burns, patching plantingas ontological argument by making the murdoch move. Alvin plantinga on theistic arguments warranted christian belief, new york. The first ontological argument in the western christian tradition 1 was proposed by anselm of canterbury in his 1078 work proslogion. Download free alvin plantinga book in pdf and epub free download.
A video response to inspiringphilosphy and anticitizenx regarding alvin plantingas modal ontological argument for gods existence. Nov 15, 2010 critically evaluate plantingas view that kants objection to anselms ontological argument is irrelevant. The ontological argument peter millican any argument which attempts to prove gods existence a priori based only on his nature can be termed an ontological argument. I have to say, i think several of the objections presented against the ontological argument basically miss the mark. The relevance of kants objection to anselms ontological argument. Plantinga s defence of the ontological argument michael tooley in chapter io of his book, the nature of necessity, alvin plantinga contends that although many versions of the ontological argument are unsound, there is at least one that is valid, and whose premises may reasonably be accepted. I will then go on to look at criticisms of the argument from both gaunilo and kant to see if they can show that the argument does not work and if not, why not. This argument for the existence of god has fascinated philosophers ever since anselm first stated it. Feel free to ping me in a month or three if you want to see what data ive collected. In his discussion of philosophical trends in europe, colin brown notes of anselms ontological argument, to make the argument work, existence has to be treated as a quality. Suppose we concede that if i had been born of muslim parents in morocco rather than christian parents in michigan, my beliefs would be quite different. Plantinga concludes that the ontological argument shows that belief in god isnt contrary to reason irrational, deluded, foolish and he thinks this is enough. Reassessing plantingas ontological argument for god. Refuting plantingas victorious ontological argument the.
Unfortunately, this reformulation of the ontological argument implies the existence of possible beings which do not exist. Recently, plantinga has been interviewed by another notre dame philosopher with theistic leanings, gary gutting, for the new york times stone blog. The following video explains alvin plantinga s modal ontological argument where the word modal refers to notions of possibility. Anselms a prioriargument for the existence of god today we will look at anselms ontological argument for the existence of god. It also makes use of the clause in nagasawas article, namely that since. For a critical account of verificationism see plantinga, god and other minds. Given the evil that results from creating creatures with free will, even if it is unavoidable in producing good, why does god create the world and free agents at all. That is, for example, belief in krishna may be properly basic for some hindus given the right conditions. Many theists have claimed maydoles ontological argument from the the blackwell companion to natural theology has never been refuted, i am presenting a refutation based on and expanded from a discussion here. Download pdf where the conflict really lies book full free. On plantingas ontological argument by darrin at 1172009 one of the most curious arguments for the existence of god has been presented by st.
Most forms of the ontological argument rely on the premise that existence is greater than nonexistence, or that necessary existence is greater than conditional existence. In evaluating these arguments i employed a traditional but wholly improper standard. Philosophy genius editors the ontological argument for. It is time now to consider one motivation a believer may have for accepting a given version of the ontological argument, namely abstract objects. Basically, i enumerate numerous objections i have thought of. A more recent ontological argument came from kurt godel, who proposed a formal argument for gods existence. However, plantingas version seems to avoid this it doesnt, though. Is the modal ontological argument for god a sound proof.
Pentru traducere automata, fa click aici romanian dr. If the pluralist had been born in morocco he probably wouldnt be a pluralist. A critique of the plantinga version of the modal ontological. While plantinga maintains that belief in the great pumpkin. Plantingas defence of the ontological argument michael tooley in chapter io of his book, the nature of necessity, alvin plantinga contends that although many versions of the ontological argument are unsound, there is at least one that is valid, and. Anselm of canterbury used a version of the argument in the 11th century ad, but it has its modern defenders as well. Has plantinga buried mackies logical argument from evil. God, freedom, and evil alvin plantinga free download as pdf file.
The ontological argument the ontological argument is an argument for the existence of god, coming in many forms. He is known for his work in philosophy of religion, epistemology, metaphysics and christian apologetics quotes. We examine the famous ontological argument in proslogium ii. They try to gain objective meaning from an entirely subjective word, and fail because of it. In the nature of necessity 1974a and god, freedom and evil 1974b plantinga argues, also famously, that mackies argument isnt sound.
In this series refuting iron chariots we observe the fallacious attempted counterarguments to theistic arguments, made on the atheist website, ironchariots. Maydole ontological arguments are deductive arguments for the existence of god from general. God exists in the understanding but not in reality. In other words, ontological arguments are arguments from what are typically alleged to be none but analytic, a priori and necessary premises to the. The ontological argument from the proslogion, by anselm, bishop of canterbury c.
