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Anselm?s Ontological Argument, 2002.
A study of theologian and philosopher, Anselm's argument for the existence of God, known as his Ontological Argument.
1,200 words (approx. 4.8 pages), 1 source, APA, $ 41.95
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Abstract
The writer of this paper shows how Anselm (1033-1109), philosopher, theologian and church leader presented an argument for the existence of God that has been debated by philosophers and academicians for centuries. The paper shows that from the beginning, Anselm?s argument has been met with criticism, appreciation and interest by philosophers such as Kant, Descartes and Spinoza. The writer is of the opinion that, after studying the argument, although interesting, it has certain basic flaws, which he attempts to bring out in this paper.
From the Paper
"While analyzing Anselm?s argument and focusing on its weaknesses, the obvious question arises: Why has the argument fascinated so many philosophers over the years, if it was such a weak argument? The answer probably is that it is difficult to prove Anselm?s argument wrong logically. Even Kant?s argument that ? existence is not a predicate? has been challenged by others who have argued that there are senses in which existence is a predicate. So the controversy of and fascination with Anselm?s argument is far from over and is likely to continue."
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The Ontological Argument for God, 2005.
A criticism of Saint Anselm's ontological argument for God by Immanuel Kant.
900 words (approx. 3.6 pages), 4 sources, $ 35.95
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Abstract
This essay looks at the argument for the existence of God, by arguing against Kant's criticism of the Anselmian Ontological Argument in favor of God. It details the Ontological Argument, noting the definitions of the priori, a posteriori, necessary and contingent propositions. It then looks at how Kant built on Aquinas' proofs of the existence of God, and refutation of Anselm's proofs, but then how Kant's criticism fails through his inconclusive argument that God must not exist in order to exist.
From the Paper
"A Criticism of the Ontological Argument for God The Ontological Argument was formulated by Saint Anselm (1033 - 1109), the future Archbishop of Canterbury. He made the influential "A Priori" argument in favor of the existence of God. This argument would later be famously rejected by Saint Thomas Aquinas (c. 1224 - 1274), an accomplished theologian and philosopher, who rejected Anselms' argument with a five point "A Posteriori" argument in favor of God. It would be later Immanuel Kant (1724 - 1804) who would launch one of the strongest critiques of Anselm's ontological argument, by arguing that existence is not actually a property of existing things."
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Heidegger Ontology vs St Anselm Ontology, 2008.
A comparison of the ontological arguments of the 20th-century philosopher Martin Heidegger and the 11th-century archbishop of Canterbury, St. Anselm.
1,412 words (approx. 5.6 pages), 3 sources, MLA, $ 47.95
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Abstract
This paper discusses and compares Martin Heidegger's phenomenological analysis of human existence and St. Anselm's ontological argument on the existence of God. The writer describes the concept of "dasein," or "being," and the special meanings that Heidegger assigned to it. The writer explains how Heidegger saw being as preceding knowing and how his argument progresses to the conclusion that the being of "dasein" is time. St. Anselm, on the other hand, begins with a negative proposition and uses logic to deduce the existence of God. The writer concludes that while St. Anselm derives everything else from the generalization of God's existence from logic, Heidegger finds it nearly impossible to even completely understand the concept of being.
Outline:
Heidegger
St. Anselm
Comparison
From the Paper
"St. Anselm advanced that since God is that, than which nothing greater can be thought, He must necessarily exist in reality (Kent 2006). His ontological argument was in the form of a deduction ad absurdum. It presents a hypothesis, which presents unacceptable or non-valid consequences, which make the hypothesis false. He argues that God is that "than which no greater can be conceived" and sets it in conflict with the hypothesis that God does not exist. If the hypothesis is accepted or valid, then nothing imaginable can be greater than God. It also argues that a God that exists is greater than a God that does not exist."
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Ontological Argument, 2002.
An explanation of what an ontological argument is (unproven belief in God) and an examination of one famous type of argument.
1,100 words (approx. 4.4 pages), 3 sources, MLA, $ 38.95
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Abstract
A definition of an ontological argument is provided - to show that God exists without appealing to any real proof. The paper then introduces Middles Ages Saint Anselm's proposed ontological argument whereby he stated that the thought of God would not exist in the human mind if the potentiality for God?s presence were not already embedded in the human mind.
