Galen Strawson s Argument On Determinism - 1404 Words

The argument I am go to object to is Galen Strawson’s argument that states moral responsibility is impossible, even if determinism is true or false. The argument does not rely on determinism alone for it to be valid. As stated in his basic argument, we do not contain the ability to be morally responsible of something even if our actions are determined or not. I believe this is false. Strawson’s premise two of his basic argument would be invalid and it would follow that the other premises as well would be invalid, if it did not rely on determinism alone. Determinism is the idea that the future already has a set plan. That anything we say, do, act, and how we even look is already decided for us and tends to limit our free will. Indeterminism comes with the idea that we are responsible for what we do because things tend to happen by chance not by cause. We have free will to decide. Strawson believes that both these concepts can prove that moral responsibility is impossible. I disagree with Strawson. I feel that in order for Strawson’s argument to be valid, it must rely on determinism only. Strawson points out in premise two of his basic argument that in order to be truly morally responsible for one’s actions one would have to be Causa Sui, in a certain mental aspect. Causa Sui is the belief that something is the cause of itself. Which he later says is impossible to be the cause of oneself. If his basic argument relied on the validity of premise two then it would be impossibleShow MoreRelated The Free Will Debate Essay2989 Words   |  12 Pageslies in the premise of determinism proposed by the British analytic philosopher Galen Strawson. The premise implies that the future is predetermined, because every event has a cause and the causes stretch back to time immemorial (Strawson 1994). From this school of thought, the theory of incompatibilism arises, where determinism is thought to rule out free will. There are three types of determinism, namely: theological, logical and causal determinism. Theological determinism is the thesis that GodRead MoreThe View That De terminism Is Not Incompatible With Free Will3559 Words   |  15 PagesMichael Colon Dr. Buchholz, D. Introduction to Philosophy I 11/01/2014 Compatibilism: Discussion and concerns Compatibilism is defined as â€Å"the view that determinism is not incompatible with free will.† In this holding, if determinism were valid, a person still has free will. One of the initial forms of compatibilism is the holding that to be imbued with free will â€Å"is simply for one’s choice to cause one’s actions. Free will is basically doing what one wants; in the example of Hume, free will is basically