Philosophy Essay - Free will vs Determinism PDF

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Essay on Free will. vs Determinism...

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Free will vs Determinism 45889880 The concept of Determinism challenges ideas crucial to the function of society, and ultimately questions the logic behind moral responsibility. In this paper, I will be discussing multiple arguments for Determinism; all our actions have been pre-determined by natural laws and causations, and our actions are inevitable, such as the argument of causal order, and Libet’s arguments regarding the scientific functions of the brain. Furthermore, I will address rebuttals for free will that concludes; the notion that individuals are able to make their choices through their own consciousness, without external factors, such as the notion of moral responsibility. Ultimately, I will conclude a position of Soft Determinism, or compatibilism, using evidence provided by philosophers such as Libet, Hume, and Holbach, which supports the notion that we have aspects of free will, however are constricted by causal laws, essentially living in a deterministic world.

In order to address the concept of free will, a conclusive definition of free must be made. An action is free if and only if; the person chose what they wanted, but could have chosen otherwise; the action is done without compulsion; and the action was consciously chosen from many. Essentially, if one of these needs is not met, the action cannot be determined as ‘free’. Furthermore, there are two stances to take on the debate of free will vs determinism; compatibilism and incompatbilism. Compatabilism (Hume), the stance I am taking in this paper, is the notion that both free will and determinism can co-operatively exist. Incompatbilism refers to the position that only one can exist; either hard determinism (Holbach), our actions are entirely pre-determined, and libertarianism (Kant), our actions are entirely free.

Initially, one of the driving arguments for determinism is the case of causal order. Either we are part of the casual order of the universe, or we are exempt and we are free to do and choose as we please.

As we are conclusively part of the causal order, and are subject to naturalistic laws I.e. gravity, this means we then cannot have free will. As we take this approach to determinism, we can conclude man is a being purely physical; In whatever manner he is considered he is connected to universal Nature and submitted to the necessary and immutable laws that she imposes on all the beings she contains (Holbach, 1999).

Furthermore, if we take a scientific standpoint on this debate, as taken extensively by Libet, we can conclude that although we may feel as though we have free will, our brain has essentially already decided for us. Libet claims to have discovered the before we are even aware of our intentions to act, our brain has already determined our decision. As a result, there is 100mss between the readiness potential, and the activation of spinal meter nerve cells. From this, we can derive that there is no conscious willing of an act, at most there is a conscious veto of an act (Libet, 1980). This proved conclusively that the brain activity associated with the preparation for movement....starts a quarter of a second before you report having decided to move. You just weren’t yet conscious of your decision to move, but it was indeed under way....(Calvin, 1990, p. 80-81). In conjunction with this, determinists argue that our biological make up is what determines our actions. Our genes are the driving factor to the decisions we make, making it seem as though we have free will, when in reality our actions have been pre-determined by our biological setup. For example, in extreme cases, if an individual with a mental illness commits murder, they can’t be entirely held responsible for that action, as it was not an act of free will, merely an act that was pre-determined by their mental illness, or their genes. Through this understanding, it can be seen how “man is not a free agent in any one instant of his life” (Holbach, 1999)

A rebuttal to determinism is the notion of moral responsibility. If determinism proves true, that all our actions are causally determined, then we cannot be held responsible for our actions. This would prove incredibly controversial in terms of the Criminal Justice System, and our current societal ap-

proach to law and crime. For example, if an individual was convicted of murder, they could express how they can’t be held responsible for the crime, as it was pre-determined and they did not choose to commit the act. This particular concept raises many questions; to what extent can they be held accountable? Should they still be punished? This could conclude that we justify punishment by its deterrent effect, as there are no voluntary actions (freely chosen) for which we are held responsible (Holbach, 1999). If we took a deterministic approach to crime, it would essentially mean punishment as a corrective measure would prove useless, as the acts, ‘crimes’ in this case, are pre-determined and are inevitably going to occur.

Ultimately, I have concluded that although it may appear we have free will, through further research and understanding it can be understood that we are all part of the causal order, and therefore incapable of free will in it’s entirety. Through the works of Holbach and Libet, it can be seen conclusively how the actions we make are either entirely, or partially pre-determined, and both the actions and results can be predicted in some sense. Despite this, we are still capable of making some free choices, within a deterministic world, cementing my stance on compatibilism.

Reference list:

Hoefer, Carl, "Causal Determinism", The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Spring 2016 Edition), Edward N. Zalta (ed.), URL = .

Nagel, T., 1987. What does it all mean?: a very short introduction to philosophy. Oxford University Press.

McLeod, S. A. (2013). Freewill and determinism in psychology. Retrieved from https://www.simplypsychology.org/freewill-determinism.html

James, W., 1884. The dilemma of determinism (pp. 114-140). Kessinger Publishing....