Freedom and Determinism

Paper Summary:

The paper relates that philosophers have long sought to reconcile the idea of freedom with the idea of determinism. The paper explains that we are constantly faced with an array of choices and must choose among them, yet we seem at times to make excuses for others based on their experiences, as if the forces pushing them one way or the other were so much greater than any forces we might face. The paper looks at the ideas of Campbell, Frankfurt, Richard Taylor and Ayer and shows how determinism has been given new support in psychology and the sciences as various causal forces are considered for how they may contribute to our actions and to our decisions to take action.

From the Paper:

"Philosophers have long sought to reconcile the idea of freedom with the idea of determinism, the division between liberty and necessity, though both cannot be true at the same time, though some find circumstances under which they can. Campbell, for instance, differentiates between internal and external actions, finding that free will is necessary for there to be morality but that free will can be identified as internal, choices as to what to do and what is right. He also sees free will to be expressed in the strength of will needed to resist external influences, and the free will he says is necessary is the freedom to act for or against a moral decision. Frankfurt also sees free will as an internal matter and indeed holds that it must be found in the deep self."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Ayer, A.J. "Freedom and Necessity." In Free Will, G. Watson (ed.), 15-23. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1982.
• Taylor, Richard. Metaphysics. Englesood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice-Hall, 1963.

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