Religion
In this persuasive book, William Paley tries to convince readers that God, or some other kind of deity, does indeed exist. He uses the example of a watch to explain this, saying that no one really knows how a watch works, just like no one really knows how God works. Despite this, everyone admits the existence of watches, but not everyone admits the existence of a deity. Though the work is not fully persuasive, instead explaining the natural existence of a deity in human culture, it certainly comes off as a persuasive piece, likely to the intent of Paley.
Trust and Faith
Paley is asking readers to make a bit of a leap in inference when referring to his analogy of a watch. He claims that, because people don't know how a watch works but believe it exists, the same should be true of God. This analogy lacks any real evidence that can be proven, and seems more like a pattern discovered by someone than a law of nature.
Human Nature
A main point of this argumentative piece is that believing in some sort of deity is simply part of human nature. So, not only is this a point that Paley wants to prove, but a theme of the book. For sure, humans have distinctive qualities about them - for the most part, we are eerily predictable. History seem to repeat itself over and over, and Paley is building on yet another predictable human aspect - faith. Even if something is not there, humans need an explanation or a comforter for themselves. For this reason, Paley explains, it is only natural for a religion to emerge from human society.