From the Paper
"The basics of the ontological argument are: God is defined as the being in which none greater is possible. It is true that the notion of God exists in the understanding and in reality, meaning in the mind and as a possible being. If God exists only in the mind and may have existed in reality, then God might have been greater than He is. But if God is a being in which none greater is possible, then it is not possible for God to have existed only in the mind. The conclusion is that God must exist in reality, as well."
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The Ontological Argument, 2006.
This paper analyzes the arguments, attempting to prove the existence of God, of philosopher Rene Descartes and Saint Anselm of Canterbury.
2,534 words (approx. 10.1 pages), 10 sources, APA, $ 76.95
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Abstract
This paper discusses the the age old argument of who or what is God, what qualities does God have and can God even be defined. The writer of this paper explains and defines in detail the ontological arguments as given by Saint Anselm and Rene Descartes.
Topics covered in this paper include:
Introduction
Anselm's Version
Descartes' Version
Conclusion
Bibliography
From the Paper
"Another counterargument to Anselm's ontological argument is that it assumes that God in reality must be something that is greater than what can be conceived. In this case, however, "God," first of all, could not be conceived of, thereby making the argument useless. Also, even if God could be conceived of, what would be greater than what could be conceived of would be unintelligible. Being unintelligible, it could be that no theory that man could ever formulate might be able to be applied to "God."
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St. Anselm?s Argument for the Existence of God, 2006.
A summary of St. Anselm's argument for the existence of God and various refutations of his argument.
1,578 words (approx. 6.3 pages), 8 sources, APA, $ 51.95
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Abstract
This paper begins with a summary and explanation of St. Anselm's ontological argument for the existence of God. The paper then takes a look at rebuttals to his argument presented by such famous thinkers as Rene Descartes, St. Thomas Aquinas and David Hume.
From the Paper
"St. Anselm's ontological argument for the existence of God makes an appeal to pure reasoning, priori, without empirical evidence of any sort. St. Anselm's argument begins with a reference to fool in Psalms 53:1. St. Anselm asserts that even the fool is convinced that something exists in the understanding at least, than which nothing greater can be conceived. He claims that merely by analyzing the concept of God, we can deduce that God exists. St. Anselm's stresses that God is the greatest conceivable being, "a being than which none greater can be conceived." St. Anselm's concept is logical and understandable because it is intelligible, God exists in the understanding. St. Anselm's argument goes onto state that a being that exists merely in the understanding is not as great as a being that exists in reality as well. So a being that exists in the understanding alone is not the greatest conceivable being. "
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Ontological Argument, 2002.
An explanation of ontological arguments.
650 words (approx. 2.6 pages), 3 sources, $ 26.95
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Abstract
This paper discusses Plantinga's restatement of the ontological argument. It also points out the main criticisms to which his version might be subject.
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Ontological Arguments, 2007.
This paper discusses Thomas Aquinas and St. Augustine's "ontological arguments" in favor of God's existence.
920 words (approx. 3.7 pages), 2 sources, APA, $ 32.95
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Abstract
This paper explains that the "ontological argument" in favor of God's existence has remained one of the keys to the fundamental notion that the existence of God can be verified through logical argumentation. The author points out that Aquinas introduces the idea of the first, unmovable mover, which is responsible for all of the cause and effect events witnessed today, and investigates what aspects of the world betray the existence of God and why His existence is questioned so readily. The paper relates that Augustine's position is that human beings are positioned so that they can act rightly but that the actions and sins of the past have hindered the path towards God.
From the Paper
"The first sin Augustine characterizes as being like an act of a prisoner who creates false freedom for himself by breaking the rules and intending not to be caught. Obviously, Adam was caught, and all the subsequent sins of man have created a world in which God cannot be found without help; it has become too easy to commit acts of moral evil that those who do so often act out of ignorance. In other words, ignorance of God is not an innate facet of the human condition but is the burden that all human beings carry as a result of past sins."
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Care as the Pre-ontological Structure of Dasein, 2007.
An examination of care as a pre-ontological structure of Dasein in Martin Heidegger's work "Being and Time".
