Pascal’s Wager Explained

Pascal’s Wager is one of philosophy’s most famous arguments—promising infinite happiness for a finite cost. In this video, we break down the original argument from Pascal’s Pensées, examine the act-state table, look at the classic objections (many gods, belief vs evidence, mixed strategies, etc.), and explore why the wager ultimately fails as a proof of God’s existence.

But we also look at why Pascal’s Wager succeeds as a tool for thinking about decision theory, belief, probabilities, and high-stakes reasoning.