If the entire universe is based upon action and reaction, and we in fact exist as a collection of organized molecules simply based on a reaction to an incomprehensable amount of stimuli, does that mean that free will is mearly an illusion? If our brains are so powerful that they are able to create the illusion of consciousness and even the feeling of possesing a soul, could it too be creating the illusion that we actually make our own choices? Put simply, are we slaves to our own brains?
I've been thinking about this a lot lately, and I've realized I don't have a good definition of what free will is. It seems like any action we can't explain we attribute to free will. So when you guys think of having "free will" how would you define it?
The enviroment would still create boundaries that your will would reside in. You may have moments of free will if possible. But overall our will is like a lion in a cage or a rat in a box.
Yes, you are. Cut off your hand and see if it still moves around when it's disconnected from your brain. EVERYTHING you are is in your brain. You are your brain and your brain is you. This is pretty simple stuff.
Thing is: If there was free will...it would look like this. If there wasn't free will here..it would look like this, obviously. It's not about the answer to the question, because the question is irrelevant. It will always have a counter as the assessment will be made upon whatever data is available, and there is *no* way to know if you've acquired every bit of evidence that you should be considering. Are you just electro-chemical reactions upon flesh, are you a soul, are you a spirit, are you systems of linked brain systems and subsystems..are you just consciousness driven by a will...it can rattle on and on. And as you close doors, more doors open and more questions unfold. But 'you' as a person, can not make a mistake here: You can not make a mistake. But that doesn't mean there aren't consequences. This is it. But to give a fair response to your post: Even simpler, there isn't even a 'you'. 'This' right now, here, there, and over there -- is 'doing' all of it, as it does the rain, does the asteroids, does the nebula's, does the galaxy arm formations, and does the armadillo babies playing in a field. Sure the vibrations in my body register upon the brain that the neural system is linked to and I experience this feeling of "Ah, thats happening to 'me'...separate ole me -- says the brain. The catch is, the root of existence is doing all of existence. There is nothing separate -- at least no way I can see it (from an analytical objective breakdown to spiritual seeking)...I end up at the same place. There is no seeker, there is no one separate from all of it. Its not something I choose or prefer to see it that way because it makes me feel a certain way. I can accept what is no matter if its for a good feeling or a shitty one. No expectations here. I come to find that there can only be the root. Before beginnings of beginnings, before 'happenings' happen. Infinite. The source. So my question to you is, if you think you're a slave to your own brain, what do you think is doing your brain? 'You' ? 'You' is a thought a universe is having the same way the sun is a burning star that the universe is blazing. You're a manifestation of the all at play, whats it like in that body over there? (Sorry for my tangent-esque post, Just haven't posted in a long time )
i beg to differ, and i know your positions when it comes to spirituality so i will try to argue with only logic, no superstitious shit. you say everything you are is in your brain but what is physically in my brain is just matter, receptors, chemical reactions, the works. what starts to BECOME is my consciousness, i start to form thoughts based on knowledge, ideas based on experience, and memories are the product of being SUBJECTIVELY conscious. i start to form personality how can my brain, which HOUSES me, it is a part of me, it is OF me, it is a tool that the "I" uses, be me? yes you're right without my brain "I" wouldn't be able to think or process any information, it is my TOOL in psychology you are able to categorize each thought process the brain makes, we all think the same way as in our brains all compute the same way, we are all the same model so to say. you are able to control the way you think, the way you go about things, the way you process and understand information, you can become a master of yourself and not let things effect you so easily because you understand them alot better now that you are the CONTROLLER and not the CONTROLLED. so you are able to command this so called brain of yours, but wait. say this a few times-- "MY BRAIN" but i thought you were your brain?? if you are your brain why do we say "MY"? why do we say "MY" thoughts? arent you your thought if your brain is you? it doesnt make sense to say "I AM MY BRAIN" YOU ARE NOT YOUR BRAIN, YOU ARE THE EXAMINER, THE CONSIDERER YOU ARE THE "I" AND YOUR BODY IS A VEHICLE WHICH THE "I" IS USING you cannot deny yourself such a great fucking post man, very very insightful
Ah yes, precisely my point. If we are our brains, then when we make descisions is it our 'free will' making it, or your brain that makes you feel as if it were through free will? Is your brain creating the illusion of free will when really it makes all the descisions for itself?
It's easy to argue against free will...........it's not so easy to just sit there forever after the argument and act as if you really believe in what you were saying. Occam's Razor cuts this topic down to size very neatly.
I am not my brain. My brain is me. Without my brain I am nothing but a lifeless shell. Anyone that has ever tripped on the psychedelics would understand this. Your brain is infinitely more than 'you.' Your brain is filled with things you don't consciously know or understand. I'm not really sure if that makes any sense. I have a killer hangover right now so explaining things is kinda hard.
Alvin Plantinga's free will defense - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Lot's of people make arguments for free will that are more mathematical than metaphysical. I don't think we got free will from God, but I do think it's impossible to predict what everyone will do next, and since that'd be a necessarily deductable thing if it were the case that mathematics and logic have the universe fixed, I don't understand why not. Plantinga is an asshole, but considered an authority on the matter. Newcomb's problem simply illustrates my first point.
You mean disconnected from my forearm? Also, dismantled bodyparts are sometimes known to twitch after being dismembered. Explain that one for me.. seeing as it's no longer connected to the brain.. how does it move?
free will is not an illusion, it is our ability to do whatever the fuck we want. if you do not have free will, than you are being controlled. whether you may be a slave,a robot or a tool. you cant make your own choices, decide for yourself, manifest your own decisions. without free will. and gedio, you are not your brain. your brain is a tool granted to you, as your body is just a medium for your mind to manifest itself in. Mind is different than brain. so just as your leg, your lungs, your heart, your eye, your nose, even the inner lining of your stomach are each one constituent to the whole, so is your brain despite its great power to say the least. meanwhile you are the authority, you control the brain. just as you control your finger, you control both of your legs in a rhythm enabling you to walk. you are not your brain, your brain is not you. your brain is a part of you. your brain alone without you is nothing.
My question though, is when you do what you want, is it really your choice, or could it have been predicted with complete accuracy if you took into account ever senario you have encountered in your lifetime? Cause and effect. If it was predictable, did you really have free will in the first place?