Determinism is the opposite of free will. The concept of tree will has arisen for two reasons. 1. .... first is that we are conscious of the difference between doing something 2. ... we are told to do it and doing something 'of our own free 3. .... '. The difference is very real, so since the situation of being told 4. ... forced to do something is clearly not free the other situation must 5. ... free. Whether the 'free’ situation is really free or simply an illusion 6. .... not matter. It is possible to hypnotise someone and to teil her 7. .... after she has come out of the hypnotic trance she will respond 8. ... the code word 'rain' by getting up and pouring herself a glass 9. .... water. Some time later the word 'rain' is introduced into the conversation 10. ... the person gets up and pours a glass of water. If she 11. ... asked why she has done this she would maintain that it is 12. .... she 'wanted’ to. The hypnotised subject feels that she is free to 13. .... in this way but observers know that the action is determined.
In practice 14. .... is our sensation of freedom which gives us our sense of ego 15. .... individualism. If all our actions were determined by orders or conditioning then 16. .... would seem to be driving on a railway track rather than on 17. .... road. Of course if we did not know or feel that our actions 18. .... determined then we should still feel as free as ever.
Religion 19. .... provided the second, and most powerful, reason for the concept of free 20. .... . If people were to be encouraged to get to heaven then they 21. .... to be virtuous and do the right things. This could best be 22. .... by punishing them if they did wrong. So there were created 23. .... concepts of sin and guilt and hell-fire and damnation. Now this would 24. .... been most unjust if a person was not 'free’ to 25. .... to do good or evil. If his actions were predetermined towards evil 26. ... punishment would be directly predetermined. Moreover reward and punishment would have no 27..... if decisions could not be made freely. Finally no one would deserve to 28. .... to heaven if the actions that got him there were predetermined 29. .... his having any choice in the matter.
In fact if we include 30. ... a person’s ego all his experiences and consciousness of customs and 31. .... then his ego seems to be free to do what it has 32. .... conditioned to do. If we leave all these things outside our
definition 33. ... the ego then its behaviour is determined by them.
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