Determinism vs. Free Will

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Student: Course: Instructor: Date: Determinism vs. Free Will Philosophers have argued over the issue of mankind’s freedom, ever since the beginning of time, Some such as Holbech argue as he did in his work “Are We Cogs in the Universe,” that mans fate has always been pre-determined. While others like Kane argue as he did in his work,” The Significance of Free Will” that man is free to make his own choices but is affected by past decisions. I have taken the works of Holbach an Kane and I will discuss them here to a small extent while, trying to give my own honest opinion on their different stands on of Free Will. Holbech, like many early philosophers believed that mans fate is already pre-determined. He argued on many occasions “that man like nature is under the same immutable law as the universe and all that is within her.” In following his thought pattern this would suggest that if a tree falls in the woods that it did not fall of its own accorded, but was chopped down by a logger; in continuing this though did the logger chose that tree or was his chose predestined. If this is the case then every action we take cannot be attributed to free will but to our acts being fated. Holbech said in his work “Are we Cogs in the Universe?” “So many crimes are witnessed on earth only because everything conspires to render man vicious and criminal; the religion has adopted, his government, his education, the examples set before him, irresistibly drive him to evil.” (Holbech ) So if this is the case then a murderer cannot truly be held responsible for his actions, after all, his is only fulfilling his pre-determined fate. So if this is true, punishing an evil man is meaningless because he is pre-determined to be evil. In following, this theory the choice to be evil or good has already been made before it could ever really be made. On the other hand Kane like

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