Neuroscience made you doubt your freedom
You read that the brain decides before you do and are not sure what that means.
Courses
Start with three things you can do today
Do we have free will, and does it matter for responsibility
Work out whether your choices are really yours, and what follows if they are not.
Separate the claim that events are determined from the question of what freedom and responsibility require. Compatibilists hold that free will can coexist with determinism; incompatibilists deny that compatibility. Neither a feeling of choice nor a slogan about causation settles the debate.
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A starting goal
I am curious whether our choices are truly free. Introduce the main arguments about free will and help me think through what they imply for responsibility and everyday decisions.
Change any word so it fits your situation. The course is built from what you type and a few setup questions.
Start today
Three things you can do before the course exists.
Useful on their own. The course is for when you want the whole skill, not just the first move.
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Compare choice under different conditions
Original contrast: Mara gives a book to a friend because she wants to, while Jo hands over a book under a serious threat. Both actions can have causes. The contrast asks whether coercion and the ability to act for one's reasons matter for freedom.
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Name the question still open
A compatibilist can regard the first case as relevantly free even if determinism is true. An incompatibilist may argue that this still lacks a further condition, such as the required kind of control or alternatives. This is a simplified entry into the disagreement, not a complete account of either side.
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Keep responsibility questions precise
Ask what kind of praise, blame or response you mean and why it is justified. Changing the circumstances, knowledge or coercion can change the case. Write which condition your judgment depends on. Do not assume all views of free will preserve the same account of moral responsibility.
Sources: Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy: compatibilism and its objections. Practical examples are starting points, not promised results.
- Best for
- Philosophy
- Prerequisites
- None. Bring the situation you have.
- Course length
- 7 to 30 lessons
- Pace
- Yours. One lesson at a time, as often as you like.
- Format
- Read it, or play the audio
- Access
- Available on the App Store and Google Play, with an optional early testing list
Before the course is built
Setup asks about your situation first.
Lesson 1 opens on the moment you describe, and the examples use your role. For this request, expect questions like these.
- What prompts the question: science, religion, a moral puzzle, or curiosity?
- Do you currently feel free, determined, or unsure what the question means?
- Are you more interested in the metaphysics or the consequences for responsibility?
Right for now
If any of this sounds familiar, start here.
Blame and punishment puzzle you
If nobody could have done otherwise, what are we doing when we blame?
You like hard questions
This one has no settled answer and you find that appealing.
Course arc
Where the course goes, in order.
Cadence writes the lessons for you, so the exact path follows your answers. This is the ground a course built from this sentence covers.
01 / 06The problem
Why cause and effect seem to leave no room for choice.
Determinism
The case that everything, including decisions, follows from prior causes.
Libertarian free will
The case that genuine choice exists, and its difficulties.
Compatibilism
Examine accounts that allow free will and determinism to coexist, and the objections to them.
Responsibility
What blame, praise and punishment mean under each view.
Living with the question
Deciding how to act when the answer is uncertain.
What changes
What you will be able to do, and what you will stop believing.
You will be able to
Separate the main claims
Distinguish determinism, compatibility and different proposed conditions for freedom.
Follow the consequences
See what each view implies for responsibility and how we treat each other.
Hold a considered view
Arrive at a position you can defend, with its costs acknowledged.
Ideas this course corrects
Determinism is the same claim as having no free will
Whether determinism rules out free will is the disputed compatibility question.
A neuroscience result alone defines moral responsibility
Interpreting an experiment and defending a standard of responsibility require further arguments.
Course questions
What to know before you start.
Do we have free will, and does it matter for responsibility: what can I do today?
Compare choice under different conditions. Original contrast: Mara gives a book to a friend because she wants to, while Jo hands over a book under a serious threat. Both actions can have causes. The contrast asks whether coercion and the ability to act for one's reasons matter for freedom. Name the question still open. A compatibilist can regard the first case as relevantly free even if determinism is true. An incompatibilist may argue that this still lacks a further condition, such as the required kind of control or alternatives. This is a simplified entry into the disagreement, not a complete account of either side. Keep responsibility questions precise. Ask what kind of praise, blame or response you mean and why it is justified. Changing the circumstances, knowledge or coercion can change the case. Write which condition your judgment depends on. Do not assume all views of free will preserve the same account of moral responsibility.
Is this a fixed course?
No. Cadence builds the course when you type the sentence and answer a few setup questions, so the lessons follow your situation. This page describes what a course built from this request covers. You see the whole path before Lesson 1.
Who is this course for?
Separate the claim that events are determined from the question of what freedom and responsibility require. Compatibilists hold that free will can coexist with determinism; incompatibilists deny that compatibility. Neither a feeling of choice nor a slogan about causation settles the debate. It sits under Philosophy in the Ideas & discovery part of the library.
Do I need any prior experience?
No. Setup asks what you already know and where you want to use it, and the course starts from there. Bring a real situation if you have one; the examples are built around it.
How long does it take?
Most courses run 7 to 30 lessons. The course length is sized to what you asked for. You set the pace: one lesson at a time, as often as you like. Lessons can be read or played as audio.
Does this course award a certificate or degree?
No. Cadence is for practical self-learning and does not award accredited degrees or professional certification.
Start today
Type it, answer a few questions, open Lesson 1.
A starting goal
I am curious whether our choices are truly free. Introduce the main arguments about free will and help me think through what they imply for responsibility and everyday decisions.
Want new features first?