Truly a "free will"?

   So we've been debating in my philosophy class that there's no such thing as a free will.  So basically what the teacher was saying is that how can we be truly free and make decisions when we have so many factors influencing them (like hereditary or environment?)  So are our choices truly free?  He also said that if we live in a world that is governed by certain laws(i.e. the laws of physics), how are we able to decide what to do more so than a chair decides where to move if pushed?

Are we living in an illusion of free choice?  After giving it some thought, it would seem that we make "conditional choices" and not truly free ones.

What do you guys think?

I think your philosophy teacher is a socialist.sped_ed

Yea I also thought what a load of liberal BS.  But after thinking about it, it makes some sense.

Deterministic physics went out the window almost a century ago. Quantum mechanics allows absolutely impossible to predict behavior on the subatomic scale and non-linear dynamics ("chaos theory") means that the most miniscule variations in certain complex systems can produce wildly different outcomes. While I am not mystically-minded, I do think that consciousness has a transcedant quality that we are a long way away from being able to rigirously quantify. At most, I'd say that factors form trendlines and maybe determine what choices are available to you, but not which one you will make.xaos

[QUOTE="xaos"]Deterministic physics went out the window almost a century ago. Quantum mechanics allows absolutely impossible to predict behavior on the subatomic scale and non-linear dynamics ("chaos theory") means that the most miniscule variations in certain complex systems can produce wildly different outcomes. While I am not mystically-minded, I do think that consciousness has a transcedant quality that we are a long way away from being able to rigirously quantify. At most, I'd say that factors form trendlines and maybe determine what choices are available to you, but not which one you will make.steppinrazor88

Deterministic physics went out the window almost a century ago. Quantum mechanics allows absolutely impossible to predict behavior on the subatomic scale and non-linear dynamics ("chaos theory") means that the most miniscule variations in certain complex systems can produce wildly different outcomes. While I am not mystically-minded, I do think that consciousness has a transcedant quality that we are a long way away from being able to rigirously quantify. At most, I'd say that factors form trendlines and maybe determine what choices are available to you, but not which one you will make.xaos

[QUOTE="xaos"]Deterministic physics went out the window almost a century ago. Quantum mechanics allows absolutely impossible to predict behavior on the subatomic scale and non-linear dynamics ("chaos theory") means that the most miniscule variations in certain complex systems can produce wildly different outcomes. While I am not mystically-minded, I do think that consciousness has a transcedant quality that we are a long way away from being able to rigirously quantify. At most, I'd say that factors form trendlines and maybe determine what choices are available to you, but not which one you will make.Hungry_bunny

Every choice you make is free and unrestricted, you could have decided to stab your teacher with a pen but you didn't cause you have the ability to choose what to do... I might be paranoid but it sounds like he's manipulating you into thinking that the "free will" is worthless.Hungry_bunny

What he's saying is that every choice that we make is restricted in some sense.  Because "the will" cannot be separated from being, and that existence has been molded either by years of the environment and how you are built to deal with it(your genes).  So therefor how can any choice that any of us make be truly free?  Sure we can make choices, but they always would seem conditional, and not truly free right?

I don't think he's trying to manipulate anyone, just trying to get a good discussion going.  We're trying to decide if there is truly such a thing as a free will.  It seems to all go back to semantics to me.

What he's saying is that every choice that we make is restricted in some sense. Because "the will" cannot be separated from being, and that existence has been molded either by years of the environment and how you are built to deal with it(your genes). So therefor how can any choice that any of us make be truly free? Sure we can make choices, but they always would seem conditional, and not truly free right?

I don't think he's trying to manipulate anyone, just trying to get a good discussion going. We're trying to decide if there is truly such a thing as a free will. It seems to all go back to semantics to me.

Rekunta

total free will = anarchyandyxm

= Reality. We have free will, but that free will has been exploited.

I think your philosophy teacher is a socialist.sped_ed

[QUOTE="Rekunta"]

What he's saying is that every choice that we make is restricted in some sense. Because "the will" cannot be separated from being, and that existence has been molded either by years of the environment and how you are built to deal with it(your genes). So therefor how can any choice that any of us make be truly free? Sure we can make choices, but they always would seem conditional, and not truly free right?

I don't think he's trying to manipulate anyone, just trying to get a good discussion going. We're trying to decide if there is truly such a thing as a free will. It seems to all go back to semantics to me.

Hungry_bunny

I am not too familiar with quantem physics though I do agree with xoas.

Another point the teacher brought up is if we were able to rewind time to before a major choice occurred and set it in motion with the exact circumstances at that exact time, would we make a different choice?  It's just fascinating because it brings up the question: does choice even exist?  How can we know if we can't go back and change it?

I think your philosophy teacher is a socialist.sped_ed

I don't believe in free will, I just don't see where it would originate.....yoshi-lnex

God... If you're a Christian.