What Did William James Believe Provided The Best Evidence For Free Will?

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The will is subject to natural forces just like everything else. … What did William James believe provided the best evidence for free will?

People live their lives with the assumption of personal freedom and responsibility

/ Unlike the hard determinists, Jean-Paul Sartre assumed that human freedom is _______.

On what basis did Clarence Darrow and Baron d'Holbach argue against freedom of will?

On what basis did Clarence Darrow and Baron D'Holbach argue against freedom ofthe will?

The will is subject to natural forces just like everything else

. can be compatible with free will.

What does William James say about free will?

William James

simply asserted that his will was free

. As his first act of freedom, he said, he chose to believe his will was free. He was encouraged to do this by reading Charles Renouvier.

Which view maintains that there are some events including certain human actions that are not necessarily determined by previous events quizlet?


Human freedom

is an illusion. The view that humans are able to make authentically free choices that are not determined by previous events in accordance with universal causal laws, that there is a meaningful sense that though we made one choice, we “could have done otherwise.”

What does James think of soft determinism?

Soft determinism is the view

that determinism and free will are compatible

. It is thus a form of compatibilism. The term was coined by the American philosopher William James (1842-1910) in his essay “The Dilemma of Determinism.”

How does William James solve the problem of free will?

James accomplishes this by using chance simply

to create genuinely new and unpredictable alternative possibilities for action

, following which a choice can be made by a will that is consistent with character, values, and especially with one's desires and feelings, which James considered an essential part of the will.

What does William James have to say about the free will vs determinism debate?


His strong arguments in favor of free will leave no room whatsoever for determinism

. In his argument against determinism, the philosopher argued that individuals had the capacity to ignore any action as real and pretend that another action is real. … James rejects the above positions using the argument of regret.

What is a Compatibilist view on free will?

Soft determinism (or compatibilism) is

the position or view that causal determinism is true

, but we still act as free, morally responsible agents when, in the absence of external constraints, our actions are caused by our desires.

Who claimed that free choice is contingent on becoming aware of repressive forces and liberating oneself from them?

Who believed that “we are condemned to be free,” i.e., we are absolutely responsible to create our own meaningful existence. Who claimed that free choice is contingent on becoming aware of repressive forces and liberating oneself from them?

indeterminism

.

What does determinism mean in philosophy?

Determinism, in philosophy,

theory that all events, including moral choices, are completely determined by previously existing causes

. Determinism is usually understood to preclude free will because it entails that humans cannot act otherwise than they do.

What did William James believe provided the best evidence for free will quizlet?

The will is subject to natural forces just like everything else. … What did William James believe provided the best evidence for free will?

People live their lives with the assumption of personal freedom and responsibility

/ Unlike the hard determinists, Jean-Paul Sartre assumed that human freedom is _______.

Who argued that there is no self quizlet?

Who argued that there is no self? Empiricism is the epistemological view that sense experience is the primary source of all knowledge.

Descartes

believed the self was dualistic.

What is the Problem of Free Will quizlet?


the power of self determinism–

if we posses it, then at least some of our choices are not decided for us or forced upon us but are UP TO US. the doctrine that every event is determined or necessitated by preceding events and the laws of nature.

Why is soft determinism bad?

Soft Determinism

For example, being poor doesn't make you steal, but it may make you more likely to take that route through desperation. … However, a problem with determinism is that it

is inconsistent with society's ideas of responsibility and self control

that form the basis of our moral and legal obligations.

Do soft determinists believe in free will?

In contrast to hard determinism (which claims that determinism is incompatible with freedom), soft determinism says

that we are determined and are nonetheless still free

. According to the soft determinist, when the individual is the cause of his or her actions, he or she is said to act freely.

Did William James reject free will?

In his 1884 address to Harvard Divinity Students in Lowell Lecture Hall,10 James famously coined the terms “hard determinism” and “soft determinism,” by which he meant the compatibilism of Hobbes and Hume.

Hard determinists simply deny the existence of free will altogether

. He argued instead for “indeterminism.”

Amira Khan
Author
Amira Khan
Amira Khan is a philosopher and scholar of religion with a Ph.D. in philosophy and theology. Amira's expertise includes the history of philosophy and religion, ethics, and the philosophy of science. She is passionate about helping readers navigate complex philosophical and religious concepts in a clear and accessible way.