'he' refers to whom

[kohyoongliat]

Darwin refuted the arguments for intelligent design put forward by the 18th century English philosopher William Paley, who had greatly influenced Darwin until he visited the Galapagos Islands and saw natural selection at work.


Who does 'he' refer to?

[esltutor]

My vote is for Darwin in this sentence.

Debra

[Delmobile]

Good call, though; the antecedent is unclear.

[Andrew Whitehead]

Darwin refuted the arguments for intelligent design put forward by the 18th century English philosopher William Paley, who had greatly influenced Darwin until he visited the Galapagos Islands and saw natural selection at work.


Who does 'he' refer to?

From the context it is clearly Darwin, and the immediate antecedent is Darwin. The sentence appears odd because the 'who' that introduces the clause, and is therefore the subject, is Paley. It is not a very well-written sentence.

[BobK]

If Paley visited the Galapagos, I'm surprised Wikipedia doesn't mention it. (William Paley - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)

(I agree about the sentence.)

b

[Casiopea]

Koh, it's ambigious; there's no doubt about it, and that brings me to this question, where did you find it? The reason I ask,

Intelligent design and evolution, let's have a debate

The history of the theory of evolution is one of bitter debates between religion and science, and the debates continue today. In "On the Origin of Species," Charles Darwin refuted the arguments for intelligent design put forward by the 18th century English philosopher William Paley, who greatly influenced the evolutionary theorist until Darwin witnessed natural selection at work on the Galapagos Islands. Over the ensuing decades, Darwin's theories were rigorously tested and criticized before they won over the majority of scientists.

Read more here ...

Context isn't outdated, is it?

[kohyoongliat]

Hi Casiopea,

A friend asked me but I didn't question where he got it.

If I see him again, I'll ask him.

Thanks, anyway.

[Casiopea]

Koh, was your question answered?

___________
Note, this closing here, thanks, anyway tends to mean your request wasn't met.

[kohyoongliat]

Koh, was your question answered?

___________
Note, this closing here, thanks, anyway tends to mean your request wasn't met.

What I meant is that although the question is ambiguous, the members have answered it. 'Thanks anyway ' means despite the ambiguity of the sentence, it was answered instead of I being asked for more context.

Regards