Do We Have Free Will - 1560 Words

Do we have free will? Whether we have free will is widely controversial. The absence of a universal definition poses a primary problem to this question. In this essay, I shall base my argument on a set of three conditions for free will: 1) that the actor is unconstraint in his action, 2) the actor could have acted otherwise and 3) the actor must be ‘ultimately responsible’ (Kane, 2005: 121) for his action. After I have explained them, I shall apply these conditions to three scenarios that cover most, if not any, circumstances that occur when taking choices. The purpose of this essay is to show that if my conditions are true, none of the scenarios is based on free will and thus we do not have free will. The first condition seems to be obvious. If an actor wants to act in a certain way but constraints hinder him from doing so, then he cannot pursue his will; he is not free in his actions. This condition must be satisfied in order to have free will. My second notion of free will requires that an actor is able to decide between different possibilities of actions that lead towards different futures. Robert Kane calls this concept ‘a garden of forking paths’; every action leads to other actions that again allow for alternatives of action (Kane, 2005: 7). If an actor could not have done otherwise, he would not have had free choice. Even if he did not choose to do otherwise, he could not have done so. Free will seems to require the power to do otherwise, or our actions wouldShow MoreRelatedDo We Have a Free Will? Essay example1462 Words   |  6 Pages Do We Have A Free Will? An individual with â€Å"Free Will† is capable of making vital decisions and choices in life with own free consent. The individual chooses these decisions without any outside influence from a set of â€Å"alternative possibilities.† The idea of â€Å"free will† imposes a certain kind of power on an individual to make decisions of which he or she is morally responsible. This implies that â€Å"free will† would include a range of aspects such as originality, moral value, and self-governance. HoweverRead MoreFree Will : A Society Based On Rules And Conditions For Freedom1342 Words   |  6 Pages Jennifer Gephart Mrs. Hammock English 101 19 September 2015 Free Will Very few people in today’s society actually have free will. Free Will is described by Webster’s dictionary as â€Å"the ability to act at one’s own discretion.† America is a society based on rules and conditions for freedom. For this reason, one could argue that free will does not actually exist in American society. B.F. Skinner argues that we, in society, are like conditioned animals in his experiments, based onRead MoreCompatibilism vs. Imcompatibilism: Is There Really Free Will1043 Words   |  5 Pages　　Compatibilists and Incompatibilists debate determinism and free will. Determinism is the idea that our actions are determined by past events. In other words, in our present state we do not have control over our actions and they are pre-determined. Only one thing can happen given a certain condition and nothing else can occur. Determinism seems to pose a problem because it tests the possibility that we do not have free will or control over our actions because with certain conditions there can onlyRead MoreNot Freedom And Determinism Can Coexist1425 Words   |  6 PagesCompatibilists and incompatibilists have always disagreed on one issue: whether or not freedom and determinism can coexist. The compatibilist believes that the events in one’s life can be predetermined while the indiv idual can nevertheless have free will, while the incompatibilist believes that one must choose between free will or determinism as both cannot coexist. In this paper, I will argue that even though there may be some faults within the compatibilists ways of thinking, most of their argumentsRead MoreDiscussion On Free Will And Determinism1332 Words   |  6 Pagesgoing to discuss and argue about free will and determinism. What is free will, and do we have it? Free will is simply the power to act with no constraint, in other words, to act freely with no one holding us down. The controversial argument of this topic is if we have free will or not. According to physical determinism, â€Å"If our brain is in a certain state, then our next move is determined. Therefore, we do not have free will† (Holbach). According to others, we do have free will. In my paper, I will talkRead MoreThe True Freedom Of Free Will1180 Words   |  5 Pagessomething we can possess. Once we take away what ever it is that is holding us back, at our core there is freedom granted to everyone. Exploring the idea of what true freedom is and whether or not we have it we begin to see philosophical theories arise that gives us alternatives to these preconceptions. Freedom, specifically free will, is usually the one thing we believe we have. Even though there are obvious factors affecting us, our free will, or freedom, is what we think we truly possess. Free willRead MoreDo People Really Have Free Will Essay867 Words   |  4 PagesDo people really have free will? Toshia Perry Axia College Slide 2 What exactly is free will? Speaker notes: It is the ability for a person to determine some or all of his actions. Some consider free will to be its own cause. Some consider free will to be independent of any other causation, predestination, or predetermination by any other person, event, or stimulus. Of course, this does not make sense since a person is free to do as he/she wants but what he/she wants can only be consistentRead MoreConception of Free Will and the Concept of a Person1392 Words   |  6 Pagesconception of free will and the concept of a person. Sartre’s main point is on existentialism, the fundamentals of freedom and the responsibilities of our emotions and desires. Frankfurt focuses on the first order and second order desires. Identifying with a desire and externalizing them and taking a stance as an agent, as well as, the importance of morality and self interest. Jean-Paul Sartre is a philosopher who argues about the conception of free will. In order to establish the existence of free willRead MoreThe Basic Theories Of The Free Will1095 Words   |  5 PagesAm I free to choose what I do? That is a question most people don t ask themselves. I believe that most people believe we have free will. I believe that many we are never truly free to choose. That our choices are ultimately affected by the situations around us that lead to choice we make. When viewing perspective we can decided that ultimately what around can shape us to do good or bad. This question ultimately leads us to an overwhelming question when it comes to the freedom we have in life andRead MoreFree Will Essay example1168 Words   |  5 PagesFree Will I want to argue that there is indeed free will. In order to defend the position that free will means that human beings can cause some of what they do on their own; in other words, what they do is not explainable solely by references to factors that have influenced them. My thesis then, is that human beings are able to cause their own actions and they are therefore responsible for what they do. In a basic sense we are all original actors capable of making moves in the world. We