write a dialogue between you and an imaginary Socrates. You will debate the question of free will versus determinism. Remembe
For this paper, you will write a dialogue between you and an imaginary Socrates. You will debate the question of free will versus determinism. Remember that the Socratic Method involves asking a series of questions to clarify key words and ideas. In your dialogue, the imaginary Socrates should be asking clarifying questions, and you will be answering them. Please refer to the excerpt from Plato’s Meno as an example (below). This paper should be 5 pages. 5 references APA format
Your dialogue should address the following questions:
- What is the definition of determinism?
- What is the definition of free will?
- Do you agree that every event has an explanatory cause?
- How do you define event?
- How do you define explanatory cause?
- Do you agree that every human choice or event has an explanatory cause?
- How do you define human choice? How do you definite human event? Are they different?
- Do you agree that to have an explanatory cause is to not be free?
- How do you define free?
- Do you think that free will and determinism can coexist in any way?
- Is it possible to have external determinism and internal free will?
To have cohesion and reach solid conclusions, your imaginary Socrates will probably ask you more questions than the ones listed above. Be sure to include all of the above ideas in your dialogue.
Your dialogue should also include all of the following:
- Use of the Socratic Method to form all conclusions (this will be achieved by the question and answer dialogue between you and the imaginary Socrates)
- Clear and concise language, using proper spelling, grammar, and punctuation
- Correct definitions of free will and determinism
- Logical explanations and valid reasoning for each conclusion
- Clear answers to each question with a definite stance or position
- You must reach a conclusive answer to each question
- 5 pages in lenght
The following is an excerpt from Plato's Meno (Soccio, 1995):
Socrates: …Do not all men…desire the good?
Meno: I think not.
Socrates: There are some who desire evil?
Meno: Yes.
Socrates: Do you mean that they think the evils which they desire, to be good; or do they know that they are evil and yet desire them?
Meno: Both, I think.
Socrates: And do you really imagine, Meno, that a man knows evils to be evils and desires them notwithstanding?
Meno: Certainly I do.
Socrates: And desire is [for] possession?
Meno: Yes, [for] possession…
Socrates: Well, and do those who, as they say, desire evils, and think that evils are hurtful to the possessor of them, know that they will be hurt by them?
Meno: They must know it.
Socrates: And must they not suppose that those who are hurt are miserable in proportion to the hurt which is inflicted upon them?
Meno: How can it be otherwise?
Socrates: But are not the miserable ill-fated?
Meno: Yes, indeed.
Socrates: And does any one desire to be miserable and ill-fated?
Meno: I should say not, Socrates.
Socrates: But if there is no one who desires to be miserable, there is no one, Meno, who desires evil; for what is misery but the desire and possession of evil?
Meno: That appears to be the truth, Socrates, and I admit that nobody desires evil.
Socratic Method
Phil IP4
Name
Class
Date
Professor
Socrates Method
Socrates was a teacher and a philosopher who never wrote down his theories but instead left behind through his student’s ways to analyze and assess information to find the correct response. The Socratic Method refers to a method of critical thinking where questions are asked and reason and logic applied to discussing, assessing, and looking for weakness in theory. Through the Socratic Method topics are debated and truths are sought. This inquiry method works by asking questions in order to develop self understanding of a specific topic. It is a person fully applying cognitive ability to reveal the truth through the question asking process.
Socratic Method
Socrates: What is Determinism?
Ryan: It is the belief that every human behavior is influenced by external factors. Determinism suggests people do not have free will but instead event happens for a reason.
Socrates: Is everything in life predictable?
Ryan: Very few things in life are predictable. The only things that are truly predictable is the sun setting and rising. While going to work every day may be predictable anything could happen on the journey to wok to interrupt this predictability.
Socrates: What is free will?
Ryan: Free is the ability to choose. It is making decision or choices without being constrained by fate or the will of others. While people must follow laws and the norms established in society everyone engages in a decision making process to determine how they will act or proceed not the events that happened before. Instead people assess what they know and show complete awareness in the choices they make.
Socrates: Do you agree that every event has an explanatory cause?
Ryan: Every event is not explanatory or we would not be anything but objects playing the roles the universe defined in the beginning. While there can be an explanation as to why a series of events resulted in an action this event is not necessarily predetermined. For example if someone is in a car accident because they were speeding and texting while driving, their careless behavior would be the explanation for the car accident not the fact it was caused because it was supposed to not because the person decided out of free will to speed and text while driving.
Socrates: How do you define event?
Ryan: The event is something that occurs or happens or takes places (Hacker, 1982). Using the previous example the event would be the car accident.
Socrates: Is an event an object?
Ryan: Object stay the same over time but events differ by where the occurred, how they happened, and where they took place. Events are actions or experiences while objects are people places, or things.
Socrates: How do you define explanatory cause?