No philosophical argument for the existence of god, can be initiated with a definition of god, because god is not within human experience. The following video explains alvin plantingas modal ontological argument where the word modal refers to notions of possibility. Anselm defined god as a being than which no greater can be conceived, and which exists 2, and argued that this being must exist in the mind, even in the mind of the person who denies the existence of god. In this essay i shall describe anselms ontological argument and look at how it may prove gods existence. Oct 21, 2016 plantinga s fundamental error is in assuming that philosophy is about things.
In this essay it shall be discussed whether there are any arguments which work to prove the existence of god. Now god can create free creatures, but he cant cause or determine them to do only what is right. No philosophical argument for the existence of god, can be initiated with a definition of god. Anselm to contemporary philosophers alvin plantinga, richard taylor on. Plantinga s modal version ontological argument plantinga developed his modal version of the ontological argument for the existence of god in his two controversial books, the nature of necessity 1974. This site is like a library, use search box in the widget to get ebook that you want. This book discusses and exemplifies the philosophy of religion, or philosophical reflection on central. What was particularly intetesting was seeing alvin plantinga s rebuttal of the argument he would later come to support, although only after tweaking it which i think has really transormed it and is the most convincing form of it that ive ever read. In this account, we replace the possibilist idea of merely possible worlds with that of a certain type of state of affairs alternatively, a certain type of proposition which exists but fails to obtain alternatively, fails to be true. An ontological argument is a philosophical argument for the existence of god that uses. Norman malcolm revived the ontological argument in 1960 when he located a second, stronger ontological argument in anselms work.
Alvin plantinga, professor of philosophy at notre dame, is an expert in this. The ontological argument alvin plantinga 1 the third theistic argument i wish to discuss is the famous ontological argument first formulated by anselm of canterbury in the eleventh century. The exam expects you to reflect on the challenges to the ontological argument do they refute it or does the argument still persuade. This is an a prioriargument for the existence of god. Humanities wp brp 68hum2014 this working paper is an output of a research project implemented at the national research university higher school of economics hse. Plantingas fundamental error is in assuming that philosophy is about things. For, in my judgment, there is no presentation of the ontological argument that is as carefully developed, forceful, and clear as plantinga s formulation and discussion of the argument on 3 ibid. On the logic of the ontological argument stanford university. Ontological arguments are arguments, for the conclusion that god exists, from premises which are supposed to derive from some source other than observation of the worlde. Alvin carl plantinga born november 15, 1932 is an american philosopher and holder of the jellema chair in philosophy at calvin college. I then argued that the objections to theistic belief are equally unimpressive. This argument obviously begs the question because it uses as a premise what. People must learn to be satisfied in these areas of their life that. What is the best refutation of plantingas modal ontological.
William lane craig considers alvin plantinga s version of the ontological argument as having the best chance of being cogent wlc 2004, p. This is the basic idea of modal ontological analysis. Ontological arguments stanford encyclopedia of philosophy. Anselms ontological argument anselm, 1078 can be regarded as the ancestor of modern ontological arguments such as godels. He spent nineteen years as a professor at calvin college, then eighteen years at the university of notre dame, and returned to calvin college in 2010. Plantingas argument centres on his conclusion that naturalism and the theory of evolution ne are rationally incompatible because they gives rise to significant doubts about the reliability of our cognitive faculties beilby 2002 pp. It is really just the assertion that a maximally great being is not possible, and thus merely an assertion to the effect that plantingas first and key premise is false. Carmona as sort of a reply to the article i posted earlier, i have decided to present chapter 4 of my book philosophical atheism in full.
Plantingas modal version ontological argument plantinga developed his modal version of the ontological argument for the existence of god in his two controversial books, the nature of necessity 1974. Anselm, rene descartes, and many other theologians throughout the centuries. Anselm claims that we can prove the existence of god, without any evidence from experience, simply by understanding the conceptof god. Alvin plantinga challenged this argument and proposed an alternative, based on modal logic. In god and other minds, i argued first that the theistic proofs or arguments do not succeed. Something is supreme if and only if nothing is possibly greater, and a perfection is a property that it is better to have than not. I introduce a plausible interpretation of the ontological argument that is not vulnerable to millicans objection and conclude that even if the ontological argument fails, it does not fail in the. Alvin plantinga quotes author of god, freedom, and evil. As an example of actualistically acceptable abstract worlds, we draw chiefly upon plantingas account. Nov 11, 2017 far from victorious, plantingas argument would taste irreparable defeat and this, in more ways than one. The teleological and cosmological arguments shall be first discussed, criticised by showing their reliance on the ontological argument, which shall then be shown to be an inadequate argument. Click download or read online button to get alvin plantinga book now. Presumably, though, beliefs contrary to christianity may be held by some individuals in certain circumstances as properly basic.