Determinism and Its Moral Implications

Drew Lewis 11/13/11 Philosophy Determinism and its Moral Implications Q in that respect be mesomorphic arguments that in that respect is no such thing as openhanded go forth. But flock in ordinary disembodied spirit melt down to presuppose there is barren leave alone when they talk ab surface populate deserving life-threatening or rubber treatment, rewards and punishments. Some kinds of rewards and punishments encourage good behavior and discourage bad behavior, so those make common sense fifty-fifty if there is no turn allow.But what about punishments for crimes that be unrealistic to deter ( equivalent crimes of passion) or recognize talents people bungholet call for to make water (like Olympic medals or Nobel prizes for science)? Do these practices still make sense if there is no free will? If not, how would it make sense to agitate our institutions? Our entire mental state is a product of the chemical and tangible properties of our neurons at any given clip, and changes are produced directly by communications within the commutation nervous system and between the peripheral and central nervous system.To be astonished at this fact is to underestimate the piece body labyrinthineity and sheer number of neurons present in the body. To assert there is a magical force called free will is un put uped and illogical. Your bear in psyche is g everyplacened by the same laws which goern all other matter of which you contrive got no check into. foreswear will, however, remains a popular belief principally because of its connections to theology and the perception of introspection. When we introspect it is easy to convince ourselves that there is something ghostlike inside our mind is spontaneous, indecisive, creative, and often irrational.These qualities are, for the most part, absent in robotics, which supports a widely held belief that they reart be synthesized. Determinism simply says that the mind can be predicted like a chemic al reaction can be predicted there is nothing special about our minds which hold them supra physical laws. The mind is a complicated construct, and its vast number of interactions with the surround makes it impossible to predict. The simplest computer able to accurately model exactly what will occur in the human mind would be as complex as the universe itself.Because integrity does not have control over the functions inside ones own brain, and because the functions in the brain ensconce thought process, no one has control of their thoughts. Determinism raises a number of arouse moral questions. Determinism is an unpopular hypothesis mostly because its conclusion is misunderstood. Determinists can obtain on a type of free will, which is simply defined on an individual acting or thinking in a intelligent mental state and without influence. Given this situation an individual can be said to be thinking independently.The individual, according to determinists, has no control over hi s thought process, but he is, by popular definition, using his free will and judgment. Even if it is intangible, the concept is none the less incredibly strategic. The collar rejection of free will would have devastating consequences. Without free will serviceman lose responsibility, and without responsibility humans lose justice, which is the purest and most righteous human construct. The theory of determinism uses logic not found on speculation, and as theories come, it is one of the most foolproof.The important question to me is how to go about recognizing the truth of determinism without allowing it to expunge life negatively. No one can say for sure whether assoil recognition of determinism would be a good or bad, but I accept there is an overwhelming argument that the rejection of the concept of free will would have disastrous consequences. It brings up the interesting question if it is better to love the truth about something if it has negative consequences. Though I believe powerfully in determinism, I treat my actions like I have control of them.This attitude is important for my well-being for numerous reasons. If one does not have control ones thoughts or actions, are rewards and punishments necessary or even beneficial? The answer is yes. A healthy mind needs rewards and punishments in every situation in order to grow and improve. Reinforcements sum up the likelihood of an action and punishments tend to decrease the likelihood of an action. Taking away these vital signals in the brain would cause disaster for the psyche. As a child you are constantly being conditioned.Its the reason you have the gut reaction to think for a second before reservation a large purchase. Its also the reason you work grueling in school or at a job. Every clipping you were praised for a good grade or punished for a bad one, it ingrained in your mind what is right and wrong which in plow influences your motivation and attitude. The more(prenominal) than rei nforcement you receive the better conditioned you are to cope with your environment. We dont, however, learn simply from reinforcements. A lot of mental test and error is saved because we can observe others and learn from them.Everyone tries to imitate those who they suss out being rewarded the most through a conscious or unconscious mind attraction to their reinforcement. These people are known to us as heroes. inversely we also tend to submit not to be like villains those who denounce to gain rewards or are excessively punished. This is why it is so important for us to reward athletes and scholars, even though they did not exhibit free will. As children, most people aspire to be firefighters, soldiers, astronauts, or police officers.More than other professions, these are people who are presented to kids as heroes. The touch on purpose of rewarding heroes might have the vain goal of rewarding their good deeds, however it also has the noble effect of inspiring others to e mulate them. By taking away the benefit of prestige, excellence fails to stand out from mediocrity. In psychology there is a subject called attribution. It is the study of what people attribute their experiences to. Some people blame themselves for things, and therefore are called innate attributers (as opposed to external attributers).If a person believes that their experiences can be manipulated they are called dynamic attributers (as opposed to static attributers). In order to truly believe that your experience is a result of your actions and that you can also change those actions, you moldiness also believe in a form of free will. Without free will you could not change your actions, nor can you be held accountable for them. psychology has shown that people who attribute their experiences internally and dynamically are less possible to suffer from depression than all other attribution types.In addendum to depression legion(predicate) other types of psychological disorders su ch as manic disorder are thought to be caused by static and external attribution. Free will is a defining theme in the punishment/ renew debate dealing with prisons. If free will isnt real the American prison system should operate solely for the purpose of reform and the isolation of those determined to be a danger to society. Without free will, punishment is trivial except for its uses as a reformation tool and as a deterrent to those thinking of committing a crime. In the case of life in prison or the death sentence there is no hap for rehabilitation.If a prisoner couldnt be rehabilitated using a commonsensical amount of resources, a determinist may accept the benefits of a life sentence or death penalty. Life sentences and death sentences are considered prescribed because they keep people who are dangerous isolated from those they could harm, while concurrently serving as a warning to others to prevent them from committing acts which could prove them dangerous. It is hard, when analyze the life sentence with the death penalty, which is worse. Whichever causes the least harm to the individual in question would be the best option.I personally believe it is more humane to end a humans life painlessly (and as soon after conviction as possible) than to keep them locked in a cell until they die slowly of disease. It is likely that our ancestors were predisposed to the idea of free will and were favored because of it. The concept of free will gives you more motivation to hand down reinforcement, whether it is positive or negative, to those around you. It also helps you accept reinforcement from others. The concept of free will is a powerful force that keeps societies working correctly. Our entire legal and social system is based on the concept of free will.Everything in society is interlocking, so if we distort to change society to fit the new idea that free will is irrelevant we will find inconsistencies and injustice until a solution is found in a stabl e society not based on the recognition of free will. Societal upheaval would be ridiculous because it wouldnt accomplish anything. Judgment using free will is second spirit to us as humans. When asked about Hitler, a Holocaust survivor, even a determinist one, wouldnt say, He did terrible things but it wasnt his time out because he has no control over what happens in his rain. Determinist ideals can only go so far before they become eclipsed by human emotion therefore it would be ill advised to try to change society to fit the new theory. As you can see, the theory of determinism has many interesting theoretical implications, but very little real(a) applications. Its theoretical implications could be the most important, however. Combined with nihilism and agnosticism, it forms a locomote view of the universe which is grounded in science and reason without confusion from religion or human emotion.I believe that if philosophers can pursue this cover up of thought, devoid of spir ituality and belief, philosophers can finally make progress in finding real answers. Determinism is still widely misunderstood. I was surprised how many of my classmates did not understand even the basic principles after spending time learning about it. The challenge philosophy faces is to present determinism, and other theories like it in a way which people can relate without losing the truthful meaning.