Ryan: In determinism every event has a cause. This cause can be explained by the event being the cause of the next event and so on. This would mean everything that happens can be explained. In some events this is the case but in many other events the event occurs through the free will choices made by the individuals. Not everything can be explained and not everything occurs because of the event that occurred before it.
Socrates: Do you agree that every human choice or event has an explanatory cause?
Ryan: Every human choice does not have an explanatory cause. Many events occur for no reason and there is no explanation. There is no explanation why some people get cancer and others do not or why some babies die of sides while others do not. When there is no explanation for why something has occurred there cannot be an explanatory event. In just about every event free will plays a role. For example humans chose to get into a car even if someone else causes a car accident or if they chose to go hiking and get mauled by a bear. Human choice will play a role in the events that affect the human but do not involve the sudden and unexplainable event. Basically not all events are the result of human choice or explanatory causes.
Socrates: What role does free will play in an event?
Ryan: in most events the choices of the individuals will affect the outcome. This does not mean the behavior is predestined it only means the choices the individual made led to the event. Because some events cannot be controlled but occur anyway. These events cannot be explained or are the result of free will. Some events just occur.
Socrates: How do you define human choice? How do you definite human event? Are they different?
Ryan: Human choice is free will. It is the ability to make a choice. Without choice everything is predetermined. If everything is predetermined people need do nothing but wait and let what happens unfold. They should not make decisions or selections. If people are not responsible for what they do or what happens they have no reasons to make positive changes and cannot be blamed for the bad acts they engage in. without free will if a person commit a murder tit would not be there fault and instead would be the result of the explanatory cause.
Ryan: Human event is an event that results from the choice made by a person. The human event does not involve the natural disaster or other events that cannot be controlled but instead involves event that involves human involvement but not necessarily that individual. For example if a person is in a car accident where they get t-boned by another human, this is a human event even if the individual did not cause the car accident. The human choice and the human event are similar because the human choice is needed to for the human event to occur (Keil, 2006).
Socrates: How do people choose?
Ryan: People choose after they consider different options and weigh the benefits against the consequences.
Socrates: Are human events random?
Ryan: Some human events are random while others are not. For example if a bridge occurs the event is random but the cause is related to the choice make by the humans that build the bridge. They may have selected iron that was not as strong as recommended or used the wrong bridge design. In a way this can be explanatory in that there is an explanation and a series of actions leading to the bridge collapse but the original choices were the result of human choice.
Socrates: Do you agree that to have an explanatory cause is to not be free?
Ryan: I do not believe that to have an explanatory cause is not to be free because even if there is an explanatory cause for some actions there is also free will to explain many, many more events. On the other hands there are events
Socrates: How do you define free?
Ryan: Free is the ability to make choices. Free is not being oppressed by a government or forced to make choices based on the choices of others. Being free is the right to pursue happiness and the ability to fulfill all goals a person sets. Free is living in society were choices are allowed and equality is essential. When something is not free they are oppressed, trapped, or imprisoned. Freedom does not mean a person can break the laws but they are free to chose to break law if that what they want.
Socrates: Do you think that free will and determinism can coexist in any way?
Ryan: free will and determinism and coexist because they both occur. Free will or choice is more relevant in many cases than the determinism but there are events that cause another event that leads to the ultimate event. In other events it requires human intervention for the event to occur.
Socrates: Is it possible to have external determinism and internal free will?
Ryan: It is possible to have external determinism and free will. There are same events that cannot be foreseen or stopped meaning no free will is applied while in other events fee will is the reason that the event did occur. Because not everything can be explained or controlled means that not everything involves free will.
References
Hacker, P. M. S., 1982b, ‘Events and Objects in Space and Time’, Mind, 91, 1–19; reprinted in
Events, pp. 429–47.
Keil, F. (2006). Explanation and Understanding. Annual Review of Psychology, 57(1): 227-254
Nicols, S. (2011). Is Free Will an illusion? Retrieved March 7, 2014 from
http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/is-free-will-an-illusion/?
Who We Are
We are a professional custom writing website. If you have searched a question and bumped into our website just know you are in the right place to get help in your coursework.
Do you handle any type of coursework?
Yes. We have posted over our previous orders to display our experience. Since we have done this question before, we can also do it for you. To make sure we do it perfectly, please fill our Order Form. Filling the order form correctly will assist our team in referencing, specifications and future communication.
Is it hard to Place an Order?
1. Click on the “Place order tab at the top menu or “Order Now” icon at the bottom and a new page will appear with an order form to be filled.
2. Fill in your paper’s requirements in the "PAPER INFORMATION" section and click “PRICE CALCULATION” at the bottom to calculate your order price.
3. Fill in your paper’s academic level, deadline and the required number of pages from the drop-down menus.
4. Click “FINAL STEP” to enter your registration details and get an account with us for record keeping and then, click on “PROCEED TO CHECKOUT” at the bottom of the page.
5. From there, the payment sections will show, follow the guided payment process and your order will be available for our writing team to work on it.
Need help with this assignment?
Order it here claim 25% discount
Discount Code: SAVE25