Looking in a dictionary, free will is the power, attributed to human beings, of making free choices that are unconstrained by external circumstances or by an agency such as fate or divine will”. Free will allows free choice. Where as determinism is when a person's behavior is considered to be dictated by internal or external forces. Some philosophers say human beings are free, but some other thinkers disagree. This essay will be addressing different philosopher’s points of view regarding the issue of free will. To begin with Augustine’s point of view, he starts questioning himself in the autobiography of confession. Why do evil things happen? Where does evil come from? If God is good and made everything, is He responsible for evil?
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He is a determinist like I mentioned above determinism is when a person's behavior is considered to be affected by internal or external forces. Skinner concentrated mainly on the concept that people's behaviors are determined by the outside world. When an individual's behavior is determined by force or punishment it is clear that there is no act of free will. According to him all behavior originates from conditioning, in a sense it is a result of a continuous shaping process. Like the example of pigeon, the food tray opens whenever the head raises above the line which the peogn trained to do that. On his view, the factors that decide our actions are observed externally as accomplished through a process of learning, stimuli, or previously experienced consequences. Another argument Behaviorist skinner points out is that by explaining free will and individual choice from birth, saying “a child is born a member of the human species, with a genetic endowment showing many idiosyncratic features and he begins at once to acquire a repertoire of behavior under the contingencies of reinforcement to which he is exposed as an individual.” These experiences inform how the individual makes choices, responds to the environment, and even plans for the future—whether those contingencies are designed by someone who understands and guides development for the individual’s and society’s well-being …show more content…
“According to Freud, people are determined by certain unconscious feelings, outside their consciousness. Freud considers that our personality is influenced by childhood experiences such as the psychosexual stages of development. In time, this has an effect on the balance of the ID, ego and superego as well as the personality as a whole (Malin et al 1998)”. “He also argued that trivial phenomena, such as missing an appointment, calling someone by the wrong name, or humming a particular tune had definite causes within the individual’s motivational system. Of particular importance is what is known as this Freudian slip a motivated but involuntary error in which someone says or does something revealing their true desires.” Freud’s give attention on determinism and rejection of free will may well owe something to the fact that he focused on individuals who suffered from mental disorders (especially anxiety
He is a determinist like I mentioned above determinism is when a person's behavior is considered to be affected by internal or external forces. Skinner concentrated mainly on the concept that people's behaviors are determined by the outside world. When an individual's behavior is determined by force or punishment it is clear that there is no act of free will. According to him all behavior originates from conditioning, in a sense it is a result of a continuous shaping process. Like the example of pigeon, the food tray opens whenever the head raises above the line which the peogn trained to do that. On his view, the factors that decide our actions are observed externally as accomplished through a process of learning, stimuli, or previously experienced consequences. Another argument Behaviorist skinner points out is that by explaining free will and individual choice from birth, saying “a child is born a member of the human species, with a genetic endowment showing many idiosyncratic features and he begins at once to acquire a repertoire of behavior under the contingencies of reinforcement to which he is exposed as an individual.” These experiences inform how the individual makes choices, responds to the environment, and even plans for the future—whether those contingencies are designed by someone who understands and guides development for the individual’s and society’s well-being …show more content…
“According to Freud, people are determined by certain unconscious feelings, outside their consciousness. Freud considers that our personality is influenced by childhood experiences such as the psychosexual stages of development. In time, this has an effect on the balance of the ID, ego and superego as well as the personality as a whole (Malin et al 1998)”. “He also argued that trivial phenomena, such as missing an appointment, calling someone by the wrong name, or humming a particular tune had definite causes within the individual’s motivational system. Of particular importance is what is known as this Freudian slip a motivated but involuntary error in which someone says or does something revealing their true desires.” Freud’s give attention on determinism and rejection of free will may well owe something to the fact that he focused on individuals who suffered from mental disorders (especially anxiety