Natural theology : or, evidence of the existence and attributes of the deity, collected from the appearances of nature / William Paley ; edited with an introduction and notes by Matthew D. Eddy and David Knight.

Includes bibliographical references (pages xxxii-xxxv).

Print version record.

Introduction; Note on the Text; Select Bibliography; A Chronology of William Paley; I. State of the Argument; II. State of the Argument Continued; III. Application of the Argument; IV. Of the Succession of Plants and Animals; V. Application of the Argument Continued; VI. The Argument Cumulative; VII. Of the Mechanical and Immechanical Functions of Animals and Vegetables; VIII. Of Mechanical Arrangement in the Human FrameOf the Bones; IX. Of the Muscles; X. Of the Vessels of Animal Bodies; XI. Of the Animal Structure Regarded as a Mass; XII. Comparative Anatomy.

XIII. Peculiar OrganizationsXIV. Prospective Contrivances; XV. Relations; XVI. Compensation; XVII. The Relation of Animated Bodies to Inanimate Nature; XVIII. Instincts; XIX. Of Insects; XX. Of Plants; XXI. The Elements; XXII. Astronomy; XXIII. Of the Personality of the Deity; XXIV. Of the Natural Attributes of the Deity; XXV. The Unity of the Deity; XXVI. The Goodness of the Deity; XXVII. Conclusion; Appendix: Further Reading; Explanatory Notes.

In Natural Theology William Paley set out to prove the existence of God from the evidence of the beauty and order of the natural world. This edition reprints the original text of 1802, and sets the book in the context of the theological, philosophical, and scientific debates of the nineteenth century. - ;'The consciousness of knowing little, need not beget a distrust of that which he does not know.' In Natural Theology William Paley set out to prove the existence of God from the evidence of the beauty and order of the natural world. Famously beginning by comparing the world to a watch, whose design is self-evident, he goes on to provide examples from biology, anatomy, and astronomy in order to demonstrate the intricacy and ingenuity of design that could only come from a wise and benevolent deity. Paley's legalistic approach and skilful use of metaphor and analogy were hugely successful, and equally controversial. Charles Darwin, whose investigations led to very different conclusions in the Origin of Species, was greatly influenced by the book's cumulative structure and accessible style. This edition reprints the original text of 1802, and sets the book in the context of the theological, philosophical, and scientific debates of the nineteenth century. - ; This is an astonishing book, made all the more accessible by some excellent modern footnotes - John Habgood, Church TImes.

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