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us free will
And why philosophers have it all wrong
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11 min read
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Mar 31
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Created with Dall-E
The topic was free will, and it is one of the few times the
philosopher addressed the subject at length.
Wittgenstein saw himself as a peacemaker in the world of
philosophy and, so, in most of his work, he attacks both sides of
any given debate with the goal of showing that both sides are
arguing over nothing.
In all this, the impression was that he had free will. We assumed
that he was choosing to act like this, and we could never have
predicted this behavior.
So knowing that there is medical reason for his behavior, his will
is no longer seen as free. His actions are no longer his
responsibility.
The key insight to take away is that the free will debate itself is
not metaphysical but psychological. It is how we attribute moral
reasoning to others and ourselves.
So, what do people do when we use the term “free will”? How do
we use it?
If you understand that arguments over “free will” are just useless
arguments over semantics, then it helps you resolve the most
contentious debate without resorting to more metaphysics and
get at the real problem.
Would we then say they are not responsible for their actions?
Should they be let off?
The average person would say they are responsible, and that is
because of the way that the language regarding free will works.
In our way of understanding justice, if you pull the trigger to
shoot someone and you are judged to have the mental capacity
for moral judgement and you aren’t being coerced to do it, then
you are responsible.
Free will has nothing to do with how decisions are made. It has
to do with justice and mercy. If we are responsible, we deserve
justice and desire mercy. If we are not, we need neither. An
unconscious machine could have all the same decision making
powers we do but no responsibility. The conscious mind, on the
other hand, exists to take responsibility, not because it made the
decisions, but because it is in charge.
This is why consciousness creates free will because free will isn’t
about cause and effect. That is simply more mechanistic
thinking. It is a moral quality that is unique to conscious beings
like you and me.
Free Will
Determinism
Philosophy
Mind
Psychology
631
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O Universo Infinito
·
11 minutos de leitura
·
31 de março
631
21
Criado com Dall-E
Poderíamos dizer que você não precisa ser tão preciso para
determinar o que as pessoas fazem. Não precisamos ter precisão
em nível atômico para prever se alguém escolherá sorvete de
baunilha ou chocolate.
Mas então aconteceu algo que fez com que todos reavaliassem se
ele estava agindo livremente.
Quando ele estava prestes a ser mandado para a prisão,
descobriu-se que ele tinha um grande tumor pressionando seu
neocórtex. Ele foi encaminhado a um hospital para
cirurgia. Depois que o crescimento foi removido cirurgicamente,
ele voltou ao seu antigo eu cumpridor da lei. O tumor voltou a
crescer e ele voltou a ser o Sr. Hyde e teve que ser removido
novamente. Instantaneamente, ele era o Dr. Jekyll novamente.
Isso não significa que a consciência não tenha nada a ver com
isso. Se substituíssemos a pessoa que puxa o gatilho por uma
máquina, não responsabilizaríamos a
máquina. Responsabilizaríamos quem o projetou porque as
máquinas não são conscientes.
O que está acontecendo aqui?
livre arbítrio
Determinismo
Filosofia
Mente
Psicologia
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