Anselm’s Ontological Argument

• What is Anselm's definition of God?

  God is a being than which no greater can be conceived
• What is point 1 of part 1 of Anselm's argument?

  God is that than which no greater can be thought
• What is point 2 of part 1 of Anselm's argument?

  A real existent being would be greater than an imaginary one
• What is point 3 of part 1 of Anselm's argument?

  Therefore the idea of God is surpassed by a real existent God
• What is a synthetic statement?

  Truth or falsity are determined by sense experience
• What is an analytic statement?

  True by definition
• What is a subject?


  Who or what the sentence is about
• What is a predicate?

  Gives information about the subject
• What is the Ontological Argument?

  the argument that God, being defined as most great or perfect, must exist, since a God who exists is greater than a God who does not.
• What is Guanilo's criticism of Anselm's argument?

  That Anselm concluded that many things exist when they do not
• What is the basis of Anselm's Ontological argument?

  Ontological argument claims that the proposition 'God exists' is a priori / deductive - you do not need sense experience to know that it is true; you know it is true just by thinking about it. Subject 'God' contains the predicate 'exists' so God must exist. As clear as knowing that bicycles (subject) have two wheels (predicate). God's existence is a necessary truth
• Why is Anselm's argument deductive a priori?

  It is based on fact. It tries to prove the existence of God through the word 'God
• Anselm's Ontological argument from proslogium 2

  Premise 1: God is the greatest conceivable being. Premise 2: it is greater to exist in reality than to exist only in the mind. Conclusion: therefore, as the greatest conceivable being, God must exist in reality. Links to the painter - if a painter has an idea in the mind of what he wants to paint; but when he has painted it, it exists in both the mind and reality. This is greater than just existing in the mind.
• Premise 1

  (A being than which nothing greater can be conceived). When Anselm means 'greatest' he means it in every possible respect: omnipotence and omniscience. God is the greatest thing you can possibly think of, no other being compares
• Gaunilo's criticsm: on behalf of the fool


  Uses the format of Anselm's argument but uses the example of a perfect island. Saying that the real fool would be anybody who argued in this way
• Anselm's reply to Gaunilo

  Premise 1: to be perfect an island would have to be 'that island than which no greater can be conceived'. Premise 2: an island than which no greater can be conceived would have to exist necessarily, since a contingent island would be less perfect than an island that existed necessarily. Premise 3: but islands are contingent so cannot exist necessarily. The logic of the argument cannot apply to God
• Summary of Anselm's reply to Gaunilo

  Shows that necessary existence is a predicate only of God and not of things.