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what is ~ Freewill?
As we have already examined, there is a strong case for the ideas and philosophy embraced by determinism. We have briefly reasoned with the notion of freewill ~ of thoughts, ideas and actions. And it is difficult to absolutely confirm that any thought or idea that comes to mind is totally free of any initial cause?
Yet we have also ascertained that some level of freewill does in fact appear to be real for us. Perhaps this is no accident? It is difficult to accept that freewill does not exist at all, and we shun the notion that we do not possess at least some control over our thoughts and actions.
Perhaps we should begin by accepting that freewill does exist and is real for us, at least at some level, and explore further how much control we may have, its limitations and what is beyond our control.
Most of us may take the reality of freewill for granted and would not even spare the time to contemplate whether this is a real phenomena or not. Most of us are busy throughout our day, and there is little or no time to reason that, in fact, all we do, all we have achieved or done, has been totally out of our control. Our whole working day is based on the idea that we have been productive in some sense, due to the acts of our own thoughts, ideas and actions. In fact, we measure our success, and the measured successes of our businesses are based on the accepted notion that freewill is real and important.
So lets examine how much freewill and control we really have?
Let us begin with the easy stuff first.
1. I assume that I am able to freely raise my arm at any moment that I please, and I can actually practice this ~ this is real, (for me). I can reach for any thing that is within my grasp and touch and feel this object, however, I cannot touch any thing that is beyond my reach. Sounds like common sense, no new revelations here? However, my reach is governed by my relative position to the object I want in space and time ~ and how is this governed? How did I find myself within this limitation we may call relative position?
2. Assuming I may freely move about, and that I may move closer to the object I see, or want to touch ~ I may use my own freewill to move closer to the object to see and touch and grasp it? Again, no new revelation, and we can all practice this at home.
3. Now let us dig a little deeper. How did I find myself in a relative position to an object that has taken my interest? And moreover, how did the object itself find its way into my space and time, (space-time?). Perhaps it is a cup, and I have previously purchased it at a local store, and brought it home to use, and thus, it is where I left it, where I think it is, and where it should be? Yet delve deeper, the cup of our choice has only found its way to us through happenstance?
4. Cups that we buy, stuff that we see, people that we meet each day, have only really crossed our paths through accidental encounters. We have little or no control over these events, even though we may travel to work the same way at the same time each day. So our freewill to choose is limited to only those events or things that surround us, and that in turn is governed itself by our particular position and motion through time and space.
This all sounds like basic understanding, and it really is something that we take for granted. However, the aim here is to point out that what appears to us as our freewill, is limited and that we could call it destiny that appears to be the real control of events that lead us into circumstance? We only appear to have freewill to act in our limited surroundings.
5. So lets examine a little further. Do we have control over our thoughts and actions?
Because we take the above for granted so much, we naturally assume and accept that things that are beyond our reach are unattainable, and that we either need to move closer, or maybe have to travel some distance to get what we want. So the free idea or notion of an act carries with it certain baggage that we automatically understand is commonplace in achieving an act. For example, to see and speak to Joe, I may have to travel on a train to see him ~ the simple act of freewill in thinking about seeing Joe automatically runs this algorithm? That I need to understand and that I really take for granted?
6. This baggage or algorithm that is needed to see Joe is certainly not free. And we are bound to it. Yet we assume that the idea in its first instance was an original and free idea? So we may assume that we have this freedom to act on these thoughts. It appears to be the algorithm itself, that is not freely driven, and that we then have to follow this to achieve the outcome of our original thought or idea. For example, To visit Joe once more, it requires a complex set of instructions and actions that must be followed in a specific order to see him? Failure to do this will not result in seeing Joe!
If we break all these actions and thoughts to act down into a long chain, we may find that they are merely choices ~ Do I take the train? (yes/no). Do I go left of right? (yes/no). Do I ring the bell? (yes/no). In fact, these simple choices are not different from the way a computer program would achieve a certain goal, by selecting to choose either yes or no, or if you like, a binary choice of either one or zero?
This may be no coincidence either, as the way a computer analyses and acts out its program in simple binary digital format may indeed emulate the way our brain actually works also, (but that is the topic for another debate, so we will leave it here).
7. So we have seen that the only freewill we appear to possess is the ability to think and choose to move about? All that we see around us is there by circumstance, which is not really by our making or our controlling. How on earth we achieve any success in any deeds that we undertake is beginning to look a little mysterious at this point?
In fact, the whole notion of our freewill to move about, to move our arms and legs relies on a singular attribute called individuality, or to be more precise, the phenomena of separation. It is only because I am separated from my surroundings that I may possess the ability to move and appear to control these moves I make?
Even this control is limited and under constraint. If I fall in water, my movement is limited, If I walk against the wind, my movements are more difficult. If I push against solid objects I experience resistance, etc.
8. If we readily take all these things for granted, (and we do), we may begin to see that we naturally make allowances for water, wind resistance and heavy objects. And that this in turn restricts or controls our abilities to act freely. For example, happening upon a river in your path will oppose your freewill to travel further, and you must make allowances. Knowing that the river will be in your path will affect your plan for the journey ~ will affect your freewill to contemplate the journey? Your thoughts for the journey at hand may be directly determined and affected by the river, or the knowledge and memory of the river?
So even the thought of undertaking the journey, and the freewill to contemplate this journey may be affected by the river and by circumstance? Yet at least we have the freewill to contemplate this act in the first instance, right? Hmm..now I'm not so sure?
9. When we dream, we have the freedom of the subconscious world where we can undertake journeys, visit folks, pick up objects and generally do as we please without any of the real constraints of the physical real world. It appears that we possess this catalogue of experience and memory that we can draw upon to freely act out any design that we may choose. Here it would appear that we possess total freewill to span rivers or not, as we please. We may even use our imagination (?), to invent all sorts of incredible objects and events that we have no freewill over in the real physical world.
Yet how do we dream exactly? What brings these dreams to mind? And where do all these strange ideas come from? Are they really free from external constraints? A lot of unanswered questions!
If we dream of a pink elephant, is it a free thought, and idea, or have we merely taken an elephant and the colour pink from memory, and mixed the two together ~ for an unknown reason!
What may at first appear to be totally original has now become very unoriginal. What made me think of the pink elephant? Has it been thought of before? Why did it come to mind? Where is the freedom in all these random thoughts?
As it is now becoming clear? It is most difficult to determine the depth of freedom that we really possess. Are we indeed free at all, to think and move about as we please? To dream as we please? Yet there is still a natural sensation that leads us to believe in our own freewill. We still tend towards the belief in this power to decide for ourselves our thoughts and actions. And there is absolutely nothing wrong with this understanding, these feelings, for it is real. Perhaps it is merely that we assume that our level of control, of freedom is more than it actually is manifest?
We may see that the philosopher Descartes has already explored these same questions regarding the freedoms to act and to think, and especially the freedom of ideas and thoughts. He deduced that not even these thoughts and ideas are free, and that there is no freewill in receiving them. He deduced that it was by the grace of God that we witness and partake in all these things, all these thoughts and ideas. And it is a very strong argument that this may indeed be the case!
When I go to sleep tonight, I will freely decide to dream of the pink elephant, or not, as I please. If the occasion arises it will be my decision?
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