Spinoza's Argument Against Free Will Essay

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Enlightenment

Baruch Spinoza believed that humans' actions and activities are not based on free will, but rather humans are moved to action and thought because he believed that nothing happens by mere chance. His rationale for believing as he does is the basis for this essay.

Free Will vs. Determinism

A review of what Spinoza believed is not the easiest thing to accomplish since some of what Spinoza puts forward is seemingly esoteric to the lay person or student engaged in research. But in researching Spinoza's philosophy, looking carefully at his positions, one can come to understand basically why he did not believe in free will. He believed that God, and God alone, is free to make decisions and to act according to His free will. Since God is Nature, and Nature is God, and therefore everything that exists on Earth are there because God decided, of His own free will and power, to create those things.

Because everything in Nature has been done through God's free will (that would include humans), which are but an extension of God's authority, therefore once God creates those things they are determined to act in a certain way, but not through free will. Humans are governed (once they are created by God) by whatever is necessary for their existence and hence, they are determined to behave in a certain way, Spinoza explains.

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Spinoza understood that humans believe they are making decisions based on free choice, but humans believe that because they lack the knowledge to understand they are not free and they cannot make decisions based on free choice. Because humans are aware, are conscious of their decisions and actions, they are lulled into a false sense of freedom of choice, Spinoza explained. Will, in other words, is just a way of thinking, and because humans are gifted with intellect, they believe they are making intelligent choices but in fact their choices are determined in advance by their conditioning.

Divine nature, which God has created, has provided the necessity for humans to act in certain ways; they do not have the luxury of deciding what they will do and when….....

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