Reading Questions
David Hume - A Critique of the Teleological Argument

1. In Philo's first speech what is his chief complaint about Cleanthes' argument?
2. In Philo's second speech he says that order and arrangement are not by themselves proof of design. What else is needed?
3. Philo grants (p. 62) that similar causes prove similar effects and that similar effects prove similar causes. He warns us though that the certainty of such reasoning can be affected by what?
4. According to Philo, discoveries in astronomy and by microscopes would weaken the certainty of Cleanthes' conclusion. Why?
5. When Philo compares the universe and its designer to a ship and its carpenter he suggests what about the world?
6. Describe any one of Philo's complaints about the Teleological Argument and then explain how Paley might reply.