1,540 words (approx. 6.2 pages), 1 source, MLA, $ 50.95
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Abstract
This paper examines how Martin Heidegger, in "Being and Time", examines the existential structures with which Dasein (being) interacts in order to reveal their unification as a structural whole. The paper points out that the phenomenon of 'care' underlies the structural totality of Dasein's being-in-the-world as the fundamental interpretation of itself, through which it is disclosed as being-ahead-of-itself. Furthermore, the state-of-mind of anxiety discloses Dasein's turning away from itself in its 'fallenness' into the world, only to turn back toward itself to realize the possibility of authentic being, as opposed to the inauthentic being provided by the everyday interpretation of Dasein. The primordial interpretation of Dasein's being as care allows the primary differentiation of possibilities, which are enacted through a care structure that both underlies and inhabits existence, facticity and 'fallenness'. The paper concludes that these existential structures are unified through the care structure to delimit an essential definition of the basic state of that entity to which Being is an issue.
From the Paper
"The phenomenon of 'care' underlies the structural totality of Dasein's Being-in-the-world as the fundamental interpretation of itself, through which it is disclosed as being-ahead-of-itself. Martin Heidegger, in Being and Time, examines the existential structures that Dasein, as that entity to which its Being is an issue, interacts with to reveal their unification as a structural whole, within which Dasein manifests as a Being-possible. The state-of-mind of anxiety discloses Dasein's turning away from itself in its 'fallenness' into the world, only to turn back toward itself to realize the possibility of authentic Being, as opposed to the inauthentic Being provided by the everyday interpretation of Dasein. The actualization of any possibilities requires that Dasein exist ahead-of-itself in projecting its Being into those possibilities. The primordial interpretation of Dasein's Being as care allows the primary differentiation of possibilities, which are enacted through a care structure that both underlies and inhabits existence, facticity and 'fallenness'. These existential structures are unified through the care structure to delimit an essential definition of the basic state of that entity to which Being is an issue."
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Descartes' Ontological Argument, 2001.
This paper focuses on Descartes' ontological argument in the "Meditations".
1,298 words (approx. 5.2 pages), 2 sources, MLA, $ 43.95
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Abstract
This paper first outlines Descartes? argument for the existence of God as set forth in Meditation V. The writer then addresses the two most prominent objections to this argument: First, Kant?s objection that Descartes' argument is valid but unsound because it contains a false premise, and second, Caterus? objection that the argument is invalid because the conclusion does not logically follow the premises.
From the Paper
"Having established that clear and distinct perceptions are true, Descartes then asserts that he has a clear and distinct perception of God. ?Clearly the idea of God, that is, the idea of a supremely perfect being, is one I discover to be no less within me than the idea of any figure or number.? (M., 368) Additionally, this perception of God includes the concept of existence. ?It is obvious to anyone who pays close attention that existence can no more be separated from God?s essence than [a triangle] having three angles equal to two right angles, or that the idea of a valley can be separated from the idea of a mountain.? (M., 369) Descartes then combines this concept with his first premise to complete the argument. Since clear and distinct perceptions about the nature of a thing are true, and the idea of existence is inextricably linked with the idea of a God, Descartes concludes that a God must therefore exist."
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Ontology and Tattoos, 2002.
An analysis of the art of tattoos through the medium of process and substance ontology.
1,400 words (approx. 5.6 pages), 5 sources, $ 53.95
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Abstract
This paper will discuss ontology through the issue of tattoos. By understanding the ideology behind tattoing, we can see how ontological debates range in the substance and process ontology theories.
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Quine?s Ontology, 2002.
According to W. V. O. Quine, whatever ontology best serves the epistemological role in science merits adoption. This paper looks at the nine essays which appear in his "From a Logical Point of View".
2,440 words (approx. 9.8 pages), 2 sources, MLA, $ 74.95
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Abstract
This paper specifically looks at two essays by Quine: ?On What There Is? and ?Identity, Ostension, and Hypostasis.? In each of these essays, Quine eloquently, clearly and often humorously lays out the means by which he arrives at his ontological conclusion. The paper examines these essays, comparing their modes of emparting Quine's theories.
From the Paper
"If we imagine trying to teach someone, say a stranger to our language, to what thing the name ?river? refers, we can point to various ?river stages? of the same river, stages which, by virtue of their being spatially spread, adhere to temporal spread as well. ?River? it turns out refers not just to an object but to a process, a conglomeration of an infinite number of river stages spread over time and space. To identify to our new friend only ?this river?, we must assume his prior knowledge of ?river?. But, to give him the notion of ?river? in general, we need only point to numerous river stages of several rivers. Finally, to help our friend?s understanding of ?Ca?ster?, we merely replace ?river? with ?Ca?ster? in our oral repetitions. By means of induction, a stranger can acquire some modicum of awareness of the words we use to identify spatio-temporal concrete objects."
