"Darwin on Trial"

Paper Summary:

This paper discusses the views of Phillip E. Johnson, who is considered one of the important leaders in the "Intelligent Design" movement, which is an offshoot of "creationism" and has been used by those who oppose evolution. The paper describes his book, "Darwin on Trial" as a good one to read for those who want a balanced look at both sides of the current debate between the ideas of evolution and the ideas of creationism.

Table of Contents:
Introduction
Brief Summary
Critical Interaction
Conclusion
Works Cited

From the Paper:

"Phillip E. Johnson is considered one of the important leaders in the "Intelligent Design" movement, which is an offshoot of "creationism" and has been used by those who oppose evolution, or are in the belief that "evolutionists" are ignoring the role God played in the construction of Earth and the universe. Johnson's books have become an important tool in the hands of fundamentalist Christians, evangelicals and other conservative Christians. Johnson is not a scientist, he is a law professor, with a specialty, he writes on page 13, of "...analyzing the logic of arguments and identifying the assumptions that lie behind those arguments." The fact that he is a lawyer who employs "logic" and critically analyzes "assumptions" gives him the license he needs to painstakingly critique the "relevant scientific information" relating to evolution. His book is a good one to read for those who want a balanced look at both sides of the current debate between the ideas of evolution, and the ideas of creationism (or "intelligent design")."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Johnson, Phillip E. 1991. Darwin on Trial. Washington, D.C.: Regnery Gateway.
• Johnson, Phillip E. 1997. Defeating Darwinism by Opening Minds. Downers Grove, ILL: Intervarsity Press.
• Miller, Kenneth E.; & Johnson, Phillip E. 1996. Odyssey of Life: How did we get here? The Public Broadcast Service. Retrieved 24 April 2006 from http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/odyssey/debate/deb07mill206.html.
• Popper, Karl. 1962. Science: Conjectures and Refutations. Conjectures and Refutations. New York: Basic Books.

More papers on "Darwin on Trial":

• Book Review # 94307 : "Darwin on Trial"
• Term Paper # 93374 : "Darwin's Theory of Evolution"
• Term Paper # 103065 : "Darwinism and the Scopes Monkey Trial"

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