Natural theology (1826) [Paperback]

William Paley (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 18, 2009

Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: would be evident, in whatever way we accounted for the irregularity of the movement, or whether we could account for it or not. It is not necessary that a machine be perfect, in order to shew with what design it was made: still less necessary, where the only question is, whether it were made with any design at all. III. Nor, thirdly, would it bring any uncertainty into the argument, if there were a few parts of the watch, concerning which we could not discover, or had not yet discovered, in what manner they conduced to the general effect; or even some parts, concerning which we could not ascertain, whether they conduced to that effect in any manner whatever. For, as to the first branch of the case; if by the loss, or disorder, or decay of the parts in question, the movement of the watch were found in fact to be stopped, or disturbed, or retarded, no doubt would remain in our minds as to the utility or intention of these parts, although we should be unable to investigate the manner according to which, or the connexion by which, the ultimate effect depended upon their action or assistance; and the more complex is the machine, the more likely is this obscurity to arise. Then, as to the second thing supposed, namely, that there were parts which might be spared, without prejudice to the movement of the watch, and that we had proved this by experiment—these superfluous parts, even if we were completely assured that they were such, would not vacate the reasoning which we had instituted concerning other parts. The indication of contrivance remained, with respect to them, nearly as it was before. IV. Nor, fourthly, would any man in his senses think the existence of the watch, with its various machinery, accounted for, by being told that it was one out of possible combinations of mate...

Editorial Reviews

Book Description

William Paley (1743-1805), a British Christian apologist, uses metaphors, analogies, and examples from medicine, natural history and astronomy to show that God is the intelligent creator of the world. This, his last book, was an influential bestseller throughout the nineteenth century, and inspired many later works including the Bridgewater Treatises. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

From the Publisher

First published in 1803, this title should be on the shelf of anyone interested in the history of the origins controversy. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 306 pages
• Publisher: General Books LLC (August 18, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0217969615
• ISBN-13: 978-0217969611
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #10,991,904 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

20 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Classic of Science & Religion, May 1, 2005

By 

Chad Arment (PA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Natural Theology (Paperback)

Paley's argument for a designer is relevant to any historical discussion on the origins debate. The Coachwhip Publications 2005 reprint edition (ISBN 1930585217) is inexpensive and contains an additional bibliography of more recent teleological arguments.

19 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Historically relevant, February 18, 2003

By 

Sergio A. Salazar Lozano (Tampico, Tamaulipas Mexico) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Natural Theology (Hardcover)

William Paley sure was an intelligent man. His reasoning was flawless and his knowledge ample (he knew a lot considering the knowledge of his time). Unfortunately , Paley lived before Darwin published "The origin of species" and like any other priest of his time (and the vast majority of the people in his time too) he believed God had nicely fix every little detail so he and all human kind would live in a perfectly "fit for human" world. He believed in the design of the "superior being" (God, of course) and he nicely explained it at the beginning of Natural Theology. This is a must to anyone interested in the evolution of evolutionary thought, and wants to know about one strong theological basis Victorians had opposing evolution.

2 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Usable Edition of an Historically Significant Text, July 20, 2010

By 

Kevin T. Keith "KTK" (Brooklyn, NY United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

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This review is from: Paley's Natural Theology (Paperback)

This is a good readable edition of Paley's classic work. It is not a scholarly edition, but is fine for anyone who wants to read this surprisingly sophisticated text in its entirety, or for students or scholars who simply need an affordable complete edition.

As to the work itself, natural theology is greeted with well-deserved ridicule by modern philosophers, but it is worthwhile to understand just what Paley was trying to accomplish and what contemporary intellectual trends and arguments he was responding to. Though his general line of argumentation is now solely the province of religious cranks, it was in his time a respectable attempt to understand natural philosophy and early modern science in light of the omnipresent religious mythology of the day. In offering his infamous "watchmaker" analogy, he was not (as today's creationists do) jumping to pre-determined conclusions by simple indulgence of his own incredulity, but rather making the point that actual observational evidence, as opposed to mere scripture, could be upheld as a standard of evaluation of theories about the natural world. He also found in this a basis for utilitarian - and thus rationalized - ethics. Given that religious dogma could not have been evaded in any real sense, this was a move toward evidence-based scientific theories and non-dogmatic ethics, and a contribution to the debate between natural philosophy and dogmatic religion - on the side of rationalism - that stands in ironic contrast to the use that is usually made of this work today.