Philosophers still cannot decide!

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Free will and Determinism are two ways that we view the world as humans. The determinism assumes that you had some per-determined cause or influence to make a decision or you did it because you thought it was best. Great minds have discussed this topic for years and there has not been able to be a sufficient answer with evidence. An article that I found agrees with the explanation that I have given

This article shows some of evidence but still not overwhelming to side with their beliefs. The article believes that determinism is more of what we use and do rather than free will. Free will according to this source is something that can never be obtained unless you are not from this world. Choices towards free will mean you need to make choices from the start, which is argued that it never is because of the fact of laws and other authority figures.

I do agree with this article to an extent. It still seems that there is free will in many regards such as this blog I am typing right now. Its my choice to do it and there will be consequences whether I do it or not. The question begins is it worth it?

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It seems that total freedom would only be possible without social and physical restrictions. Surely, the freedom to choose is prevalent, but the choices available are only specific to a certain time, a certain social class, a certain person. Freedom is relative to these factors, as well as a person's interpretation of how free they are. Perhaps even when there is much freedom to choose, humans feel constrained by their social boundaries. This is another way that total freedom may not be possible.

You question at the end is very interesting. "Is it worth it?" Upon further thinking, our lives as humans are shaped by this question. Whether it is purchase, a club to join, or even to get out of bed in the morning this question is answered hundreds of times per day. I think that we as humans are relatively free to do as we choose, but we can never truly all be free because there will be some sort of governing body telling us what to do. It doesn't necessarily have to be a government, it could be a boss, or a parent that restricts us from freedom. Still, almost everything that is in our life is "subject to change" and that is enough to argue that we are free. At a minimum, we can change what we don't like and keep what we do. All things considered, we are relatively free, but not totally free.

The concept of Free Will is so interesting to think about. Do we actually have free will because our brain is genetically determined based off our genes. Then from there our brains thoughts and processes is molded by the environment. Both of these things do not consider free will as a possible choice in determining who we are. People with Antisocial Personality Disorder have less white matter in their prefrontal cortex. Scientists believe that this is a cause for their problems. They did not have a choice in the matter and were predetermined to have that particular disability. There is no Free Will in that context because all the decisions they will make are determined based off their issue. Free will is a figment of our imagination trying to give us a hopeful feeling that we can completely control our lives. Humans love control and Free Will is another trap we make up to blind ourselves from reality.

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This page contains a single entry by adeso001 published on February 7, 2012 11:00 AM.

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