Introduction
Introduction
In a Wikipedia article it is suggested that the basic philosophical positions on the problem of free will can be distinguished by the answers to two questions:
- Is determinism true?
- Does free will exist?
The positions are:
- Compatibilism (soft determinism)
- Hard determinism
- Libertarianism
We will consider this view of the basic philosophic positions, but first we need to set out the terminology and premises we will use...
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Terminology
Free Will - The ability of sentient beings to make choices of their own volition.
Causation - The view that events happen because of specific factors, including chance.
Determinate or deterministic - A choice where there is only one genuinely realizable option, or an event that will happen or has happened.
Indeterminate or indeterministic - A choice where there is more than one genuinely realizable option, or an event that may or may not happen.
Determinism - The view that events are caused by an unbroken sequence of prior events.
Indeterminism - The view that events happen by chance.
Freewillism - The view that events can be caused by willed choices.
Incompatibilism - The view that free will is not compatible with determinism.
Premises
- There are three types of causation:
- Event-event - Events that are caused by previous events in an unbroken "domino effect".
- Random - Events that happen by chance. Random events do not follow any pattern, and all possibilities are equally likely to occur.
- Agent - Events that are caused by sentient beings making willed choices.
Note: The types of causation are not necessarily exclusive. - Event-event and random causation are not willed.
Note: It follows from this that, to be compatible with free will as a causal factor a philosophical view must allow that agent causation is real.
