Free-will And Moral Responsibilty Flashcards
What are the three approaches to right and wrong
Hard determinism
Libertarianism
Compatibility (soft determinism)
Who is exempt from knowing the difference between right and wrong
Those who have not yet learnt it (Young children
Those who cannot understand it (Mentally ill)
Those who have permanently forgotten it (dementia etc)
Those who have temporarily forgotten it (under extreme pressure etc)
Who was one of the first people to tackle the problem of free will and what did he say
Epicurus.
He stated that if we observe atoms to be under physical law, then as we are made up of atoms, we are also under physical law. Therefore theoretically, all events are predictable and beyond our control.
Causal determinism.
Outline the basics of hard determinism
Every single thought or action we make is the result of antecedent (prior) causes in the past. It is inevitable to happen.
Moral choices and therefore responsibility doesn’t exist, we have no free will.
This is supported by the reductionist approach.
What did Barack Spinoza say about determinism
The feeling of freedom is an illusion. Our ‘experience’ of free will is just ignorance to the truth of determinism
“We perceive we are free as we are ignorant of the causes of such thoughts”
The dismissal of determinism is determined
What is scientific determinism
There has been a complete sequence of cause and effect, beginning with the Big Bang and continuing in the present.
Everything is contingent in that it relies on other things.
The future is also determined.
What is psychological determinism
Skinner
- all behaviour is a product of genetic and environmental conditions.
- if an action has good consequences, the brain becomes disposed to repeat it and vice versa.
- dog experiment
Problem with extrapolation.
What is theological determinism
The idea of predestination.
An omniscient god must know of the past, present and future and he knows who’s going to heaven/hell.
Aquinas put forward the idea of a timeless god = doesn’t exist inside time, sees and knows all of history and future, but doesn’t not cause it
However, an answer to problems is that of a temporal god = one that exists inside time. God doesn’t know the future
What is the analogy John Locke put forward
There is a man who wakes up in a locked room.
Instead of trying to leave, he decides to stay inside.
Even if he wanted to leave he could not have done so, seems like a free action but there was actually no other way it could’ve ended up.
Evaluation of all determinisms
+ backed up by Libet = brain acts before we are conscious of it doing so
+ supported by scientific, psychological and some theological deterministic theories
- laws of nature may be probabilistic
- contrary to experience
- extrapolation (skinners dogs)
- immoral god
Briefly outline the view of libertarians
All forms of determinism are false.
We act as morally free agents.
We are therefore morally responsible.
There are two types of events, those that are caused and those that are free.
What would a moderate libertarian believe
There are deterministic processes that affect us, but our behaviour is still not determined by external causes.
- physical limitations
- psychological limitations
- social limitations
The main reason is that there is always another option.
For example, someone who’s psychological, social and genetic dispositions may make them more likely to steal, this is not a determined conclusion, they may not steal.
Evaluating libertarianism
+ ‘forward looking’ as concerned with future goals
+ this is how we experience life
+ in line with our justice system
- ## no evidence of any sort (less than determinism)
What is compatibilism
The view that human free will and responsibility is compatible with determinism.
We can be shaped by laws, yet at the same time be sufficiently free to make moral decisions.
What is Humes compatibilist theory
He states we have liberty of spontaneity = freedom that is consistent with necessity.
The necessity required for causal determinism is not logical (2+2=4) known as ‘constant conjunction’.
This is the idea that X is always accompanied by Y, since this always seems to occur our brain makes a connection to assumes this will always happen, when it might not. This is the necessity found in human nature.
People depend on eachother (eg. A farmer expects to sell his crops to others, who expect to be given the right quantities, and if not expect the justice system to treat them fairly)
In this sense freedom requires determinism.
If our wishes were random, the order of human life would be lost.
