DETERMINISM AND HUMAN FREE WILL
The next challenge which we consider to Ethics arises from the doctrine of determinism. In brief, determinism holds that the decisions and actions of human beings are causally determined by external forces. Men are not autonomous agents who can decide on matters on their own. They have no free will or independent volition. Since men are not free agents, they cannot make conscious or deliberate moral choices. Men cannot choose between good and bad courses of action. They are not really responsible for their actions. As a consequence, the concept of human morality loses meaning. Men cannot be morally held responsible for their actions.
The question whether human beings have free will is one of the oldest debates in philosophy. This issue requires some explanation. In many human activities, we assume that men are able to act freely or according to their will. Thus a customer who orders paubhaji in a restaurant is acting freely. As compared to this type of action, many events in nature are not acts of freewill. For instance, the next occurrence of lunar eclipse cannot be willed by anyone. It depends on the paths of movements of celestial bodies, and it is entirely predictable. The paths of celestial bodies are fully causally determined. If human actions were fully predictable like solar eclipses, then we could say that actions of men are fully causally determined, and that men have no free will. But since human actions are not predictable, we say that men are capable of acting freely. This view is known as incompatibilism. It argues that human free will and causal determinism are incompatible. Determinism states that for any action or event at any time there exist causes which ensure that the said action or event and no other occurs. If an action is fully causally determined it cannot be an act of free will. And if it is an act of free will it cannot be fully causally determined. Many philosophers subscribe to determinism.
Determinism creates a problem because if human beings have no free will and if their actions are all causally determined, then they cannot be held responsible for their actions. If any action is merely the result of an individual’s DNA, his current brain state and environmental factors, then the person has no control over it. His actions result from various external and internal causes, and he has no free will to select from a range of alternatives. In this situation, the idea of a moral agent acting freely and being responsible for his actions loses meaning. We can say that a person ought to do something only if it is within his power to do so.
Libertarianism, the opposite of determinism in philosophy, denies that determinism applies fully to human actions. We mentioned earlier that natural events are determined because they have natural causes. Human actions also have underlying reasons. These may seem comparable to natural causes, but are not so. Human reasons are derived from human mind, thought and will. Men have control over them in some measure. They are not always imposed on them. Therefore, men act freely most of the time.
How should we look at the question of when men can be said to act freely? Free actions take place in situations which are characterised by absence of two factors. The two factors are external constraint and internal compulsion.
It is easy to give examples of situations with and without external compulsion. If X requests Y for a loan of five hundred rupees, and Y takes out the money and gives it to X, he is acting freely. Now, suppose that X is walking along a dark street. He is approached by a thief who holds a gun to X’s head, and demands his purse. X hands him the purse. Obviously, X acted under an external constraint.
What is an internal compulsion? This arises from mental conditions which may be mild or serious. Obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) provides an illustration. In this situation, individuals are unable to refrain from going on repeating certain acts. One example is compulsive checking. Some passengers travelling will go on checking whether or not their passports, boarding cards, tickets, and cash are in the pocket. Some people will check many times in order to ensure that they have secured the doors before retiring for the night. If one has OCD, then to that extent his actions may be determined.
From this view, it follows that the question of human free will is not dependent on causal determinism. Human free will has to do with presence or absence of external constraints and internal psychological compulsions. Men are acting freely when there are no external constraints or internal compulsions on them. In such situations, human beings are free moral agents and are responsible for their actions.
Up till now, we have looked at the principal doctrines which question the value or validity of Ethics. A closer examination shows that these doctrines fail to make a dent on ethical theory and practice. We can now proceed to an examination of the important ethical systems. But before doing so, we consider the question of human moral accountability in greater detail.