{"id":2650,"date":"2016-05-04T16:03:07","date_gmt":"2016-05-04T16:03:07","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.plato-philosophy.org\/?post_type=teachertoolkit&p=2650"},"modified":"2025-01-24T13:35:40","modified_gmt":"2025-01-24T21:35:40","slug":"argument-from-design-existence-of-god","status":"publish","type":"teachertoolkit","link":"https:\/\/plato-philosophy.org\/teachertoolkit\/argument-from-design-existence-of-god\/","title":{"rendered":"The Argument from Design for the Existence of God"},"content":{"rendered":"

One of the most plausible arguments for the existence of God is the argument from design. This argument proceeds by pointing out how all things in the world seem fitted to one another, something that is also true of all the elements of each organism. It then points out that, when we find design in created things \u2013 from watches to books \u2013 we know that they were created by someone. Reasoning by analogy, the claim is that the world must also have a creator, only one with much greater intellect and power than any human being.<\/p>\n

The picture book Yellow and Pink<\/em><\/a> by William Steig presents two puppets arguing about whether they must have been designed. This charming book actually does a nice job of presenting both sides of this discussion before its surprise ending seemingly resolves the issue. After reading the book to students, you can pose interesting questions about both sides of the argument, stressing that the issue is not whether God exists but the viability of this argument for establishing the existence of a creator of the world.<\/p>\n

One interesting way to proceed is to ask students to evaluate the cogency of each side of the argument. On the one hand, one criterion in favor of the argument from design is its simplicity: just accepting the existence of a creator can explain a wide range of different features of the world. The supporter of the \u201caccidental existence\u201d view, on the other hand, can point out that this view adheres to the advice of Ockham\u2019s Razor not to needlessly multiply entities. (William of Ockham was a medieval philosopher.) This can open up the doors for an interesting discussion of the plausibility of this proof of God\u2019s existence.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

One of the most plausible arguments for the existence of God is the argument from design. This argument proceeds by pointing out how all things in the world seem fitted to one another, something that is also true of all the elements of each organism. It then points out that, when we find design in … The Argument from Design for the Existence of God<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":16057,"template":"","toolkitcategory":[773,758],"gradelevel":[48],"topics":[258,450],"class_list":["post-2650","teachertoolkit","type-teachertoolkit","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","toolkitcategory-logic","toolkitcategory-metaphysics","gradelevel-high-school-and-beyond","topics-reality","topics-reasoning"],"yoast_head":"\nThe Argument from Design for the Existence of God - PLATO - Philosophy Learning and Teaching Organization<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The Argument from Design for the Existence of God - PLATO - Philosophy Learning and Teaching Organization\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"One of the most plausible arguments for the existence of God is the argument from design. 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