Making Sense of Your Freedom: Philosophy for the PerplexedWritten for general readers and students, this book provides an accessible and brief metaphysical defense of freedom. James W. Felt, S.J., invites his audience to consider that we are responsible for what we do precisely because we do it freely. His perspective runs counter to the philosophers who argue that the freedom humans feel in their actions is merely an illusion. Felt argues in detail that there are no compelling reasons for thinking we are not free, and very strong ones for thinking that we are. The view that Felt develops parallels that of the French philosopher Henri Bergson (1859-1941). In the course of his analysis, Felt considers determinism, compatibilism, agency, and the problem of evil. Featuring an updated suggested reading list, this clearly and engagingly written introductory work is ideal for the undergraduate classroom. |
Contents
A FIRST LOOK AT FREEDOM | 1 |
WHY FREEDOM SEEMS IMPOSSIBLE | 8 |
IS COMPATIBILISM BELIEVABLE? | 16 |
Copyright | |
7 other sections not shown
Other editions - View all
Common terms and phrases
A. N. Whitehead absolute act of deciding actual events agent antecedent conditions argued argument for compatibilism Aristotle Assertion atemporal Battle of Gettysburg Bergson called cause Chapter choose claim clock compatibilist conception decision to create described deter determinism and freedom determinism is correct deterministic doctrine of determinism Essay fact false dilemma false prior falsity fatalism feeling of freedom free act free agency freedom and responsibility future events given happen Henri Bergson human act hypothetical internal freedom Kant Kant's law of bivalence least libertarian lie tomorrow lived Martin Buber metaphysical minism Moral Responsibility motives natural evils notion of causality occur outcome past person philosophers physical determinism precisely predictions present presupposition propositions referring psychological determinism question rational determinism rational sense reason Saint Augustine seems sense of freedom simply sneeze space space-time subject-time suppose supposition T. S. Eliot theory thing tion unity width of possibility