Understanding Anselm's Ontological Argument
In philosophy, an ontological argument is a kind of argument that establishes the existence of some entity. In the case of Anselm, he argues in favor of God’s existence. In this paper, I will discuss relevant information necessary to understand Anselm’s reasoning. Then I will break down Anselm’s argument. Finally, I will present Galindo's Perfect Island Objection and explain why his criticisms are unfounded.
Before examining Anselm’s argument, it is necessary to understand the concepts underlying his argument, including his definition of God and the nature of existence. According to Anselm, God is a being than which no greater can be conceived (Anselm ch. 2). In other words, among the beings that do exist or possibly exist, there is one being who is the highest and best (Rowe 13). Anselm does not mean physically great in the sense of a material object is great. By great Anselm means “more worthy than” because that entity possesses characteristics of moral goodness and wisdom (Rowe 14).
It is also important to understand the distinction between existence in the understanding and existence in reality. An idea that exists in the mind exists in the understanding. On the other hand, anything that …show more content…
Anselm’s argument takes the form of reductio ad absurdum. The purpose is to disprove a statement by showing it leads to an absurd conclusion. Then one can conclude the opposite to be true. Anselm’s argument begins with the following: suppose (for the sake of the reductio) that God does not exist in reality. For one to make this claim, the idea of God must exist in the understanding. We know that God is a being than which nothing greater can be conceived. We also know that existence is a greatness. We can conceive of God existing in reality. Therefore, we can conceive of God being greater than he is, which is absurd. Therefore we can conclude that God’s existence is necessary (Anselm, ch.
Before examining Anselm’s argument, it is necessary to understand the concepts underlying his argument, including his definition of God and the nature of existence. According to Anselm, God is a being than which no greater can be conceived (Anselm ch. 2). In other words, among the beings that do exist or possibly exist, there is one being who is the highest and best (Rowe 13). Anselm does not mean physically great in the sense of a material object is great. By great Anselm means “more worthy than” because that entity possesses characteristics of moral goodness and wisdom (Rowe 14).
It is also important to understand the distinction between existence in the understanding and existence in reality. An idea that exists in the mind exists in the understanding. On the other hand, anything that …show more content…
Anselm’s argument takes the form of reductio ad absurdum. The purpose is to disprove a statement by showing it leads to an absurd conclusion. Then one can conclude the opposite to be true. Anselm’s argument begins with the following: suppose (for the sake of the reductio) that God does not exist in reality. For one to make this claim, the idea of God must exist in the understanding. We know that God is a being than which nothing greater can be conceived. We also know that existence is a greatness. We can conceive of God existing in reality. Therefore, we can conceive of God being greater than he is, which is absurd. Therefore we can conclude that God’s existence is necessary (Anselm, ch.