In this last section I read, Dostoyevski commented
on an interesting aspect of free will. Is free will still considered free will
if our actions are predictable? Free will is spontaneity, whim. When
predictable we feel caged, as if its not our choice because it is a fact,
something that must happen. We humans are whimsical creatures who enjoy
choosing and acting how we want. When we are presented with the idea that
everything is predetermined, we automatically and instinctually revolt against
this. Dostoyevski used a piano key metaphor to explain this. A piano key will
play the same sound over and over again. It is known that the sound will not
change. The sound is bound by the fact that it is tuned to a certain pitch; it
is constrained. We fear the idea of being a piano key, and so to fight against
this Dostoyevski suggests that humans act against reason in order to counter our
fear of losing our free will by becoming mechanical and predictable.
No comments:
Post a Comment