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"Integrity and Dramatic Life" by Anselm Berrigan, 2001.
The following paper is a critical analysis of the poems in Anselm Berrigan's "Integrity & Dramatic Life".
1,485 words (approx. 5.9 pages), 0 sources, $ 49.95
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The following essay critically analyzes Anselm Berrigan's poems: "In the paintings of Will ", "My Poem", "Poem minus thing", "Ghost Town" and "A short history of autumn". This essay suggests that if we look at life's journeys from Berrigan's view and their path along the way, we may have a clearer understanding of where Anselm Berrigan is going with his poetry.
From the Paper
"The poems in Anselm Berrigan's "Integrity & Dramatic Life", express many aspects of individuality, isolation, cycles of life, mental anguish and frustration of society. Some of the poems tend to resemble rambling but in a sense relate to aspects of the subject as it is seen in the mind of ones inner thoughts. The "Ghost Town," for example shows ones outlook on the cycle of life and the process of labor. Anselm expresses a view of the cycle of labor in a practical sense but also uses outward ramifications to show some of his imaginary personality. "
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Proving God's Existence: Anselm, Aquinas, and Kant, 2006.
A comparison of three distinct approaches to the proofs for the existence of God, as set forth, respectively, by Anselm, Thomas Aquinas, and Emanuel Kant.
2,047 words (approx. 8.2 pages), 2 sources, MLA, $ 64.95
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Abstract
This paper analyzes the distinct approaches to the theological question of how to prove God's existence by three theologians: Anselm, Thomas Aquinas and Emanuel Kant. The writer provides the historical, religious and intellectual background of each of the three, and summarizes each theologian's approach and what they had in common, as well as their differences and limitations. The writer also discusses why the three theologians differ and explains how each approach expanded the writer's personal knowledge of the ongoing debate concerning the proofs for God's existence in theology.
From the Paper
"Thomas Aquinas lived from 1225 to 1274 C.E. Thomas was related to Italian aristocracy and to kings and emperors of other countries. He joined the Dominicans, who for their missionary purposes stressed the importance of the gospel and academic knowledge. Problems arose in the 13th century with the dealing of the rediscovery of Aristotle's thoughts, thanks to the work of Spanish Muslims such as Averroes. Some theologians completely rejected Aristotelian thought while others accepted it uncritically. Unlike these other theologians, Aquinas welcomed Aristotelian thought but with a critical outlook. The rediscovery of Aristotle's writings was the beginning of how some theologians acquired the ability to initiate a meaningful dialogue between science and philosophy with theology - yet ironically, its acceptance was embraced after Aquinas' life."
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St. Anselm, 2008.
An examination of the contributions of St. Anselm of Canterbury to philosophical thought during medieval times.
2,939 words (approx. 11.8 pages), 8 sources, MLA, $ 86.95
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Abstract
This paper discusses one of the influential Christian leaders and thinkers of the medieval era - St. Anselm of Canterbury. It begins by describing his background and his life and then discusses how he helped to shape philosophical thought during his era and develop the intellectual life of England in the twelfth century. The paper provides examples of his contributions.
From the Paper
"It is difficult to imagine that one could go to Anselm in doubt about God, be subjected to this often-circular set of self-definitions, and come away in a more clear spiritual state, believing in God and one's relationship with God. To the contrary, it is easier to imagine that a person's reasoning powers would be beaten down by such a philosophy to the point that faith seems a simple respite from thought. We find the same problem when Anselm sets out to discover the relationship among foreknowledge, predestination, and free choice. With respect to foreknowledge and free choice, Anselm writes that it does not seem that God's foreknowledge of what a man is going to do and man's free choices are incompatible. He says that the two can somehow coexist, though, and he sets out to discover if this thesis is correct. Even before he begins his line of inquiry, though, the reader should see that Anselm simply cannot know what God knows or when he knows it. What he is doing is trying to use words to create a place of possibility wherein an individual can imagine that God's foreknowledge and man's free will are not incompatible. The fact is that they very well might be compatible in some divine sense to which human beings can have no access, even through reason."
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