Jessi Emens
Section 13
Final Draft
Determinism- What is it?
Determinism, philosophically defined, is the idea that every single event-including human decisions- is the inevitable consequences of things that have occurred before. There are philosophers that claim that determinism implies that humans have no control over their actions, therefore cannot be held responsible for them. To have a deterministic view of life would mean you believe that you essentially have no free will, because no matter what you do, your predetermined fate is inevitable.
The Roots
According to an article on the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, roots of determinism can be found in what Leibniz named the "Principle of Sufficient Reason." Stating that, "everything can, in principle, be explained or that everything that is, has a sufficient reason for being and being as it is, and not otherwise." Philosophers have since drifted toward other theories that do not necessarily stem from Leibniz's theory.
There is a theory in Buddhism called Dependent Origination that is similar to the western definition of determinism. Both beliefs essentially revolve around the idea of cause and effect. Western ancient greek atomists, (atomism is a philosophy that states that the physical world is composed of indivisible components called atoms) named Leucippus and Democritus, were the first to anticipate determinism by theorizing that all processes in the world were due to the mechanical interplay of atoms.
Determinism vs. Free Will
The battle of determinism versus free will was discussed once in our class through a midterm report presentation. However, this is an age-long, very popular debate. In my opinion, it can be a very tricky debate to partake in. The idea behind determinism is that everything in your life is predetermined. So no matter what you do, no matter what choices you make, you are not able to change the predetermined path that has already been paved for you by previous consequences. This idea would suggest that personal free will does not exist. Free will is defined as "the power of acting without the constraint of necessity or fate." With determinism, your future decisions are made for you before you have the chance to make them yourself. With free will, decisions you make are up to you; unless you don't want to make a decision. Then you don't- its free will.
Types of Determinism
There are multiple different categories of determinism. I will provide an overview of three of these: pre-determinism, adequate determinism, and causal determinism. Pre-determinism suggests that all information in the world today, has already been here since the beginning of the universe. Religiously, pre-determinism would coincide with God and omniscience, meaning God has known and always will know what is going to happen before it ever does.
Adequate determinism, also known as statistical determinism, can be considered as the "the kind of determinism we have in the world." Adequate determinism handles the Newtonian and quantum physics and statistics of the world. It focuses on the nitty gritty of macroscopic objects.
Finally, causal determinism is basically just determinism, but adding the laws of nature to the equation. Meaning that every event is predetermined by previous events, along with the laws of nature. Every occurrence has a cause and effect and that certain cause and effect taking place at a certain time determines a certain outcome.
This report has merely scratched the surface on what determinism really is. The idea of determinism is something that comes with a lot of layers to it. I believe there can be many arguments made for or against it, and that makes it an interesting topic in my opinion. Here are some links to videos regarding some of the topics I discussed if you are interested in learning more!
Quiz Questions
1. What religion has a theory that is similar to determinism?
2. Which 2 Greek atomists were the first to anticipate determinism?
3. What type of determinism can be considered "the kind of determinism we have in the world"?
Discussion Questions
1. Would knowing your life was predetermined comfort you or frighten you?
2. Do you think it is possible to believe in determinism yet believe you have free will?
Posts I commented on:
Sources:
"Determinism Man" would NOT be a good superhero, would he - Unless he were fated to be? But then he'd have to be deluded about his own agency and freedom, if determinism/fatalism is correct.
ReplyDeleteAgreed, "there can be many arguments made for or against it..." And that's why I come back to William James's pragmatic vindication of free will, believing in which he called "my first act of free will." If believing and acting on one's own originative powers of agency seems to work better for you than not, that's reason enough to go on believing and acting that way... in the absence of a conclusive refutation.