Who's In Charge Michael Gazzinga Analysis

The notion of free will is what makes us human. What separates humans from animals and in the case of Americans free will is what defines our country. Staring in the face of determinism people cling desperately to the belief that they hold the power over their own destiny and the choices they make are unique and spontaneous. Michael Gazzinga abandons free will in his book Who’s In Charge: Free Will and the Science of the Brain. As the title suggests he uses science to discuss neurological implications of action and reaction and questions the definition of social responsibility. He even goes as far as claiming free will is a dated belief, one we used before we figured out how the brain works. Now that we understand the functions of the brain we can do away with the notion of freewill.
Free will is thought to be reasoning for human behavior as an expression of social choice. Every action taken, every thought, and every belief a person has results from their mental identity and a series of choices they have made. The presence of free will in society is a stubborn one despite scientific findings people cannot let go of the idea that they control their own destiny. Free will is the inspiration for …show more content…
Steven Goldman continues with this thought that objectivity is uncertain and not absolute but results from criticism and open rational debate about evolving theories. No theory is set in stone; science in its very being is unstable and uncertain. There is no right and wrong answer, only the proper way to debate. Concerning Gazzaniga’s debate on the abandonment of free will Goldman would approve of his use of criticism of the rival paradigm while backing his claim with research and thoughtful speculation while leaving results open ended. Science may have debunked the notion of free will but there are always new discoveries to be