Dennett takes a rationalist tack, pointing out that any theory of a creator begs the question of how life began: If complex DNA molecules cannot have come into being without a creator, must not that creator have been even more complex to have designed the molecules? He argues his points more from a philosophical and logical position than from analysis of the scientific literature on evolution, of which he openly admits only an amateur's understanding. While Darwin discreetly avoided a confrontation with orthodox religion, he could not prevent the proponents of divine creation from launching preemptive attacks against his theory. Consciousness Explained, 1991, etc.) goes directly to the crux of the natural selection controversy: its implicit denial that a divine ``first cause'' is needed to account for the origin of life. Dennett (director, Center for Cognitive Studies/Tufts Univ. An explorationat a consistently high level of discourseof the implications of Darwin's theory of evolution by natural selection, which extend far beyond biology.
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