Abstract
Ontological arguments for the existence of God attempt to prove God's existence through an analysis of the concept of God. They have a long history: in the West, the first known ontological argument was proposed by Anselm of Canterbury in 1078. Despite having been generally looked upon with disfavor by theologians (Toner 1909), ontological arguments have, interestingly, remained a popular topic with philosophers, and some (for example, Malcolm 1960, Plantinga 1974) have continued to defend them. Part of the fascination with the argument, no doubt, is that it seems so obviously unsound, yet it has proven so difficult to convincingly refute. Russell writes, "The argument does not, to a modern mind, seem very convincing, but it is easier to feel convinced that it must be fallacious than it is to find out precisely where the fallacy lies" (2004 [1946], Bk. 3, Pt. 1, §11).
Item Type: | Journal article |
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Faculties: | Philosophy, Philosophy of Science and Religious Science > Munich Center for Mathematical Philosophy (MCMP) Philosophy, Philosophy of Science and Religious Science > Munich Center for Mathematical Philosophy (MCMP) > History of Philosophy |
Subjects: | 100 Philosophy and Psychology > 100 Philosophy |
Language: | English |
Item ID: | 21003 |
Date Deposited: | 03. Jul 2014, 06:43 |
Last Modified: | 29. Apr 2016, 09:18 |