Compare and Contrast Three Major Philosophical Viewpoint...

The question that the textbook poses at the very beginning of chapter four is, â€Å"Are you Free† (Chaffee, 2013, p. 172)? Most people would look at this question as pretty cut and dry and would answer a resounding yes. Philosophically speaking, it is not that easy of an answer. You have to be willing to look at the question with an open mind, and ask yourself if the choices you make are truly free or if they are governed by forces outside of your control. In the following paper I intend to compare and contrast the three major philosophical viewpoints regarding this question, and come to a conclusion on which I find to be the right answer. I believe the best way to do this is to first lay out the beliefs of each viewpoint. Once I have done†¦show more content†¦176). The determinists believe that people are molded by outside forces such as human nature, their environment, psychological forces, and social dynamics (Chaffee, 2013, p. 173). Human nature refers to the inborn nature that every person is genetically hardwired with. In other words we can’t have free choice because we cannot alter our fundamental character (Chaffee, 2013, p.173) Being a product of our environment is saying that we make choices based off of life experience. An example would be a person who grew up in an environment where he was taught to give to charity as opposed to someone who was raised in the projects and commits an armed robbery to provide for himself. According to determinists in either case the person isn’t responsible for their actions because they didn’t choose their environment and were molded by forces beyond their control (Chaffee, 2013 p. 173). Psychological forces refer to the deep psychological impulses that govern our choices and they are formed by people’s earliest relationships and experiences. Based on this point of view, people may think they are in control but in reality are being controlled by unseen psychological forces. An example would be if you were a habitual liar it really isn’t your fault because you are compelled to lie by psychological forces over which you had no control (Chaffee, 2013, p.173). Determinists also believe that we make choicesShow MoreRelatedPhilosophy comparing libertarianism, compatibilism, and determinism2363 Words   |  10 Pagesby forces outside of your control. In the following paper I intend to compare and contrast the three major philosophical viewpoints regarding this question, and come to a conclusion on which I find to be the right answer. I believe the best way to do this is to first lay out the beliefs of each viewpoint. Once I have done this I can compare them, and give my insight on which I believe to be right. The first viewpoint regarding human freedom is determinism. The thesis of the determinist isRead MoreGeorge Wilhelm Friedrich and the French Revolution Essay1881 Words   |  8 Pageswrote Phenomenology of Spirit, his first major book. 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