Theories Of Determinism

There is much debate over the issue of whether we have complete freedom of the will or if our will caused by something other than our own choosing. There are three positions adopted by philosophers regarding this dispute: determinism, libertarianism, and compatibilism. Determinists believe that freedom of the will does not exist. Since actions are events that have some predetermined cause, no actions can be chosen and thus there is no will to choose. The compatibilist argues that you can have both freedom of the will and determinism. If the causes which led to our actions were different, then we could have acted in another way which is compatible with freedom of the will. Libertarians believe that freedom of the will does exist.

Determinism is a doctrine suggesting that for every event there exist conditions that could cause no alternative event. Free will is a philosophical term describing a particular sort of capacity of rational agents to choose a course of action from among various alternatives. Understandably, the dichotomy between these two concepts is a topic philosophers have debated over for many years. As a result of these debates, a number of alternative philosophical perspectives arguing for the existence of free will, namely libertarianism and compatibilism, have emerged, existing in stark contrast to determinism. In order to ascertain the extent to which free will is compatible with determinism, one must first consider these different approaches to

Determinism is the idea that everything we do as humans is determined by events prior to us being born and events that have happened in the past. Decisions that you may think are based on your desires, are actually based of things beyond your control. But the big question is, if determinism is

There are those who think that our behavior is a result of free choice, but there are also others who believe we are servants of cosmic destiny, and that behavior is nothing but a reflex of heredity and environment. The position of determinism is that every event is the necessary outcome of a cause or set of causes, and everything is a consequence of external forces, and such forces produce all that happens. Therefore, according to this statement, man is not free.

Hard Determinism argues that every event is causally determined. For an event ‘A’ to occur casually means that there are antecedent causes that ensure the occurrence of ‘A’ in accordance with impersonal, mechanical causal laws. To clarify hard determinism further, let me present hard determinism as an argument. Basically hard determinism argues that: (a) Determinism is true (b) Determinism is incompatible with free will (Holbach, 451). In defense of premise (a), the hard determinist says that obviously everything is caused, therefore determinism is true. To prove that determinism is false, the opponent would have to come up with an example of an uncaused event. To defend premise (b), the hard determinist

Determinism is based off this notion that all events are pre-determined, without influence by human actions. If this is true, we can imply that people do not have free will and thus are not responsible for their actions. In Oedipus the King we see that the dichotomy of fate and free will is hazed by the hyperbole of events, which can make it difficult, but possible, to determine if humans even have free will. Through Oedipus’s flaws and decisions and Sophocles use of the imagery of a crossroad it is apparent that free will can be exercised in a meaningful way.

The problem with the belief that people are morally responsible, for what they do and act, revolves around humans not actually having free will because their actions are already determined. When people make decisions or perform actions, they usually feel as if they are choosing freely. The decisions people make are the direct results of their desires; past experiences; personality; psychological traits; and needs and wants. Determinism is the view that if an event has happened, given the previous state of the universe and the laws of nature, then it is impossible that it could not have occurred (304). Libertarianism is the belief that the universe is not determined and that humans possess free will. Kane, the supporter of libertarianism, claimed

Some philosophers have taken determinism to imply that individual human beings have no free will and cannot be held morally responsible for their actions.” (Google search) This definition effectively sums up determinism, an idea which is intertwined with naturalism so closely that the two are often lumped together. There is an important difference, however. Naturalism is focused on control, malevolent and unfeeling nature, social environments, and science, while determinism is more about the lack of responsibility men carry for their actions. Stephen Crane gives an important instance of determinism in action in his book The Red Badge of Courage when Henry, the main character of the novel, deserts in the middle of a Civil War battle.

Around the world there have been many massacres and crimes conducted by people who have mental disabilities, personality disorders, and behavioral conditioning. In philosophy the argument between free will and determinism is if criminals should be held responsible for committing a crime. I believe that you cannot punish someone and hold them responsible if they have any mental illness or disorder that does not make them think straight and cautiously about their actions, this stand would be considered hard determinism.

The concept of determinism, compatibilism and libertarianism is truly trying to explain if we are free and if so how much. Some of us believe that we are the masters of our fate, our soul while others believe our destiny is predetermined and that we are bound to a certain set goal in life. The concepts of determinism, compatibilism and libertarianism try to help aid in that discussion and help enlighten us on what we believe is the correct ideology. It is therefore extremely important to define what each of these three concepts mean before comparing and contrasting the various arguments that each present.

From the time I was little, I always showed great determinism in everything that I do. Today, this still holds true and remains a major part of my life to “get things done” and achieve whatever I want to do. My mother likes to tell me that this started when I was six months old, so I will have to believe her, since I definitely do not remember those times.

     Before one can properly evaluate the entire debate that enshrouds the Free Will/Determinism, each term must have a meaning, but before we explore the meaning of each term, we must give a general definition. Determinism is, "Everything that happens is caused to happen. (Clifford Williams. "Free Will and Determinism: A Dialogue" pg 3). This is the position that Daniel, a character in Williams’ dialogue, chooses to believe and defend. David Hume goes a little deeper and explains in his essay, "An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding of Liberty and Necessity," that determinism is this: "It is universally allowed, that matter, in all its operations, is actuated by a necessary force, and

The determinists believe that people are molded by outside forces such as human nature, their environment, psychological forces, and social dynamics (Chaffee, 2013, p. 173). Human nature refers to the inborn nature that every person is genetically hardwired with. In other words we can’t have free choice because we cannot alter our fundamental character (Chaffee, 2013, p.173)

Pierre Simon Laplace was a famous scientist born on March 23, 1749, in Normandy, France. He went through schooling and later enrolled at Caen University at the age of sixteen to study theology. His father had an expectation for him to have a career in the church, in those times when people attended the school Laplace attended, their usual job destinations were the church or army. Laplace went into neither of those, even those he was studying theology. While at the school he discovered his love for mathematics and discovered he had a talent in that field.

Freedom is the power to act without being compelled or restrained. Metaphysical freedom holds that a human decision or action is a person’s own responsibility along with that praise and blame maybe appropriately ascribed. In which freedom seems to be not only the presupposition of the good life, but also the logical prerequisite for morality and moral responsibility. Liberation is the capacity to make choices that are not determined by force from others, such as having someone decide which college you attend, or choose your spouse, and even deciding whether to join the army. Determinism is the perspective that every event in the universe is dependent upon other events that are its causes. In this view, all human actions and decisions, even those we would normally describe as free and undetermined, are totally reliant on prior events that cause them. Soft determinists would say that an act is free only if it is in character and based on a person desires and personality. This will allow us to call his or her actions free. Hard determinists believe that an event was free if it had no causes; human act was free if it was only self-caused, but not determined by anything else. Free will among philosophers, a somewhat antiquated expression meaning that a person is capable of making decisions that are not determined by previous conditions. Of course there may be prior considerations, such as what a person want or what a person believes. Free will means that such thoughts never