Philosophy Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 12

Philosophy - Assignment Example Indeed, since God is a superior being and invisible, it has been tough for any religion to prove his existence. This essay will take a look at how St. Anselm uses logic and reasons to argue out his points about the existence of God. To start off his argument, Anselm starts by giving his view on how God can be defined. He defines God as â€Å"something than which nothing greater can be thought. In addition, he claims that every human being, whether he or she believes in God or not will automatically agree with his definition. He uses the example of the fool in Psalms does not believe in God, and claims that even him will agree with his definition. Anselm then agrees to the fact that there is a difference between understanding God as a concept and understanding him to exist (Solomon, Higgins & Martin 53). To explain his point further, Anselm uses the painter’s analogy. He then claims that before any talented painter comes up with his or her own masterpiece, he or she can see it clearly in his head even though he knows that it does not exist. The painter only understands the masterpiece as a concept. However, once the painter has finished his work and it can be seen as reality, he can now understand the concept of the painting and also understand that it exists. The latter stage of the painting is the same position that a firm believer of God and agrees with Anselm’s logic would be at. If God’s definition which Anselm strongly believes that it is the best ever, then God is a superior being; superior to any other thing that exists in the world. It is from Anselm’s strongly stressed definition that he places his argument. He argues that an existent God is greater than a non-existent one. Therefore, since God is perfect from the definition, must be in existence. If God does not exist, he would not be the most superior beings to ever exist. Therefore, if anything existed and was superior to God, it would not be God. In other words, Anselm believes

Journal 11 Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Journal 11 - Assignment Example Therefore, the story is more of a man who is excited that he is going to be happy in a foreign land and reclaim the happiness that his country had denied him. However, he recognizes that it was a dream and America was not as great as he had imagined. There is an immense contrast between what the narrator imagined and what he found out once he arrived in the US. There is a recount of how he and Anna were excited at first on realization that he was to leave for America. Therefore, he asserts, â€Å"†¦She looked up again and laughs, something new, she whispers, as if amazed, I hold my lips firmly pressed behind her ear. Then I say smiling, yes we have discovered something new! She bursts out laughing, and like a child she calls out happily, â€Å"America†Ã¢â‚¬ . (Schnitzler 156-157). It is obvious from the above quote that the narrator was having a flashback on how happy they were before commencing their journey to go to America. However, the happiness was short-lived since the readers get a different tone once the narrator lands in the foreign country. He confirms, â€Å"†¦and now I’m standing in the middle of a large, cold city†¦a pain, a madness comes over me that something irrevocably has been lost† (Schnitzler 157). It is ironic how he believed that America would be his source of happiness only to realize that it was far from what he had imagined. He had left his homeland, lost his friends and family, and did not know any means in which he could communicate with them since he did not know anything about the US. The contrasting images reveal that the narrator’s view of the US had changed. The country in which Anna had boasted about, telling people, â€Å"†¦Hey, we’re going to travel to America today!† (Schnitzler 57) was nothing but an illusion. His arrival was crowded by too much negativity; hence, it is likely that he would have a hard time adjusting in the new city. The different images also shows a man who was