What is freedom?

1. What is freedom?

2. Essay deadline • 15 Apr (Mon, 9am) • Email the essay to me

3. The road ahead

4. What am I? Am I free? Am I immortal? What is a thinking creature? What makes me me?

5. Twilight Zone: “The Lonely” • Did Corry come to treat Alicia as more than a robot? 2. Why does Allenby think it would help to shoot Alicia?

6. Self-examination • Think of something you intentionally did. • Why did you do it? • What is the ultimate explanation for why you did it?

7. How different are we from Alicia? • Every event that occurs has a cause • My action is an event • Therefore, my action has a cause Are we also robots, made of a slightly different material?

8. History of your choice You chose to X You wanted to X You wanted to Y You wanted to Z Infinite regress? External cause?

9. Why our choices are not up to us • I chose to X because my strongest desire is to X. • My strongest desire is to X because of things beyond my control. • Therefore, I chose to X because of things beyond my control.

10. Fatalism & determinism Key difference: Significance of personal choice I am fated to eat the poison pill iff • I would eat the poison pill • I am unable to avoid eating the poison pill no matter what I choose to do • Determinists can reject (ii). • In a deterministic world, you would be able to avoid eating the poison pill if you chose to.

11. Programmers I do not act freely if my action is wholly determined by events beyond my control. (Robot Principle) Genius inventor All your actions Program Blind forces of nature

12. Determinism = No freedom • I do not act freely if my action is wholly determined by events beyond my control. (Robot Principle) • My action is wholly determined by events beyond my control. (Determinism) • Therefore, I do not act freely.

13. The big picture Is everything we do determined? Yes No Is determinism compatible with freedom? Is indeterminism compatible with freedom? Yes No Yes No =Freedom =No freedom Compatibilism Incompatibilism =Freedom =No freedom

14. Deterministic world Indeterministic world • Indeterministic events seem entirely random • If your action is indeterministic, it seems you likewise lack control over it

15. Freedom is impossible Action Determined Not determined Fixed by external causes Random Beyond our control

16. Principle of non-responsibility A person is not morally responsible for some occurrence when it is not within her ability to prevent it.

17. Compare

18. Compare We are not morally responsible for how we live since we cannot avoid what we do.

19. “If we are responsible, and if what I have been trying to say is true, then we have a prerogative which some would attribute only to God: each of us, when we act, is a prime power unmoved.” -Roderick Chisholm Libertarian freedom

20. How would you explain ‘Red’ to someone who is colour-blind?

21. Red? “The colour you would see if you cut yourself.” “What colour scientists call red.” “Light reflected along a certain wavelength hitting your retina.”

22. Red • Must all concepts be fully explainable in terms of other concepts? • Must all concepts be reducible to some more fundamental concept? • Primitive concepts

23. The conditional analysis Adam chose to rebel Rebel Obey Adam could have chosen to obey if he had most desired to obey God programmed Adam to most desire to rebel

24. True but irrelevant? In asking whether Adam was free to obey or rebel: • We are not asking if he was able to obey/rebel if the reality was different • We want to know if he was able to obey/rebel given reality as it was

25. The ability to choose otherwise • Agent Black • Jones freely shot Smith • But Jones could not have chosen otherwise • Agent Black would have prevented it • Freedom doesn’t require the ability to choose otherwise (?)

26. 2 considerations The correct account of freedom should: • Be more robust than conditional analysis of freedom • Not require the ability to choose otherwise

27. Show freedom is possible Freedom seems impossible We are free and therefore morally responsible

28. The Argument from Deliberation

29. Facts about deliberation • When you deliberate about whether to sleep or study, you believe: • that you can sleep or study • It is within your control whether you choose to sleep or study Sleep Study

30. Libertarian scenario The Judge is offered a bribe. He deliberates about accepting it. Reject bribe Accept bribe Because it is too low Because it is unjust Because it is useful Because it is just

31. Beware! Reasons = causes Reason = Justification Why you did something Causes = Explanation How you did something

32. 2 kinds of questions • How did the action come about? • What caused the action? • Why did the action come about? • What was the reason for the action?

33. The hit “I hit him because I aimed my hand carefully to ensure contact with his left cheek.” “I hit him because I wish to teach him a lesson” Reason Cause

34. Causation Cause Agent Causing Effect Intention Content of intention?

35. Analysis of action “Why did the Judge cause an intention to accept the bribe?” “What is the cause of the Judge’s intention to accept the bribe?” What’s the reason? What’s the cause? To buy his 10th car The Judge

36. Question “Why did the Judge cause an intention to accept the bribe in order to buy his 10th car.” What’s the reason? What’s the cause? No further reason None

37. Event “The Judge causing an intention to accept the bribe in order to buy his 10th car.” Uncaused Not random: This event is itself an exercise of power

38. What is free control? ?? “I freely control Y” I Y If nothing controls it, then it is random What controls “my free control of Y”? If something controls it, then it is determined

39. A parallel “Chairs exist” It is impossible for an existing chair to not exist Do existing chairs exist? Are blue chairs blue? Are chairs chairs?

40. The error ?? “I freely control Y” I Y It is impossible for something to control my free control of Y What controls “my free control of Y”?

41. The error ?? “I freely control Y” I Y Fundamental concept: Cannot be reduced to other concepts The idea of being able to choose otherwise, if there are other options.

42. Crux of the matter Is it possible that we are ultimate originators of intentions?

43. The confused question “Why did the Judge cause an intention to accept the bribe in order to buy his 10th car.” What’s the reason? What’s the cause? No further reason None

44. 2 views of action Circumstances Agent Intention Circumstances Agent Intention “Incline without necessitating”

45. Conclusion • Deliberation indicates we have the power to choose. • We therefore have the power to choose, unless we have reason to think otherwise. • We have no reason to think otherwise • Freedom of choice is possible • Therefore, we have the power to choose = freedom of the will.

46. The freedom landscape Action The action is determined The action is not determined Libertarian freedom Determinism is incompatible with freedom Determinism is compatible with freedom Random D’Holbach, etc Stace, Frankfurt, etc

47. ‘We have mysterious powers’ “One can hardly affirm such a theory of agency with complete comfort, however, and wholly without embarrassment, for the conception of men and their powers which is involved in it is strange indeed, if not positively mysterious.”

48. ‘We are Prime Movers’ “If we are responsible, and if what I have been trying to say is true, then we have a prerogative which some would attribute only to God: each of us, when we act, is a prime power unmoved. In doing what we do, we cause certain events to happen, and nothing – or no one – causes those events to happen.”

49. Worldview • What is reality like? • How do humans fit within it? Reality is the sum of impersonal causes and effects Humans are personal causes, and bring about personal effects

50. Questions How can natural processes bring about creatures that can transcend natural laws? We can’t be merely physical entities since we aren’t fully governed by physical laws. What then are we?