Friday, April 10, 2015
Free Will
I think Sartre's idea that no one can ever take away another's freedom is an interesting idea. The only thing that is keeping us from doing anything or trying something, is our own free will. While we may feel like we have to go to school, or work, or take a test, etc, nothing is forcing us to actually do it. We have the free will to, at any point, decide to quit. While we may have rules we feel we should live by, or moral codes we follow, the only thing that keeps us following them is ourselves. This is a similar idea to how God set up the world. While He gave us the Bible as a guide to how we should live in order to please Him and follow His will, He ultimately gave us free will to live our lives as we choose. He does not force us to live a certain way, to go to church, to pray, or even to follow Him. Instead He gives us the choice of how we want to live our lives. While He knows the decisions we will make before we make them, we still make the choices we want. Just as Sartre believed, the only thing that determines our actions is our own decisions. If we do not like our job, then we can quit at any point and get a new job. If we want to go to college, then we can choose to work hard enough to go. If we cannot afford it, then we can apply for scholarships so we afford it. While we may not succeed in something, or be good at something, the only thing stopping us from doing something is ourselves.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
I agree with what you are saying here about Startre's idea of free will. Our only limits in life are what we make for ourselves, and we are not "stuck" somewhere in life (although it may feel that way sometimes). We are not forced to go to class or go to practice, or even get out of bed for that matter, however consequences can guide us to show up weather we like it or not. But, as you said, the only thing that determines out actions is our own decisions.
ReplyDeleteI find Sartre interesting as well. I do think that it is possible to take a persons freedom away, like in the past with slavery, when people didn't have the option on how to live their lives. I agree with your example with the Bible on how God doesn't force you to follow Him, He lets you make the choices on your own. All in all, you are the only person that holds you back. Great post!
ReplyDeleteSartre was my favorite philosopher this week. I liked your example about the Bible being left to us for us to make the decision if to follow him. I also agree with Lauren where there are instances where it is possible to take away someone's freedom like in slavery. Another example would be people being in jail. They lose their freedom in a sense.
ReplyDeleteSarte is an interesting philosopher in that I think he believes that people can always find a way out and always find a better choice of free will in comparison to the situation they are currently going through. I think he ultimately had a lot of hope in humans and our characteristic to have free will that caused him to say we are never forced into or stuck in a situation.
ReplyDeleteVery interesting. You made some good and valid points. We do have the free will to live our lives how we want. I think we say we are forced to things we don't want to do is because of society. If we lived life there was no tomorrow, society would look down upon us because we are doing what society wants us to do.
ReplyDelete